September 2020
A newsletter for students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends
UMES expands health professions training With a nation transfixed by a pandemic that’s disrupted every aspect of life, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore welcomed a charter class this fall to its new graduate-level physician assistant program. Seventeen students – including four from Maryland and two from Delaware – will spend the next three years pursuing credentials that will prepare them for the frontlines of healthcare at a critical time in history. Just as the university transitioned mid-spring to online instruction, the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant announced in March UMES had met standards to start training the next generation of medical professionals. Physician assistants “diagnose illness, develop and manage treatment plans, prescribe medications, and often serve as a patient’s
Charter class of physician assistant graduate students enrolls principal healthcare provider,” according to the American Academy of PAs. “With thousands of hours of medical training, PAs are versatile and collaborative” … and “practice … in every medical setting and specialty, improving healthcare access and quality.” Leading UMES’ program is Dr. Tiffany S. Maxwell, who has recruited a half-dozen colleagues to form the core of the physician assistant department’s faculty. All seven also maintain eligibility to practice clinically, which Maxwell said is standard. Maxwell described conducting a fiveday orientation the first week of August as “a challenge.” “Although we definitely emphasized physical distancing,” Maxwell said. “We did not want to take away the professor / student relationship
Maresha Carrie of Irving, TX is among the 17 students in UMES’ physician assistant program.
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UMES junior named to state-level post Aaliyah Edwards appointed University System of Maryland student regent Aaliyah Edwards, a junior exercise science major from Parkville, Md., is the first student to serve a two-year term representing peers on the University System of Maryland’s governing board. A 2019 state law change doubled the number of student appointees to two that Maryland’s governor can make to the panel responsible for oversight of all but two of the state’s public, four-year colleges. Edwards will be a non-voting member of the system’s Board of Regents for the 2020-21 academic year, then transition next year to being a voting member. Salisbury University senior Nathaniel Sansom is the
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Pandemic Alters New AR Director Campus Life PA Program cont. Student Regent cont.
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Student Perspective
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Faculty/Staff News Student Perspective
current USM student regent with voting privileges. “I take this position very seriously,” said Edwards, a dean’s list student. “I wanted to show people you have to take chances. You have to step out of your comfort zone.” The amended state law is designed to give students an opportunity to observe the board conducting business before assuming a voting role. Edwards will be the first to benefit from that scenario. At the urging of Star Ames, a fellow UMES student she considers a mentor, Edwards submitted an application that led to a recommendation by a screening panel that she be presented as a qualified nominee to Gov. Larry Hogan. The pandemic lockdown disrupted the formal process, so Edwards
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Dr. Marksman Virtual D-Psi reunion
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Day of Activism Groove Chapter Rallies
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Environmental Science Major Upward Bound Goes Virtual
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Big Data Grant
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Delmarva Public Radio Women’s Golf
Page 11 Page 12 COVID Impact on Athletics
Yellow Ribbon Campus NAA Officers
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School News
Ten ways the pandemic has altered UMES campus life
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Aug. 10 was the start date for the semester – three weeks early – in order to end instruction before Thanksgiving.
Every student and employee was administered a free baseline coronavirus test in accordance with campus, University System of Maryland and health department guidelines.
Every employee fills out a daily e-mail survey to confirm being symptom-free before coming onto campus
Another round of mandatory testing for everyone is scheduled for Sept. 11, 12 and 13, and will continue on a regular basis as long as the university maintains its current campus presence.
UMES’ leaders opted for a strategy to deliver instruction using a combination of in-person classes and participating online to limit the number of people in classrooms. Extra lab sessions also were added to the schedule to accommodate physical distancing guidelines.
Signs are posted in multi-story buildings that direct stairway users to go in one direction. Use of elevators is limited.
Each of the roughly 1,300 students living on campus has a single room (unless siblings request living together).
Those with meal plans get take out from a variety of campus venues.
Each student who opted to live on campus was issued a free package of personal protective equipment, including masks and sanitary cleaning supplies recommended by the federal Center for Disease Control.
UMES tentatively hopes to hold winter commencement as school-specific ceremonies over two days prior to Thanksgiving.
REGENT / continued from cover
was sworn in during a low-key ceremony by a court clerk in Towson. “This position is the best one I could step into,” she said. “I’m really big on leaving a mark on everywhere I go. I want to be a student … UMES is proud of.” Edwards is UMES’ third undergraduate in the current USM governance system era to serve as a student regent, and the second in the past three years. Senior Langston Frazier, a golf management student, served during the 2018-19 academic year and had a front-row seat when regents endorsed the chancellor’s choice to name Dr. Heidi M. Anderson UMES president. A native of Trinidad and Tobago, Edwards said she and Frazier have spoken, and he’s offered congratulations and advice on how to approach the job representing an estimated 173,000 students across 12 institutions. As a high school student in Baltimore County, a career in law intrigued Edwards. When she enrolled at UMES, however, she settled on studying exercise science -- a choice she hopes will lead to a graduate degree as a physician assistant. Edwards does not yet have a formal platform of issues but believes using social media and virtual town halls are crucial to connecting with and listening to students in far-away locales like Frostburg, Towson and Bowie. “I want them to think I’m walking with them,” she said. Edwards, who has been a campus tour guide, is anticipating fellow students reaching out with questions about navigating challenges that go with being a college student under the cloud of a global pandemic. “It’s been very alarming to me,” Edwards said. “You only have four years to make great memories. You have people who will be sophomores (this fall) who didn’t have the full freshman year experience.” “I like politics because I like helping people,” she said. “I see this (appointment) as an opportunity to help students who don’t know how to get information.” “Being a Black woman in America, I feel fortunate I’m in a place where I can get change done.”
School News
Meet Kadeem Turnbull, UMES’ new Alumni Relations Director
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Kadeem Turnbull joined the Office of Institutional Advancement this summer, taking over responsibilities previously handled by James Lunnermon II, now the university’s student experience and engagement director. The two-time UMES graduate (2016 criminal justice-honors; 2018 master’s in criminology) previously was a residence life area director (Court Plaza). When he read the job opening posting, it “described me perfectly. I saw it as an opportunity where I could come to life, and give back.” Turnbull went to high school in Anne Arundel County, and is the beneficiary of scholarship provided by UMES’ Anne Arundel alumni chapter. Under the shadow cast by the pandemic, he is using old-school methods – one-on-one phone calls – and 21st century technology like Zoom meetings and social media to engage alumni across multiple generations. “I’m putting out honest work that hopefully will yield positive results,” Turnbull said. “We’re asking alumni to give their talent, treasure and time and I have to be right there with them.”
HEALTH PROFESSIONS / continued from cover
that occurs in PA school.” New students were issued the full complement of personal protective equipment for on-campus instruction and field work that counterparts who examine and care for patients with COVID-19 wear in the field. The pandemic “has made us evaluate everything we do as educators, and medical professionals,” Maxwell said. The first day of class was Aug. 31. As is the case with new physician assistant programs, UMES’ accreditation is a five-year provisional credential. By year three, Maxwell said she’s hopeful a large pool of applicants will yield 30 students. Students in UMES’ program are pursuing
a Master’s of Medical Science in Physician Assistant Studies, which will require an estimated 2,000 hours of intense training that will include eight clinical rotations with community partners. “A local PA program is a great asset to our community’s young adults,” said Dr. C.B. Silvia, TidalHealth’s vice president of Medical Affairs and Chief Medical Officer. “If you want to be in the healthcare field as a provider of medical care and don’t either want to commit the years of training required to be a physician, or can’t afford to do so, becoming a PA is a great choice.” Michael Franklin, president and chief executive officer of Atlantic General Hospital
in Berlin, said, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore’s PA program “will expose future advanced practice providers to the culture of our region, forging bonds that will make the decision to remain here to practice medicine much easier, thereby helping to meet one of our greatest needs over the next decade.” As UMES President Heidi Anderson noted when she announced the university secured accreditation of physician assistant training, “every county on the Eastern Shore of Maryland is designated as medically under-served or a Health Professions Shortage Area. “Having more physician assistants is vital for our communities,” Anderson said.
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Student Perspective
Black lives matter more than black deaths By Augustus Roberts Jr. Seeing people shot and killed by police on your TV and phone screens for what seems like my whole life is traumatizing. These images repeated over and over start to have a numbing effect on your thoughts and emotions when those people, with their own hopes dreams who were killed, look just like you. It’s a reality – and fear – that as black men in this world, we have to face head-on. It’s gotten to the point where the pain we are feeling must be transformed into power and progress. From the sight of people wearing face masks in public, no groceries on the shelves at one point, and being indoors more than I expected headed into the summertime, it’s safe to say 2020 has brought its own lessons for all of us affected – whether we realize or not. One lesson we must remember, though, is that black lives should matter more than black deaths. It is difficult not to list the names of all the African-Americans who recently have been killed at the hands of police, but I write this with George Floyd in mind. The constant updating of events in the daily news cycle has been spinning at its fastest in my lifetime. As quickly as factual news is relayed, the wrong information on COVID-19 and protests turning into “riots”
Photos by Gus Roberts
seems to spread twice as fast on my timeline and TV screens. This is overwhelming at times and has compelled me to take more breaks from social media and cable TV – and spend more time during this pandemic dedicated to my interest in photography and graphic design. In light of recent peaceful demonstrations and protests turned violent by troublemakers not really down for the cause, I initially was hesitant to go out and produce photojournalism of the demonstrations. I recently did a little community project, however, capturing images of people wearing masks in public at local shopping centers, but that did not come with as big of a risk of getting caught up in a peaceful protest turned violent. Eventually, I embraced the fact that recording the cause with photos was greater than my fears. A friend sent me a flyer for a June 13 protest at Towson University, where this time I was sure to take my camera. From the moment I arrived, the energy was empowering. I was partly focused on getting the right angles. Another part of me focused on making sure the residents even one block down the street heard my voice along with others chanting: “No Justice, No Peace. No racist POLICE.” There were moments during the demonstration where I began to realize “Wow, I’m really here and part of this.” My biggest takeaway from the Towson march is that there is power in diversity. Chanting alongside people from all walks of life helped me realized this. The only way to fight oppression is with black excellence and support from all around. It will be interesting to see how the events of the past several weeks have affected and motivated us to influence the public conversation going on around us. Gus Roberts is a senior from District Heights, Md. majoring in English.
A Towson protester captured by Gus Roberts’ camera
Student Perspective The Office of the Provost released this list of faculty who earned
TENURE AND PROMOTIONS following the previous academic year.
Agricultural and Natural Sciences Dr. Tracy Bell (Natural Sciences) - promoted to associate professor with tenure Dr. Yeong Chi (Agriculture, Food & Resource Sciences) - promoted to associate professor with tenure Dr. Bridgett Clinton-Scott (Human Ecology) promoted to associate professor with tenure Dr. Enrique Escobar (Agriculture, Food & Resource Sciences) - promoted to associate professor with tenure Dr. Behnam Khatabi (Agriculture, Food & Resource Sciences) - promoted to associate professor with tenure. Business and Technology Dr. Mohammed Ali (Business, Management & Accounting) - promoted to professor Dr. Tiara Cornelius (Turner) - (Math & Computer Science) - promoted to associate professor with tenure Dr. Russell Kohl (Math & Computer Sciences) promoted to associate professor Dr. Payam Matin (Engineering & Aviation Sciences) - promoted to professor Dr. Candice Ridlon (Math & Computer Sciences) promoted to professor Dr. Weiwei Zhu Stone (Math & Computer Sciences) - promoted to associate professor Education, Social Sciences and The Arts Dr. Prince Attoh (Social Sciences) - promoted to professor with tenure Dr. Charles Baldwin (Education) - promoted to associate professor with tenure Dr. Cynthia Cravens (English & Modern Languages) - promoted to associate professor with tenure Dr. Kingsley Ejiogu (Criminal Justice) - promoted to associate professor with tenure Dr. Kimberly Poole-Sykes (Education) - promoted to professor Pharmacy and Health Professions Dr. Dennis Klima (of Physical Therapy) - promoted to professor Dr. Lana Sherr (Pharmacy Practice and Administration) - promoted to associate professor (non-tenure track) Dr. Bi-Dar Peter Wang (Pharmaceutical Sciences) promoted to associate professor with tenure. Library Joseph Bree (Library) - promoted to Librarian III
8:46 The time that changed the world
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Rewrite the laws, transform how we treat one another
By Raya Berkley The thought of a human being’s breathing being restricted for 8 minutes and 46 seconds is agonizing. I cannot describe the act of kneeling on an individual’s neck for that long as anything but inhumane. Sickness overcomes me every time I see the video of the officer kneeling on George Floyd’s neck; the pain I feel never changes no matter how many times I view it. We are living in a world where “I can’t breathe” is symbolic of police brutality. As concise and clear as those words are to everyone regardless of race, there is still a level of gross negligence by police to hear those words and stop restricting the breathing of the person they are apprehending. African Americans have been unable to breath for generations. The criminal justice system has had its knee on our necks for far too long. Eight minutes and 46 seconds is the amount of time it took the world to wake up as it triggered widespread protests and cries of outrage. There is no excuse for the blatant disregard for Black lives in America. We’ve reached the point where technology is crucial in cases of police brutality with video recordings serving as a voice for the voiceless. Without those recordings there is no hope for justice and equality, which makes me question the effectiveness of body cams. When I think about how light was shed on the cases of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery, and the other brutal killings because of recordings from a cell phone, I lose some hope in humanity and people’s ability to do the right thing. I also have come to the realization racism is deeply rooted in police culture. There is knowledge within each department of police brutality cases and police shootings involving African Americans, but they still make the conscious decision not to pursue and investigate. The words “cleared of all wrong doing” send chills down my spine as I witness another one of my people’s lives taken and another murderer walk free. The news has been filled with peaceful protests, looting and violence – everyone expressing their pain differently. Despite my outrage, I don’t believe in combatting violence with violence. Historically, we have tried to fight back with violence and peace, but the change we have seen is minimal. The solution is to enact changes in policies and laws to hold the people who commit these hate crimes accountable. My generation – right now – is the future. We are living in the now, we are witnessing these events in real time, and it is our duty to be informed and take a stand in the fight for justice. We must put ourselves in positions to ensure change will occur. We must look at these situations in their totality, and use our knowledge and power to reform a system that was never meant to serve us. Through solidarity, we possess the power to fight back and reshape our futures. Most importantly, we must never forget how eight minutes 46 seconds changed the world and we must never stop saying their names. Raya Berkley of Virginia Beach is an award-winning graduate student who will earn her master’s degree in criminology and criminal justice in 2020.
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UMES News
A popular, pertinacious physician UMES helped bring a Black doctor to Princess Anne
Eldon Galway Marksman was a 26-year-old Howard University student intent on becoming a doctor when the Spanish flu became a pandemic in 1918. A decade later, Marksman settled in Princess Anne where for more than 40 years he practiced medicine, including nearly two decades as campus physician for Princess Anne College – now the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. A native of Grenada, Marksman was strongly influenced by Dr. Walter Clement Noel, a U.S.-trained dental surgeon on the Caribbean island who medical historians believe may have been among the first people in the Western Hemisphere diagnosed with sickle cell anemia. After Noel died at age 31 in May 1916, Marksman left the British West Indies to pursue his goals “by dint of hard work, sacrifice and pertinacity,” Marksman’s family wrote in his 1972 funeral program. Setting up shop as a physician of color could not have been easy in the early 20th century, even under the best of circumstances. Within a year of settling in Princess Anne, the country plummeted into the Great Depression, and race relations on the Eastern Shore were tenuous at best. Medical treatment remained as segregated as other parts of society. Marksman, who became a naturalized U.S. citizen Sept. 11, 1933, was active in the community and its college. He was the college’s first physician. “I took care of the college students,” Marksman told Salisbury’s Daily Times newspaper in a January 1968 interview. “They paid if or when they could. This did not prevent me from giving my services.”
He was a member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., which bestowed on him its National Achievement Award in 1950. The Marksman residence, known as Eldon Hall Farm, was an expansive tract of land off Backbone Road east of campus. Unlike many other rural physicians who had offices in their homes, Marksman’s patients remember a separate building on the property had a knotty pine waiting room, and the treatment room was sterile bright white and stainless steel. Though he returned briefly to Grenada to practice medicine in 1946 and 1947, Marksman spent much of his career in Somerset County caring for and treating “the people of the community regardless of race, creed or color.” After his wife, Callie, died in 1968, Marksman began selling parcels of his property to Maryland State College faculty members. Marksman died April 24, 1972 at his beloved Eldon Hall Farm. He was 79. Photo from Howard University In accordance with his wishes, the remaining acreage of Eldon Hall Farm, was sold for $135,000 at auction in 1975. In April 1977, the state legislature “approved a $265,000 appropriation for the University of Maryland Eastern Shore to purchase . . . [the] 245-acre [Eldon Hall Farm] for expansion of the Princess Anne campus.” The University of Maryland Eastern Shore celebrates the 134th anniversary of its founding on Sept. 13, 1886 with this updated feature story, originally published in 2012, about an important figure in the history of the institution and surrounding community.
It’s a D-Psi reunion Members of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore’s Drama Society organized and gathered for a virtual reunion on Aug. 9. The student organization founded by Dr. Della Dameron-Johnson consists of student and honorary members. During its four decades, the organization put on various productions drawing great local support, specifically the Motown Dinner Theater events. “Billy Simon pulled a crew together and everything fell into place,” said Dameron-Johnson, a 2014 Professor Emeritus.” “We laughed, some cried, and reminisced about our time together, the shows we did, and the love we shared… it was amazing and heartwarming!” Patricia Stewart Moody was also instrumental in organizing the 2020 virtual reunion.
UMES Students
Activism at UMES
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Photo by Ryan Lightbourn
On Aug. 27, 75 University of Maryland Eastern Shore students were inside the Student Service Center for “The Call to Order,” an event organized to educate students on their civic responsibilities (voting, census 2020) and prepare for the Hawk Day of Activism. Contributing to the event were Men of Distinction (MOD), the Office of Student Outreach and Leadership Development and Women of Distinction (WOD). Eighteen new Maryland voter registration cards were completed. MOD and WOD pushed the following message: “Talk is cheap but voting is free. Marching is fine, but you will be silenced if you fail to vote on Election Day.” On Aug. 28, the 57th anniversary of the 1963 March of Washington, students gathered to exercise their first amendment rights to protest racial injustice. Hawks marched across campus speaking out against the injustice plaguing our nation. Messages of “Black Lives Matter” and “No Justice, No Peace” were reiterated as students discussed injustices they have experienced.
Groove chapter rallies to support one of its own
Zachary Castell, left, Olawoyin Akintelure and Peter Fagbenjo were among Groove Phi Groove chapter members who helped provide Sam Douglas a motorized wheelchair.
Photo by Augustus Roberts
Members of a UMES social fellowship have rallied around one of their own, alumnus Sam Douglas, to help recover from serious health challenges. Groove Phi Groove chapter members recently pooled their resources to purchase a motorized wheelchair so Douglas, a double amputee, can continue working as operations coordinator for the university’s Office of Residence Life. The Bermuda native came to Princess Anne in the mid-1980s and found a home after graduating with a degree in general studies. Douglas has held a variety of positions as a UMES employee, the most visible being soccer coach in the 1990s and as softball coach, amassing enough wins over 13 seasons to rank as the university’s second-winningest in the sport. His best season was 2009, when his team won 20 games and the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference named him coach of the year. Off the field, several generations of UMES students have encountered Douglas as a residence life area director, where he oversaw housing for hundreds of undergraduates, and as a Groove Phi Groove chapter adviser, a carryover from his undergraduate days. Douglas’ admirers and supporters attribute the success of chapter members in the classroom and beyond to his leadership. He’s also been instrumental helping the chapter raise money it donates to UMES. “Coach Sam has been an inspiration, mentor and motivator to all university students seeking better opportunities through academic excellence, educational experiences and professional aspirations,” his fellow Groove Phi Groove brothers wrote in a tribute.
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UMES Students
‘The sciences are where I need to be’ UMES junior eyes career as an environmentalist UMES junior Teemer Barry remembers exactly when he realized science might be a good career fit. Being fitted in elementary school with glasses instantly gave him a clearer view of nature. “I could see the detail in leaves,” Barry said. He quickly concluded “the sciences are where I need to be.” Barry pivoted to peering through microscopes at the kind of minute creatures that would become the focus of his summer 2020 internship with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. From his home in Durham, N.C., his “virtual” assignment involved ”visualizing bulk environmental datasets … to help better understand how certain environmental characteristics influence phytoplankton class compositions in highly productive areas.” Barry utilized “open-source software to analyze phytoplankton communities within the United States’ (northeastern) Continental Shelf” as part of NOAA’s ongoing Joint Polar Satellite Systems study. His contribution, he says, should help scientists who monitor the world’s oceans track the health of their respective ecosystems reliant on the stability of micro-organisms. “I think I gained a greater appreciation of how micro-organisms’ role serves to preserve the observable environment,” he said. Barry was born with sickle cell anemia, an inherited blood disorder that can cause infections, pain and fatigue. In Barry’s case, his eyesight was compromised until being fitted with glasses and he has struggled much of his life with leg pain and walking. People with sickle cell disease have a heightened vulnerability to the
novel coronavirus, so when NOAA offered a virtual way to participate in its coveted college internship programs, Barry sidestepped an obstacle in his journey to become a research scientist. While he missed out on boarding a research vessel this summer, Barry said the 10-week opportunity nonetheless enabled him to refine his bulkdata collection and analytical skills that he’s confident will be beneficial down the road. Barry chose to enroll in the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, in part, because it provided a summer science program opportunity to give him a jump-start on undergraduate studies. His mother, a broadcast journalist in North Carolina, wrote an essay in 2019 for her news outlet about worrying as Barry headed off to college but also having peace of mind knowing UMES pharmacy school dean Rondell Allen, a family friend, is close by in case of a health emergency. Barry works in the research lab of Dr. Victoria Volkis, who describes him as “an amazing student and a very strong person” who is “smart (and) goal-oriented.” Volkis has watched Barry struggle at times with physical pain, but notes that he “takes it like a hero (and) never wants any accommodations because of his condition.” One of Volkis’ current lab projects is “anti-fouling research,” where her group is “preparing formulations from polymers and extracts from super-fruits and medical herbs” that when applied to “boats and platforms, can prevent formation of biofilm” below the water line. Finding such eco-friendly solutions to keep water clean and safe motivates Barry to work toward becoming an environmental scientist.
Post-secondary education prep goes virtual at UMES
Bank of America Relationship Manager D’Shawn Doughty (highlighted frame) speaks with UMES Upward Bound students during summer 2020.
The University of Maryland Eastern Shore’ Upward Bound program was challenged to go virtual for the 6-week period this summer amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Many changes to the TRIO program included online submission of classwork, guest speaker sessions, and exercise classes (Zumba, yoga, line dancing) using Blackboard and Zoom. Students participated in a robotics course, completed required reading of the “The Hate You Give“ by Angie Thomas, and selected a foreign language to study through collaboration with the university’s Foreign Language Instructional Center. Some of the program guest speakers included Jermichael Mitchell (youth development specialist, advocate), state Del. Sheree Sample-Hughes (UB alum), and D’Shawn Doughty (UB alum). “Initially, it was hard to think about designing a 6-week summer program virtually simply because we had not run our program in such a manner. Thinking outside the box and collaborating with other TRIO programs help develop an engaging curriculum,” Program Director Dr. Nicole Gale said. “Once the program began, the challenge then became to make sure students are up and in class in a timely manner,” Gale said.
School News
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Big data boost a big deal University of Maryland Eastern Shore graduate programs stand to benefit from a federal grant that will be used to provide access to a world-class highspeed data network. UMES’ share of nearly $800,000 awarded by the National Science Foundation will support instruction and research in the School of Pharmacy and Health Professions, cybersecurity engineering technology and marine sciences. The Maryland Research and Education Network, a technology service provider for the University System of Maryland, coordinated the application on behalf of a consortium of institutions that also included Frostburg State and Salisbury universities, labs operated by the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, the University of Maryland medical school’s psychiatric research center and Morgan State University. The hardware and software upgrade will “allow researchers … to reliably connect to ‘big data’ repositories and increase interinstitution collaboration,” according to Jerome F. Waldron, UMES’ chief information (technology) officer. Dr. Ray Barghi, the Maryland Research and Education Network’s executive director, said the network upgrade will primarily benefit science, technology, engineering and math researchers at the six institutions named in the grant application. “STEM educators work with and generate lots of data,” Barghi said. “So their needs for speed are different. The National Science Foundation wants to make sure the researchers are taken care of.” UMES identified three academic / research areas that need the ability to access and transmit
UMES to step up its ongoing collaborative efforts in research and education, especially those related to the Chesapeake Bay and its ecosystem.
UMES to benefit from National Science Foundation technology grant data via a high-speed network: Cybersecurity Engineering Technology This program involves access to large amounts of log and network traffic data to be used in assignments and projects. Students need to download and explore several terabytes of large-scale data models and logs. These datasets and files currently take days to download, hampering construction of analytics models. A bandwidth increase will dramatically improve the delivery of the class material and make a significant difference in the success of this program. Marine-EstuarineEnvironmental Sciences UMES’ marine science graduate program works closely with other institutions and the federal government, which amass vast amounts of data that guide complex research projects. Access to a high-speed network will enable
Pharmacy and Health Professions’ Simulation Lab Through use of smart, life-like mannequins, and setting equipment, the new network will provide real-time simulation of various health care conditions. It will be supported by an electronic monitoring room and a briefing room in the new health professions building being built to house pharmacy, physical therapy and physician assistant instructional
space. To manage the volume of audio and video content that will be stored on the cloud, the university must transport large amounts of data in real time. This content, along with education data, will need to be accessed efficiently during class and critiques. Under the current technology set up, it may take a UMES faculty member nine days non-stop to download 10 terabytes of data, which would be commonplace for health care simulation lab. The new system would cut that down to about 4½ hours, Barghi said. Terms of the National Science Foundation’s grant called for upgrades to begin this summer and to be completed over the next two years. That also includes installing a security system to ensure the integrity of data collected, transmitted and downloaded. A high-speed data-sharing network should help UMES be competitive in vying to recruit top-flight faculty-researchers and graduate students as well as procuring future grants to support their work.
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UMES News / Athletics
Delmarva Public Media launched July 1
For more than three decades, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore’s WESM 91.3 FM and Salisbury University’s Delmarva Public Radio have been allies in public broadcasting on the peninsula. They strengthened that bond on July 1 with a new partnership to create Delmarva Public Media. The new organization will allow all three stations including Delmarva Public Radio’s WSCL 89.5 FM and WSDL 90.7 FM - to share resources in an increasingly competitive market. “Since 1987, WESM and Delmarva Public Radio have brought public radio to listeners throughout portions of Maryland, Delaware and Virginia,” said Gerry Weston, who will serve as general manager of the three-station partnership. “From the beginning, we have shared similar missions of enhancing the area’s cultural offerings and creating a more informed population. “This partnership makes sense not only from an operational standpoint, but because it will widen the listener base for the locally produced programming in addition to the national shows we will continue to carry.” Behind the scenes, operations will remain much the same. Staffing will not be affected, and each station will remain under the ownership of its respective university. WESM will gain the business operations, sales
and development services that exist at Delmarva Public Radio. The stations already share engineering services. WSCL will provide classical music 24 hours a day, expanding its decadeslong cultural mission. WESM will serve as the new partnership’s NPR affiliate, broadcasting favorites including Morning Edition and All Things Considered, along with its jazz and blues format. WSDL also will feature WESM’s live-hosted shows, bringing jazz to the beach areas, along with BBC News. Weekend programming largely will be unchanged, featuring folk music, and rhythm and blues in the evenings. Weston anticipates the partnership to be a win-win opportunity for many constituents. An increased coverage area will allow listeners to tune in not only throughout Delmarva, but in portions of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Washington, D.C. With combined resources, supporters will know their contributions are going further, and corporate underwriters will receive a wider listenership. The partnership also is expected to provide more ways for students at both universities, as well as community members, to collaborate with the stations as a whole while maintaining the longstanding legacy of each.
UMES, Salisbury University radio stations form new partnership
Hawks Women’s Golf Team Receives National Honors UMES recognized for improved play, graduation rate
The 2019-20 edition of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore women’s golf team earned two high-profile honors over the summer break for performance in the classroom and on the links. In mid-July, the team was notified it earned the Mark Laesch Award given by the Women’s Golf Coaches Association for its dramatic improvement in play over the past two seasons. A month later, head coach Billy Dillon learned last year’s team is the recipient of a NCAA Public Recognition Award for being among the top 10 percent of squads in their respective Division 1 sports in a graduation metric known as “Academic Progress Rate” based on May 2020 statistics. “Your team has excelled in the classroom and in competition, which sets a positive example for all students,” the letter said. The Laesch score-improvement award was the second time the Hawks have been recognized by the association during the summer break. The organization named team captain Sumayah Arcusa an Academic All-American in June. Photo by Joey Gardner
Athletics
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Some MEAC sports events could take place this year Photo by UMES Athletics
The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference unveiled a tentative scheduling model in late August for how fall sports could be played during the spring 2021 depending on the status of the COVID-19 pandemic – and NCAA scheduling guidelines for fall championships being played in the spring. Earlier in the summer, the presidents and chancellors of conference member institutions agreed to suspend all intercollegiate competition this fall. “The health and safety of all students is of paramount importance,” President Heidi M. Anderson said. Individual institution can opt out of competing in the spring based on local and state COVID-19 conditions, the conference said. UMES has not announced what it will do. “This is not something that we take lightly and while nobody wants our student-athletes to miss part of their athletic careers, we must put their well-being ahead of competition at this time,” University of Maryland
Eastern Shore athletics Director Keith Davidson said when the fall schedule was suspended. Cross country, golf and women’s volleyball at UMES were impacted. Volleyball season in the spring semester will potentially span from the first weekend of January through February, with the conference championship being held the weekend of March 13-14 in Norfolk, Va. The volleyball championship game will be played on Sunday, March 14. The dates are tentative and subject to change. Teams’ schedules will be available at a later date. Plans call for a regional schedule to be implemented for men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s tennis, baseball and softball. This scheduling model, the conference noted, will also minimize the amount of time student-athletes spend out of class, eliminate air travel and reduce travel expenses.
Photo by UMES Athletics
“I want to commend these young ladies on their determination to improve as individuals and as a team,” Dillon said. “They work very hard and will only get better as the years go on.” The Laesch Award is given to teams based on improvement in adjusted stroke average per individual per round from the 2018-19 to 2019-20 seasons. The award is given to one institution on the Division I, II and III levels. The Division I Hawks improved their team performance by 49.78 strokes per round. The 2019-20 season was Dillon’s first as head coach. The Laesch Award recognizes team improvement, but Dillon said he’s told the golfers he doesn’t want them to rest on their laurels.
UMES recognized as a Yellow Ribbon campus The University of Maryland Eastern Shore was approved by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs as a participant in the “Yellow Ribbon” program for the 2020-2021 academic year. The military veterans organization, Hawk Vets, applied to the program in the spring on behalf of the institution. The Yellow Ribbon program helps cover tuition not covered by the VA’s Post-9/11 GI Bill. The maximum amount is $2,000 (per student, per year). Funding is available for 10 students and is open to all programs and degree types. For qualification criteria regarding military service or more information, contact Denitta Gladding at (410) 651-6412 or email dgladding@umes.edu.
National Alumni Association officers
2020-2022
President James M. White Jr. ‘82
Treasurer Nelva Collier-White ‘93
1st Vice President Walter Jones ‘74
Financial Secretary Eric Spencer ‘86
2nd Vice President Teonna Wallop ‘00
Recording Secretary Kimberly Jones ‘79
3rd Vice President Anshay B. Tull ‘05
Corresponding Secretary Imani Hayman ’99
4th Vice President Hope R. Greene ‘95
Parliamentarian Thomas Holt ‘93 Sergeant-at-Arms John Lucas ‘89
The Key / September 2020
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