A newsletter for students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends
September 8, 2017
UMES celebrates 131st birthday Dr. LeRoi S. Hicks will be the featured speaker for the University of Maryland Eastern Shore’s 131st Founders’ Day Convocation and summer commencement exercises. The event will be held Thursday, Sept. 14 at 10 a.m. in the Ella Fitzgerald Center for the Performing Arts, where 29 graduate students are candidates to receive their Doctor of Physical Therapy degrees. The Christiana Care Health System based in Wilmington, Del. earlier this year named Hicks its Hugh R. Sharp Jr. Chair of Medicine and physician leader of the Acute Medicine Service Line. According to Christiana Care, the system named Hicks its vice chair of the Department of Medicine and section chief of General Internal Medicine in 2014. He supervised the Hospital Medicine and Ambulatory Medicine divisions, responsible for educational, clinical and quality initiatives such as interdisciplinary rounding and process redesign. A nationally known researcher focusing on health care disparities, Hicks has served on the National Council of the Society of General Internal Medicine and Board of Scientific Counselors to the National Library of Medicine. He also has been a National Institutes of Health grant reviewer
and an editor and reviewer for multiple medical journals. Hicks is a 1991 Howard University graduate with a bachelor’s degree in medical technology. In 1995, he earned a medical degree from the Indiana University School of Medicine and a Master of Public Health degree from the Harvard School of Public Health in 2001. He is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians. After completing an internal medicine (primary care) residency, Hicks was chief resident for a year at Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, Mass. He then completed a fellowship in general medicine and faculty development at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, where he was a hospitalist from 1999 to 2011. He became chief of Hospital Medicine at the University of Massachusetts in 2011, where his team won four Champions of Excellence awards for growth, financial sustainability and high-quality care. His research interests include the effects of patients’ racial and cultural background on the treatment and clinical outcomes of chronic disease; the development and assessment of interventions aimed at improving quality of medical care and the reduction of disparities in care; and community-based participatory research to identify and address healthcare disparities.
UMES welcomes Class of 2021 A dad lends a little muscle to assist his Hawk on Freshman Move-In Day.
Left: Kajuan Estep of Baltimore is greeted Aug. 24 by UMES President Juliette B. Bell and HH3 as he moves into his dorm on Freshman Move-In Day.
INSIDE
Above: HH3 offers a warm welcome to new Hawks arriving and settling in to their Princess Anne nest.
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Intern has Brush with Stars Welcome Back Picnic UMES Counselor Volunteers in Texas
Ta-dah! Move-in complete; on to checking out the Academic Oval and getting acclimated to UMES’ campus.
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General Counsel Named WESM Welcomes New GM
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Local Business Pledge for Scholarships Solar Eclipse
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Faculty Art Show M Street Grille Opening
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Hawk Family Fills Coaching Positions
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Lending a Hand to Community Youth UMES Police Aid Community Golf & STEM Summer Youth Camp Moment of Silence
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A&E Calendar
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Circling the Oval
The Key / September 8, 2017
Internship brings brush with golf stars UMES senior Nia Troutman of Dayton, Ohio had a front-row seat this summer to one of 2017’s biggest events in women’s golf while earning credit toward her degree in golf management. Troutman is in the midst of a seven-month internship at the Des Moines Golf & Country Club, which played host Aug. 14-20 to the biennial Solheim Cup, a team competition that pits America’s best pros against counterparts from Europe. It afforded Troutman an opportunity to observe up close LPGA stars she watches from afar – Anna Nordqvist, Lexi Thompson, Michelle Wei and Cristie Kerr. “It was amazing how focused they all were,” Troutman said. “I got a chance to see how professional golfers conduct themselves – how hard they practice and prepare, and how they interact with fans.” The Solheim Cup is a match-play format, so fans treat the competition as any other routine American sporting event. “The energy was amazing,” Troutman said. “You can scream, yell, and be as loud as you want. The players fed off the energy.” Troutman lives in a cottage on the grounds of the golf course and except for summer-season student help, is the lone long-term intern. She’s responsible for managing the private club’s “bag room,” where
UMES president hosts welcome back picnic UMES’ new track and field and cross country coach Damion Drummond, brought his wife, Kristen, and their children, Penn, and Dane, to introduce them to the UMES community. Staffers from UMES’ Center for Access and Academic Success, from left, Sasha Cousins and Andrea Taylor, attended the President’s annual welcome back picnic Aug 25 on the lawn of her home. UMES students joined the event.
UMES counselor volunteers in aftermath of Texas disaster Kathy “Kate” Kent, a licensed social worker in UMES’ Counseling Services, will be among the second wave of volunteers with the Delmarva Chapter of the American Red Cross going to Texas in the aftermath of hurricane Harvey, which came ashore Aug. 25 as a Category 4 storm. She deployed Sunday on a plane to Texas to relieve “those who have been there since the first response. We will be trying to downsize the (numbers of people) in the (overcrowded) shelters and set up new ones.” Read more on Kent’s experience in the Sept. 22 issue of The Key.
she keeps close track of some 1,000 sets of members’ clubs, ensures they are clean and in good shape, and properly catalogued. She also works in the club’s pro shop and gave lessons and conducted clinics for junior golfers. Teaching is the career path she’s hoping to follow when she completes her degree requirements in 2018. During the cup competition, Troutman rose before dawn to get the driving range prepped for the pros who showed up each morning to practice their shots. Troutman marveled at the players’ intensity and attention to perfecting shots, sometimes hitting 50 or more balls with one club after another “until they got it right.” Because she was an employee of the event’s host, she maintained a professional distance and did not approach the players for pictures or autographs. Troutman did have a brief exchange with American Danielle Kang, who noticed the two were dressed virtually alike on a practice day. On Saturday of the competition, Kang spotted Troutman in the gallery and was close enough to joke they were “not (wearing) matching (attire) that day.” “That was kind of cool,” she said, “that she recognized me and remembered me.”
UMES People
General counsel named to president’s administrative team
Matthew A. Taylor has been named general counsel for the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. He comes to UMES from Jackson State University, a historically black institution in Mississippi’s state capital, where he had been working as general counsel for the past three years. Aug. 15 was his first day. Taylor’s appointment by UMES President Juliette B. Bell adds a new senior adviser to her leadership team. “With the complex nature of our institution as it transitions to its new Carnegie status as a Doctoral Research University, it is clear that a dedicated in-house legal counsel is needed to ensure that the university’s interests are best served and that we are positioned to take advantage of all opportunities that arise,” Bell said. “The general counsel will also oversee compliance and provide policy training. I am confident that Matthew has the experience and expertise to help UMES achieve continued advancement in many areas,” she added. Taylor also will collaborate with counterparts at other institutions within the University System of Maryland as well as the state of Maryland’s Office of the Attorney General, which has an education division that serves as the legal representative for state institutions of higher education, including UMES. After graduating from the University of Mississippi’s law school in 1999, Taylor worked in the private sector in his native Mississippi where he handled civil litigation cases. From 2010 to 2013, he managed a law firm he founded with two other attorneys focusing on corporate and litigation practice before taking a position as associate general counsel at Jackson State University. After 15 years in private practice, Taylor said he did not know he would “enjoy practicing law in higher education so much. It just so happens I landed in an HBCU environment ... I fell in love with the culture and the people. It felt like a great fit for me personally and professionally.” Taylor has been recognized with a top rating for ethics and professional ability by Martindale-Hubbell, an organization founded in 1868 to coordinate peer-review attorney evaluations. He also served as a continuing legal education speaker for the Mississippi Bar on the topics of ethics and trial practice. He is a 2005 graduate of Stanford University’s International Association of Defense Counsel Trial Academy. His undergraduate degree in English, with honors, is from Mississippi College in Clinton. Taylor and his wife, Sherry, are the parents of four children and became grandparents for the first time this summer. “I have always really liked this area of the country,” he said of his move to Maryland. “I’ve been here many times. I knew of the school. A lot of my close colleagues at Jackson State knew people here, or people who worked here. So I definitely had good feelings about attempting to land the position. I’m ready to take on that responsibility,” Taylor said.
The Key / September 8, 2017
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WESM 91.3 FM welcomes new general manager Veteran broadcaster Gerry Weston became general manager of WESM (91.3 FM), the National Public Radio affiliate on UMES’ campus, Aug. 21. Weston was general manager of Delmarva Public Radio at Salisbury University from 2007 until 2011 before returning to his native Massachusetts to manage a public radio station in Worcester. He succeeds Stephen Williams, who in 2016 accepted the general manager’s job at WMUK-FM, a public radio station at Western Michigan University. Brian Daniels has acted as WESM’s general manager in the interim. “I used to listen to WESM,” Weston, 65, said, “That’s where the jazz was.” “Jazz is a language,” he said. “Once you learn (it), everything opens up for you.” A graduate of Syracuse University, Weston’s four-decade-long broadcasting career has been spent primarily at public radio stations, including those emphasizing a jazz format – his favorite music genre. He remembers as a child listening to his late father’s (vinyl) record collection that prominently featured Count Basie. Bobby Darin’s version of “Mack the Knife” was the first (vinyl) recording Weston owned. “I caught the bug,” he said. His previous stint working in Salisbury also made him appreciate the Lower Shore, where long-time residents often point out transplants like Weston come to appreciate the region because they’ve succumbed to the colloquial affliction known as “sand in their shoes.” It turns out one of his favorite pastimes is visiting Assateague, where he fondly recalls some fellow beach-goers happen to be wild ponies. “When the (WESM) job opened up,” Weston said, “I couldn’t have been more excited.” A public radio station general manager’s job entails the perpetual task of coordinating fundraising, a challenge Weston has embraced much of his career. “I love the (Delmarva) peninsula and the different communities and different personalities. I find that to be a challenge,” he said. “Raising money is important. Familiarity helped me get the job.” Weston is confident that his understanding of Delmarva will be an advantage launching ideas on generating listener support for WESM. “I look forward to the opportunity to put ideas into action and increase private fundraising from donors and from businesses,” he said. “We want to build a strong network of underwriting and listener support.” Weston might even slip on the headphones and sit behind a microphone to host an occasional broadcast. “You never really leave that behind,” he said. {With apologies to lyricist Bertolt Brecht, who wrote “Mack the Knife”}: “Now that Gerry’s back in town … Look out, old Gerry’s back.”
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School News
The Key / September 8, 2017
The owners and Smith said. “We want to do operators of Bennie our part to help students Smith Funeral Home Inc. graduate with their peers.” have established a new Distribution of scholarship fund at the financial aid generated University of Maryland by the endowment could Eastern Shore. begin as soon as the The Bennie and Shirley 2019-20 academic year. Smith Endowed Scholarship Once the university has Fund is being created established criteria and is to provide need-based ready to award the money, scholarships to deserving undergraduates from all UMES students. majors will be eligible, a The Smiths’ latest UMES spokeswoman said. pledge is the most recent Dr. Juliette B. Bell, in a series of philanthropic UMES’ president, said gestures they and their she is most grateful to the business have made over Smiths for their generous the past two decades pledge. From left, university benefactors Shirley and Bennie Smith meet with UMES in support of university “The endowed President Juliette B. Bell to pledge $100,000 for student scholarships. Cynthia projects and students. scholarship fund will Williams, right, of the Bennie Smith Funeral Home is also pictured. The couple most greatly assist students with recently played host in December 2016 to a holiday fundraising reception needed financial support,” Bell said. “The Smiths want to see our students where over 700 guests were invited to make contributions to UMES and complete their degrees and become leaders in their chosen fields, just as Delaware State University. they themselves have been.” The guests’ contributions were matched by the Smiths, who then Beyond their geographic proximity on the Delmarva Peninsula, UMES went a step further and decided to establish scholarship funds at both (1886) and Delaware State (1891) are both historically black land-grant universities, pledging $100,000 to each campus. universities and members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. “We commit to supporting UMES students because we believe in the The Smiths have 13 funeral homes serving Delmarva, from mission of the university and the impact it has on our region,” Bennie Wilmington, Del., to Exmore, Va., including one in Princess Anne.
Local business owners pledge $100,000 for student scholarships
UMES gathers for solar eclipse The University of Maryland Eastern Shore’s Department of Natural Sciences hosted more than 300 guests from the campus and community at a viewing party Aug. 21 to share the experience—and the special glasses—of observing a partial (81 percent) solar eclipse.
UMES President Juliette B. Bell (center) dons special glasses to observe the eclipse along with (from left) Manny Maldonado, Dr. Xavier Henry and Chris Hartman on the historic Academic Oval.
Third year pharmacy students Marco Dela Cruz and Aqsa Malik work to get a photo of the partial eclipse with a cell phone.
School News
The Key / September 8, 2017
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Mosely Gallery exhibition season opens with faculty show In addition to the annual faculty show’s display of recent paintings, drawings, prints, photos, ceramics, sculpture, glass works and installations, I invited our talented faculty to also create works specifically addressing the theme, “Homage.” During our careers as professional artists and art educators, we have all learned from and been inspired by other artists. The show, which is on display Sept. 7 through Oct. 12, is designed to acknowledge and pay tribute to some of those artists. As part of the applied design program, we require our students to study art history and current artists. We make field trips to museums and galleries so that they may appreciate historical works close up, as well as gain fluency in contemporary trends so that they are prepared to find their place in today’s market. The goals in this exhibition are educational as well as personal and artistic expression. My display honors the work of Claes Oldenburg, originally a Pop artist from the 1960s, who translates a reverence for everyday objects into large scale sculptures, often permanently displayed in prominent public spaces. Their presence all over
M Street Grille grand opening Owner/operator Brandon Phillips, a UMES alumnus (‘98) and Board of Visitor’s member, addressed guests Aug. 29 during M Street Grille’s grand opening. Phillips wanted to give back to the university in establishing the eatery, which also serves as a “learning laboratory that cultivates, encourages and promotes entrepreneurism among University of Maryland Eastern Shore students interested in pursuing careers in the hospitality industry.” M Street Grille is located at 12302 Somerset Ave. in the Princess Anne University Village.
the world, out of scale and context, often elicits a humorous response from viewers. A few examples are sculptures of a 45’ tall steel clothespin in Centre Square, Philadelphia; a 20’ tall typewriter eraser in the National Galley sculpture garden in D.C., and a 7,000 pound spoon that becomes a bridge over a river with a large red cherry at the top in a public park in Minneapolis. Early in his career, he made large scale ‘soft sculptures’ of common objects. They are sewn and stuffed fabric versions of solid objects, such as a light switch or a toilet that—while instantly recognizable—acquire a wonderful, new existence as floppy renditions of the everyday. This summer I studied Oldenburg’s drawings in particular. He is a master draftsman with a style that is very loose, but quite accurate. I chose the ubiquitous cell phone as my subject for the creation of a six foot tall ‘soft iPhone’ that sits on a bench in the gallery. I also made a series of watercolors placing the supersized phone in various settings on our campus. I am curious to know if, some years from now, students will wonder the way they do now when viewing Oldenburg’s typewriter eraser, what that strange object was for! Susan Holt, Gallery Director
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The Key / September 8, 2017
Athletics
Athletics turns to Hawk family to fill coaching positions The University of Maryland Eastern Shore appointed alumnus, one-time Hawks assistant and long-time Parkside High School coach Brian Hollamon to be its head baseball coach in August and then followed that up by appointing alumnus and former assistant coach Damion Drummond to the position of the head coach for The Shore’s track and field and cross country programs. “Hawk Athletics is a family and there is no greater joy than to welcome back coaches into the fold who have already been members of that family,” Athletic Director Keith Davidson said. Hollamon was a graduate assistant with the Hawks from 1996-99 when he earned a Masters of Education in guidance and counseling from the university. Over the past 14 seasons at Parkside, where he was also a guidance counselor, Hollamon built a perennial power in the Bayside Conference, while consistently producing players who went on to play college baseball at all levels including Division I. Hollamon led the Rams to 14 straight winning seasons from 2003-2017.
Parkside won three Bayside South Titles, one Bayside crown, two Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association 2A East Region Sectional Championships, four Maryland 2A East Regional Championships, and most notably made two MPSSAA 2A State Finalist Appearances (2009, 2014). “I am very excited for the opportunity,” Hollamon said of his return to the Maroon and Gray. “When I coached here, I enjoyed my time and I’m looking forward to getting back to what we were building. From the moment I had to tell the players in 1999 that I wouldn’t be returning, I have had a desire to one day come back.” Drummond, a graduate of the class of 2006, brings more than a decade of coaching experience to his alma mater. Most recently, Drummond was the head coach of Route 13 rival Delaware State, a post he held since 2015. “It’s a humbling situation to be able to give back to somewhere where I received so much,” Drummond said. “It’s a place that I would consider saved my soul. I’m excited to be able to instill a sense of academics that I have come to appreciate. When I got there everything boomed for me athletically and academically, especially being on the honor roll and the MEAC academic team. Those things to me are so much more important than being a record holder (in the 800 meters) in the conference.” “For me to be able to sit back in that chair now and give back; share my story with these student athletes. That is the opportunity that I am looking forward to. The coaching part will take care of itself. The talent will come and the results will speak for themselves.”
Circling the World
The Key / September 8, 2017
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Lending a hand to community youth Diamond Nwaeze, a UMES alum (’17) and Americorps VISTA liaison in UMES’ Office of University Engagement and Lifelong Learning, helped aspiring gardeners at the Garland Hayward Youth Center with a yield that won ribbons at the 2017 Somerset County Fair. Ribbon winners, from left, are: Shekinah Cook (2nd carrots), Jaliyah Wright (1st cucumbers), Nizaiah Nutter (2nd cantaloupe), Javion Collins (1st marigolds, Jeremiah Corbin (1st okra) and Nwaeze.
Golf & STEM summer youth camp held
UMES police officers aid community The UMES Police Department joined the Maryland State Police Princess Anne Barrack in its “Operation Somerset Law Enforcement Unites to Tackle Hunger” project. From left, Mark Tyler, UMES’ interim police chief, and Lt. Paul Keplinger, helped prepare and deliver bags of food along with other agency officers to 23 area families needing a helping hand.
Moment of Silence observed English professor Melissa Green-Moore’s midday “Introductory to Poetry” class observed a moment of silence Aug. 30 in solidarity with Bowie State University to remember the late Richard Collins III, a Bowie State University Army ROTC student murdered this past May on the University of Maryland College Park campus. All USM institutions participated.
UMES hosted a two-day Golf & STEM summer youth program sponsored by the MD 4-H Foundation, the Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore and the University of Maryland Extension (UME) 4-H. Campers came away with valuable hands-on experience, knowledge and advice along with their own golf bag complete with putter, wedge, iron and wood. Golf clubs were donated by Leveling the Playing Field. UME 4-H STEM educators captivated participants with activities related to the physics of golf, volume displacement and learning about the trajectories a ball takes. Jamila Johnson, a coordinator in UMES’ PGA Golf Management program, taught students golf basics, imparted philosophies about the game and shared her youth experiences with campers. Johnson (right) is pictured above with winners in driving and chipping contests.
arts & entertainment calendar fall 2017
SEPTEMBER OCTOBER 13 18
Founders’ Day
Happy 131st Birthday UMES (1886-2017). 410-651-UMES
Health Care Speakers Series
7 p.m., Student Services Center Theatre Rep. Andy Harris, M.D., is the keynote speaker for the second annual Nicholas Blanchard Health Care Speakers Series on the topic, “The State of the Nation’s Health Care.” 410-651-UMES *Unless noted, all events listed are free.
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Art Exhibit Opening Reception
4-6 p.m., Mosely Gallery Invitational show of contemporary graphic illustrators who use visual communication as a tool for social progress. Hours: Mon. through Fri., 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Show on display through Nov. 22. 11 a.m., Hazel Hall 2040 Portfolio review with guest artist Tasheka Arceneaux-Sutton. www.moselygallery.com 410-651-7770
“Black Woman Blue” by Tasheka Arceneaux-Sutton
The Key / September 8, 2017
The University of Maryland Eastern Shore prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, religion, national origin, disability, marital status, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression. Inquiries regarding the application of Federal laws and non-discrimination policies to University programs and activities may be referred to the Office of Equity & Compliance/Title IX Coordinator by telephone (410) 651-7848 or e-mail (titleix@umes.edu).
The Key is published by the Office of Public Relations umesnews@umes.edu, 410-651-7580 An archive is available at www.umes.edu/TheKey
Submissions to The KEY are preferred via email. All copy is subject to editing. The Key is written according to the Associated Press stylebook.
Princess Anne University Village • 12302 Somerset Ave. Princess Anne, MD • 410-621-5937 HOURS Sun.-Thur. 10 a.m. – midnight | Fri.& Sat.10 a.m. -2 a.m.
A sports grille also serving as a learning laboratory for UMES hospitality students. University Relations 30665 Student Services Center Lane Princess Anne, MD 21853 PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID MAIL MOVERS