December 2021
A newsletter for students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends
Jordan White
UMES celebrates a rare double commencement
COVID-19 kept the class of 2020 at home for a virtual event
Tina Ko
University of Maryland Eastern Shore seniors who endured a revised, recalibrated and rebranded undergraduate experience under the pall of a persistent global pandemic completed that arduous journey Dec. 17 with a time-honored rite of passage – commencement. Graduates were joined by a handful of alumni from the class of 2020. President Heidi M. Anderson invited them to the Hytche Athletic Center to be recognized in person as well for their accomplishment that initially was celebrated a year ago in a recorded virtual ceremony. Among the 179 students who completed their degree work this fall was Ciani C. Wells, an English major from Philadelphia with a 4.0 grade point average. Wells successfully auditioned to deliver the student commentary, another highlight on her resume that shows she earned her degree in 3½ years and has designs on going to law school next fall. “We stand here transformed into accomplished and sophisticated young adults ready to face the world head on,” Wells assured her classmates. “Today, we are more knowledgeable … we have more courage … we feel more confident,” she said. “Today, we are more certain of our
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Faculty News
Julia de Huarte
Student and Staff News Q&A with NAA President
Commencement 2021
passion ... we have more experience under our belts … we are more comfortable with sharing our talents and our gifts.” “Today,” she said, “we are more aware than ever of our individual greatness and our ability to succeed.” Jordan L. Kelly of Bridgeton, N.J. also graduated a semester early, earning her Bachelor of Science degree in rehabilitation psychology with a minor in psychology. While at UMES, she played softball and tennis. After graduation, she plans to pursue special education citing her work experience with young children (toddlers) and the importance of that work. “Being at UMES taught me to get out of my comfort zone and helped me to be more independent,” Kelly said. “It allowed me to have new experiences and be more open minded. Kenny R. Davis Jr. earned a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering with honors. Davis grew up in Parsonsburg, Md. just east of Salisbury, a small, tight-knit farming community. He’s the first in his immediate family to Commencement continued on page 2
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White House HBCU Press Briefing
Page 9 Small Farm Conf. STEM Festival
Page 10 Essay Contest on Summer of Soul
Page 11 Page 12 Athletics
Happy Holidays
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The Key / December 2021
Student Commentary
Meet UMES’ student commentary speaker for winter commencement Ciani Wells, an English major who aspires to be a lawyer, delivered the student commentary Dec. 17 on behalf of the class of 2021 at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore’s winter commencement exercises. Wells, who hails from Philadelphia, took at an aggressive, year-round approach to carrying a heavy course load and graduated with honors in 3½ years. She plans to spend early 2022 focused on preparing for the law school entrance exam so she can continue her studies in the fall of 2022. Those familiar with her across the UMES campus are confident she’ll achieve that goal. Wells said she’s hopeful of practicing law with a focus on social justice issues and representing those who deserve legal representation but may not have the means or know-how. During her first three years, Wells’ classmates elected her to senior leadership positions, including class president as a sophomore and a junior. She also impressed peers and faculty with her work at the UMES Writing Center, where she assisted “students with writing assignments” and tutored them on “writing concepts and principles” as well as conducted orientations for new undergraduates. In a letter of recommendation submitted to the speaker screening committee, classmate Leah Swindler wrote that “when it comes to Ciani speaking, it definitely moves whoever she is talking to.” “I wouldn’t want anyone else to give this speech than Ms. Ciani Wells,” Swindler wrote. Wells also found time to volunteer in promoting voter registration, assisting with weekly COVID-19 testing, participating in campus clean-up initiatives and as a Women’s History Month project, played a key role in organizing a drive to collect and donate cash and hygiene products to a local homeless shelter. Wells left her mark as student speaker-writer-ambassador for the university’s communications office. During the spring 2020 pandemic-induced lockdown of campus, Wells agreed to write an essay describing strategies she employed to cope with distance-learning. Focus on time management – “me time,” she called it, including binge-watching a favorite TV drama – was her shared advice to create some sense of adjusting to the socalled “new normal.” She accepted the challenge of representing UMES in an Instagram Live interview organized around a “Support Black Colleges” theme and impressed the event’s organizers with her grasp of the university’s colorful history, which she researched on just a few days’ notice.
Commencement continued from cover
earn a college degree. When not attending class or studying, Davis said he worked a series of jobs to put himself through school – sometimes putting in more than 20 hours a week. He and two classmates, Landon Bickle and Fabian M. Wilson, spent the fall semester designing and building an underwater drone as a capstone project. The trio captured its performance in a three-minute video taken at a local swimming pool. Davis had internships the past three summers at Wallops, including one where he was entrusted with ensuring flight hardware was ready for launch – in other words, he said he was the last person to “tighten some bolts before a payload flew into space on an Atlas 5 rocket.” When Tina Ko of Cockeysville, Md. walked across the Hytche center stage to receive her aviation science degree (specialization – management), she fulfilled a dream inspired by her uncle – and mentor. Ko immigrated to this country from Korea at age 12 and credits her uncle – a professional pilot – with instilled in her that she should do what she dreamed of doing. She enrolled in UMES in 2019 as a transfer student uncertain if she had what was needed to earn a bachelor’s degree. She credits UMES’ aviation science faculty – singling out Dr. Willie Brown – for the handson support that helped her reach her goal. Ko worked in a student fellowship capacity for NASA at the Wallops Flight Facility, where she participated in environmental research into challenges confronting the ozone, the earth’s protective layer of atmosphere. She has accepted a job offer from Korean Airlines and will be moving to Atlanta in early 2022. Jordan White of Baltimore received his degree in exercise science with a specialization in clinical studies. The Richard A. Henson Honors program participant is hoping that experience might translate into work in the sports medicine field. White said he was surprised by how much he came to appreciate UMES in rural Somerset County. “I couldn’t see myself carrying out my undergrad career anywhere else,” he said. “I’ve built life-long relationships here and I have endless memories wild and funny stories that lie on this campus.” “This was the driving force that kept me here,” White said, adding “I learned college is what you make it.” Princess Anne community leader Garland Hayward, a 1975 alumnus and long-serving town commissioner, received an honorary degree.
Faculty News
Endowed Chair in Entrepreneurship and Innovation named
Dr. Pamela L. Allison has been named the Endowed Chair in Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. Allison moves from department chair of UMES’ hospitality and tourism management program into her new job Jan. 3. She joined the university faculty in July 2020. “With an extensive background in business creation, development and public-private innovation, Dr. Allison is an excellent choice for this new position,” UMES President Heidi M. Anderson said. In 2019, UMES leveraged a private donation to qualify for a $2 million grant from the Maryland Department of Commerce’s “E-Nnovation Initiative Fund,” which the state created to stimulate “basic and applied research in scientific and technical fields of study” at its colleges and universities. The program also supports entrepreneurship at Maryland institutions. Allison will report to David Balcom, UMES’ vice president for university relations, who spearheaded the effort to create the fund in support of an endowed professorship to foster a new generation of entrepreneurs across the University’s broad-ranging programs. “Students need a broad understanding of ‘… entrepreneurial thinking’ to strengthen their career aspirations,” Balcom said. “Many UMES students and faculty already have started businesses, or have ideas that need to be nurtured. This interdisciplinary effort could be transformative for our students and faculty.” In addition to teaching responsibilities, Allison will be the point person to shepherd ideas that bubble up within the campus community, which might find success as a productive business or service. Allison brings a background in education and business to the position. She earned a Ph.D. from the University of Central Florida in 2009, taught at the college level for the past 15 years and also has been a higher education administrator since 2013.
The Key / December 2021
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Dr. Pamela L. Allison assumes the newly created faculty position Jan. 3
She launched her most recent business venture four years ago. Living Fabulously Fluffy, LLC is the parent company of multiple brands in the bath and body product industry with a private-label manufacturing facility. Marketed under the brands Bounce Back Baths and Fluffy Fizzies™, multiple large companies such as runDisney and Amazon sell her products. “It’s time to create a culture of entrepreneurship and innovation for our students, faculty, alumni and the community we serve,” Allison said. “An integral step in this is establishing a UMES Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation,” which will follow in the months ahead. Allison envisions the center serving as an innovation hub to draw attention to “groundbreaking work already taking place … across the university.” “Much like a small startup business,” she said, “the (center’s) structure can pivot and grow with the needs of stakeholders. With a digital and physical presence, the new center will house resources for budding entrepreneurs, guiding from concept to market – addressing all phases of entrepreneurship.” A key aspect, Allison said, is ensuring “entrepreneurs … have access to mentors, as well as technical skills related to legal matters, branding, franchising and the like. They also need assistance with startup capital programming and shared resources.” “We also plan to incubate new companies and serve as a place to accelerate the business development of promising ideas,” she said. She said she’ll work to marshal the university’s “wealth of talent to assist with product development, product testing, workforce development and innovation. The center will build upon the strong foundation established over the years to bring entrepreneurship to the Eastern Shore.”
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The Key / December 2021
Student News
Making music a pathway to success Commencements are joyous for newly minted alumni, especially those who conquer challenges and add to the legacy of perseverance the University of Maryland Eastern Shore has come to represent. It might be tough, in UMES’ winter class of 2021, to top the story of Julia de Huarte’s inspiring journey to earning a college degree. De Huarte was born prematurely with a brain not fully developed. Her physically invisible limitation presented obstacles to learning early on, and her family worried that a doctor cautioned her highest level of academic achievement might be elementary school. Dec. 17, 2021 – graduation day at UMES - put that concern to rest. “Music was really the thing that helped me overcome a lot,” de Huarte said. “I had an extremely hard time reading, spelling and (with) math. I still have a hard time with … those things.” De Huarte credits Shannon HurleyWilson, an elementary school teacher, with helping her find her strengths as a student and make them work to her advantage. Hurley-Wilson “did things like create songs to help me remember things,” she said. “I still use that same technique to this day.” De Huarte, who calls Princess Anne home, enrolled at UMES initially as a music education major, but shifted to jazz and popular-style music performance. Earlier this year, de Huarte represented UMES in an all-star chorus of students from historically Black institutions who performed a virtual rendition of the Star Spangled Banner in honor of the song’s 90th anniversary as the national anthem. “It was an amazing feeling to be selected to participate and represent my school,” she said. “I felt pride in being chosen to sing with so many gifted
Julia de Huarte conquered a learning disability to earn a UMES degree
singers, and proud to be singing our country’s national anthem on such a big ‘stage’.” She also sang “I’m Not Afraid of Anything” as a soloist at Dr. Heidi M. Anderson’s presidential inauguration in September 2019. The bouncy but soulful performance inspired an Anderson-led standing ovation. “It was a huge honor to sing for her,” de Huarte said. “She personally reached out to me afterwards and thanked me. It meant so much to me at the time, and still does.” De Huarte wasn’t keen initially with her mother sharing the back story of her physical challenges on Social Media earlier this month. “Julia is a very special woman,” her mother wrote. “Her drive to educate herself and follow all her dreams is simply a miracle and a blessing.” None of de Huarte’s classmates were aware of how she tackled college level work, and only a handful of instructors she was close with knew. “The reaction has been nothing short of amazing,” she said. “I did not expect there to be such an outpouring of love and support.” “Music has really been the only ‘language’ I’ve ever really understood. It has helped me with so many other things,” she said. “I’ve liked to sing for as long as I can remember. I didn’t really realize I had a ‘beautiful’ voice until teachers (who) specialize in music started telling me I did.” De Huarte is already “looking ahead to the next chapter.” “I’m planning on attending grad school next fall, and from there, who knows?” “I’d like to travel the world, singing and spreading the gift of music to whoever needs to hear it,” she said. “It saved me … maybe I can pay it forward, and do that for someone, too.”
UMES News On Nov. 9, President Heidi M. Anderson was voted Board Chair Elect of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities’ Postsecondary Value Commission Task Force. Congratulations Dr. Anderson!
Congratulations! Dr. Robert Mock, UMES’ chief of staff, completed the Leadership Maryland program earlier this month. The eight-month program is “open to seniorlevel executives with significant achievements in either their careers and/or their communities.” Mock was part of the 28th group of participants in the “handson learning program” that focuses “on Maryland’s five main geographic regions and … vital issues impacting economic development, education, health and human services, criminal justice, the environment, and multi-culturalism/diversity across the state.” He joins President Heidi M. Anderson as a graduate (2019) of the program.
The Key / December 2021
Meet Madam President: Q&A with the president of the UMES National Alumni Association As president of the UMES NAA, Teonna Wallop is working to strengthen the alumni network and increase support for UMES and our students. She earned a bachelor’s of science degree in criminal justice from UMES in 2000. Q: Describe your involvement in the NAA and what propelled you to take on the role of president. In Aug. 2020, I was sworn in as second Vice President of the UMES NAA. In Oct. 2021, I acquired the position of first Vice President of the UMES NAA and shortly after that, I acquired the President’s seat. It was always my vision to become the President and move the organization forward. It just so happens that it came earlier than expected. Q: What does it mean to serve in this position? The President is the face of the UMES NAA and is responsible for overseeing the daily operations of the organization. The President also works closely with the UMES President to ensure a true partnership between the university and the association. Q: In this leadership role, what are some goals you have for the NAA? Some goals include providing more organization structure to the non-profit, increasing philanthropic efforts as well as partnerships, increasing membership, increasing the number of local alumni chapters and increasing the association’s involvement in legislative matters impacting HBCUs. Q: Why is NAA membership important? Membership is important to ensure that we have the voice of as many alumni as possible on matters involving UMES, the association and HBCUs. More membership equals more support.
Happy Holidays from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore! Mr. UMES James Webb and Miss UMES Princess Sarah Bentil represented the University of Maryland Eastern Shore during the Princess Anne Christmas parade on Dec. 4. Photo: Carrie Samis
Q: How is the NAA working to create connections with recent graduates? The NAA has been present for students during the academic year for various programming related to alumni relations. The NAA has been present for graduations to explain the importance of supporting Student Hawks, our university, alumni and our communities. Efforts are being made to bridge the gap between graduates as well as older alumni. Q: How can people connect with you or the NAA for more information? I can be reached at umesnaa.membership@gmail.com or at www.umesnaa.org
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Commence
The Key / December 2021
President Heidi M. Anderson and Amar Yusif as he earned his bachelor of science degree in biology on the same campus where he began his educational journey as a daycare graduate of UMES’ Child and Family Development Center.
Aaliyah Douglas, daughter of the late Bradley Douglas (former UMES audio technician), earned her bachelor of science degree in criminal justice. (left to right) Brian Cordell (computer science), Kenny Davis Jr. (engineering), and Marvin Burke (aviation science) pose for a photo to celebrate during commencement.
Student commentary speaker Ciani Wells delivered a stirring address that resonated with graduates and the commencement crowd.
Stephanie Edmonds of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. earned her bachelor of science degree in marketing after an internship in the university’s communications office.
ment 2021
David Velasquez was all smiles with his bachelor of science degree in criminal justice standing next to Dean John Tilghman.
The Key / December 2021
Jason Louis of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. strolled across the stage earning his bachelor of science degree in exercise science.
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Jordan Kelly of Bridgeton, N.J. remains masked as she celebrates earning her bachelor of science degree in rehabilitation psychology.
Gaibrielle Bressler is bound for Purdue University’s College of Veterinary Medicine after earning her bachelor of science degree in general agriculture (pre-vet program) on Dec. 17.
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The Key / December 2021
Student Essay
Inside a White House press briefing By Ajani Thomas
Photos: Marilyn Buerkle
This semester I was fortunate to be invited to two White House press briefings as a student journalist, representing the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. The press briefings were held specifically for HBCU students to voice problems or ask questions and have someone who is watching change happen every day give them a real answer. The first press briefing was with Karine Jean-Pierre, the principal deputy press secretary at the White House. Ms. Jean-Pierre was extremely pleasant and as her last name might give away, she is Caribbean-American. As a fellow Caribbean-American, it felt refreshing to see someone who shares some of my background and understands the different struggles facing subsets of the Black community because she has lived in them. This understanding of different communities is so important for someone in her position so it makes me feel relieved to interact with someone who understands some of my lived experience from a first-person view. The second briefing was on Nov. 18 with Cedric Richmond, senior advisor to the president and the director of the office of public engagement. In the press briefing with Mr. Richmond, he did an amazing job of creating a comfortable atmosphere for us while giving us hardball answers to our questions and even cracking a joke here and there about our respective universities’ sports teams. Mr. Richmond also happens to be a Morehouse graduate. As an HBCU
student, it was a unique experience to have someone in a position of power understand your struggles and understand that he is in rooms where I can’t be yet fighting for students like me going to colleges like mine. As a young Black man and an HBCU student, especially one studying sociology, it’s sometimes difficult to have confidence in our government. Having the opportunity to hear from Director Richmond and Principal Deputy Jean-Pierre, restored some of my faith in the government but specifically the Biden-Harris administration. Seeing and being able to speak to these two extremely accomplished people in roles I can hope to see myself in, actively reach back because they care about what we as HBCU students think was such an inspiring experience for me. This experience has allowed me to set a new goal for myself, being in a position where I can give students like me an opportunity like I received. I would like to thank the Biden-Harris administration for putting together these two conferences, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore for choosing me to represent us, and last but definitely not least, Karine Jean-Pierre and Cedric Richmond for the inspiring experience. Ajani Thomas is a junior majoring in sociology at the University Maryland Eastern Shore.
UMES Extension
UMES Extension’s annual
Small Farm Conference Agricultural stakeholders in the Mid-Atlantic took advantage of educational and networking opportunities at UMES Extension’s 18th annual Small Farm Conference, Nov. 5-6. The popular event featured demonstrations on alternative crops, sustainable farming practices and other hot topics on the university’s 345-acre Research and Education Farm located on Stewart’s Neck Road. Other activities included bus tours to partnering farms doing innovative work, informational sessions on available resources, vendor exhibits and guest speakers. Helping farmers be more successful and increasing their bottom line, especially in challenging times, is the conference’s goal. Photos: Gail Stephens
Participants networked and took advantage of the exhibits in the Student Services Center.
Dr. E. Nelson Escobar, associate dean for UMES Extension, and Future Harvest’s Niamh Shortt talk to Chesterfield Heirlooms owner Matt Barfield during a tour of his farmto-market garden in Pittsville, Maryland – one of the stops along the Small Farm Conference bus tour.
The Key / December 2021
UMES Extension’s
4-H STEM Festival returns after COVID-19 pandemic
UMES Extension’s annual 4-H STEM Festival returned Saturday, Nov. 13 after a one-year hiatus due to the pandemic. Youth K-12 participated in free science activities on the lawn of the Engineering and Aviation Science Complex on campus. Part of the Maryland STEM Festival, the purpose of the event is to inspire young people to pursue science-related careers that could ultimately contribute to the diverse pool of talented STEM professionals for a future state and national workforce.
Noah Price of Salisbury makes a healthy smoothie by pedaling the UMES Extension Health and Nutrition Program’s ”Blender Bike.”
Newell Quinton stokes the fire in preparation for a Nov. 5 scrapple making demonstration during UMES Extension’s Small Farm Conference bus tour. Quinton is trying to keep traditions alive in the Black farming community of San Domingo.
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David and Alice Bree of Bivalve enjoy visiting the resident goats of the UMES Extension’s Small Ruminant Program during the festival.
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Student News
UMES seniors recognized for their work as essayists Four students earned honorariums for critiques of the documentary ‘Summer of Soul’ Four UMES seniors who took an experimental English course this fall earned honorariums for essays they wrote for a routine class assignment after watching the 2021 documentary “Summer of Soul.” Kaila Vaughn was awarded a $400 prize from the Essex County (N.J.) Chapter of The Links Inc., which sponsored “HBCU: The Black Film Experience,” a cultural outreach initiative the volunteer service organization launched earlier this year. “I was surprised I won,” said Vaughn, who graduated Dec. 17. “I enjoyed watching the documentary, so it wasn’t too hard to write about being a Black woman and reflecting on my shared experience with music in the Black community.” Also recognized were Augustus Roberts ($200), St. Jerome Reeves $(100) and Dante Turner ($50). They were among six UMES upperclassmen who enrolled in “Afro-futurism,” a pilot class “tracking the roles of technology, art, history, science and the progression of the past leading toward an empowering future via an African-American lens.” As Dr. Amy Hagenrater-Gooding fine-tuned the course syllabus, The Links’ Tammye Jones was contacting historically Black institutions from her home in northern New Jersey to gauge interest in a grassroots project “designed to introduce college students … to documentaries and films that tell our stories and history.” Hagenrater-Gooding said the serendipitous connection with The Links and the group’s proposed film-discussion project fit nicely with topics she wanted
to present in class. As the fall semester began, Hagenrater-Gooding and counterparts at eight other HBCUs were onboard with encouraging an estimated 400 students to watch a new documentary about the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival. The critically acclaimed film was directed by the multi-talented Ahmir Thompson, better known as Questlove. Dr. Karma B. Warren, president of the Essex County Chapter of The Links Inc., was looking “to encourage insightful conversations between college professors, students and the film’s producers, where possible.” Hagenrater-Gooding came away heartened by the collaboration following a late-September virtual conference between educators and Links members after students viewed the film. “This outreach opportunity has proven to be such an enriching one for our students,” she said. Jones, who spearheaded The Links’ efforts to encourage HBCU participation, said “the professors’ discussion was smart, on-point and relevant to today’s issues facing the Black community – then and now.” Links organizers said they chose ‘Summer of Soul’ for their project because the film presented “many rich discussion topics derived from the Harlem Cultural Festival 1969 – culture, race, politics, black history, pride, music.” They also challenged students to consider writing essays – “Voices from the Soul,” the chapter called it – by identifying the film’s most important messages and how they inspired them. Vaughn’s 978-word essay noted, in part, that “music has become something to be praised in the Black community. How we listen to music now has become ingrained in us as a people. Our community is built on it. It’s something that will always bring us together.” “I want Black people to be able to do things without having the doubt of it failing because we are Black,” she wrote in her conclusion. “‘Summer of Soul’ inspires me to be unapologetically Black, while I move forward and take up space.”
Athletics
The Key / December 2021
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Leveraging social media to reach more fans University of Maryland Eastern Shore basketball is as much a social as it is a sporting event. This season, both hoops squads have taken “social” up a notch with a combined 11 home games livestreamed via Facebook during the just-ended fall semester. Fans dialing in on phones or computers saw an encouraging brand of basketball; the men notched three wins and the women’s team won four times. Coming off a year’s self-imposed hiatus from competition because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the UMES athletics department seized on the idea of re-engaging basketball fans via the ubiquitous social media platform. Stan Bradley, associate athletics director for external affairs, said he’s gotten positive feedback from players, coaches and alumni. ”It’s kind of a win-win all around,” Bradley told The (Salisbury) Daily Times. ”It’s important to the kids, especially the families.” Two years ago, UMES streamed home games against Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference foes via Facebook, so the athletics
department had experience utilizing the platform as an alternative for fans to watch the teams. Since then, the William P. Hytche Athletic Center’s arena has been refitted with new, light emitting diode (LED) fixtures, which make for a visually crisper broadcast for those viewing live-streamed games. Long-time women’s coach Fred Batchelor embraces the Facebook live-streaming option as a way of putting UMES on equal footing with other schools on the schedule. “I’m really pleased with what we’ve done here, as far as letting people see what UMES is about. And it says a lot when you’re able to do that in your own backyard at home.” Batchelor told the Salisbury newspaper. ”The whole production and the quality of the production just elevates our program, our department and our institution, especially being able to provide something at home,” he said in the Dec. 4 article. Starting Dec. 30, when the men’s team takes on Longwood and through the remainder of the home season, games will be streamed via FloHoops (https://www.flohoops.com/). FloHoops offers monthly or yearly subscriptions, good not only for Hawk basketball but contests across the platform’s entire sports lineup. Depending on the plan, subscriptions range from $12.50 to $29.99 per month. Bradley also is in talks with FloSports looking to add other UMES home sporting events including baseball, softball, and indoor track & field. Earlier this year, the Hawks’ lone home bowling event was streamed via BowlTV thanks to an agreement with the United States Bowling Congress.
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The University of Maryland Eastern Shore and the UMES National Alumni Association would like to express our gratitude for PNC Bank’s support and sponsorship during our 2021 Homecoming festivities. Thank you! The Key / December 2021
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