2018 Summer Horizons Program

• Friday, June 29, 2018
• The 2018 program will begin at 9:00 AM and will end at 11:30 AM. (Registration and Seating will begin at 8:30 AM)
• UMBC Commons Building, Floor 2, Game Room
• Light breakfast refreshments will be provided.
• This event is FREE to the public but (participants must register). 

Are you interested in pursuing graduate education in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) area? Do you have doubts about the application process, inquiries about next steps, or questions about deadlines?

Our Summer Horizons Program is for you!

• Directions and Parking: http://about.umbc.edu/visitors-guide/directions/
• Google maps link: UMBC Commons Driving Directions
• Parking: If you are not a UMBC student you will need to cover your own parking. Please use the pay to park stations around campus. The nearest one is in the Commons Drive garage, the first floor. Please see the rest of the stations marked with a “P ” letter (metered parking) in this map.

AGENDA

8:30 – 9:00 a.m

• Registration

9:00 a.m.

• Welcome
• Renetta G. Tull, Ph.D., Associate Vice Provost for Strategic Initiatives, Director of PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP
• Sundiata "Sunji" Jangha, Director Upward Bound Mathematics and Science Center Academic Opportunity Programs, Co-PI, National Science Foundation's LSAMP Program
• Justine M. Johnson, M.A., Associate Director, Meyerhoff Graduate Fellows Program (moderator)

9:10 a.m.

• Preparing for Graduate Study: Timelines and Choices
  • K. Jill Barr, J.D.,  Sr. Assistant Dean of Graduate Enrollment, The Graduate School
  • D. Michael Suica,  Manager, Recruitment and Admissions, The Graduate School

9:40 a.m.

• Elements of the Graduate School Application: GRE, Transcripts, Letters of Recommendation, Statement of Purpose
  • Renetta G. Tull, Ph.D., Associate Vice Provost for Strategic Initiatives, Director of PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP

10:00 a.m.

• Understanding Graduate School – Panel of Graduate Students

10:30 a.m.

• Introduction: Justine M. Johnson, M.A., Associate Director, Meyerhoff Graduate Fellows Program (moderator)
• Key Note Speaker:  Freeman A. Hrabowski III, Ph.D., President, UMBC

11:30 a.m. Evaluations and Adjourn

About our Keynote Speaker

Dr. Freeman Hrabowski III 

Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski, President of UMBC (University of Maryland, Baltimore County) since 1992, is a consultant on science and math education to national agencies, universities, and school systems. He was named by President Obama to chair the President’s Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for African Americans. He also chaired the National Academies’ committee that produced the report, Expanding Underrepresented Minority Participation: America’s Science and Technology Talent at the Crossroads (2011). His 2013 TED talk highlights the “Four Pillars of College Success in Science.”

Named one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World by TIME (2012) and one of America’s Best Leaders by U.S. News & World Report (2008), he also received TIAA-CREF’s Theodore M. Hesburgh Award for Leadership Excellence (2011), the Carnegie Corporation’s Academic Leadership Award (2011), and the Heinz Award (2012) for contributions to improving the “Human Condition.” UMBC has been recognized as a model for inclusive excellence by such publications as U.S. News, which the past eight years has recognized UMBC as a national leader in academic innovation and undergraduate teaching. Dr. Hrabowski’s most recent book, Holding Fast to Dreams: Empowering Youth from the Civil Rights Crusade to STEM Achievement, describes the events and experiences that played a central role in his development as an educator and leader.

Summer Horizons is co-sponsored by PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP, The Meyerhoff Graduate Biomedical Fellows Program, the USM Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation, and The Graduate School at UMBC.

For additional resources, including access to funding opportunities: Please visit the Institute for Broadening Participation’s website,  “Pathways to Science,”  and fill out the form in the left corner:  http://www.pathwaystoscience.org/. The website has information on a variety of opportunities, which include as an example, a wealth of information on funding and internships through NASA:  http://www.pathwaystoscience.org/nasa.aspx. Our student participants have taken advantage of this resource in the past, and several have had offers for great opportunities. 

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• President Obama Appoints UMBC President as Chair of National Education Commission(baltimore.cbslocal.com)