2021 McNair in the News

“Opinion: Protecting a Piece of Md. History from the State’s Beltway Expansion Plan”

“The two-story Moses Hall lodge was located adjacent to the cemetery. Thirteen years later, the Gibson Grove AME Zion Church was built on land Sarah Gibson donated and served the 10 neighboring Black families and growing community.” ~Chandler Louden

Silent No More: Calling For the Dismantling of Institutionalized White Supremacy

“Being Black in the United States of America is difficult. Having to make bold statements that lift your humanity is one of the hardest and loneliest issues to combat. Everyone should accept that “Black lives matter,” especially when people proclaim that all lives matter. Yet, we as Black people have to say it boldly because Black lives are not valued. As a nation, we should want to dismantle White supremacy in the pursuit of justice for all when we say, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Are these truths self-evident?” ~Michael A. Hunt

The Redemption of Mohammed Khalid

“…Mohammed Khalid didn’t respond. He simmered inside. Mohammed was 13 and had arrived in suburban Baltimore from Pakistan just a few weeks before. He was a wisp of a kid in a collared shirt, with neatly trimmed black hair and oval-shaped glasses that he needed to clearly see the board. He was at the top of his class in Pakistan, but he was also shy, awkward, earnest. Spent a lot of time in his head.”

By Saving One Life, You Have Saved All Humankind

This program is designed to help students to form positive relationships with their peers, mentors, and faculty, and provides them with a safe space to voice their concerns and receive support. As Mr. Michael Hunt explains, “the McNair program does more than prepare students for graduate education in all disciplines through research, mentoring, and other scholarly activities—it also focuses heavily on community building with an emphasis on providing a space where students can cultivate productive interactions, and speak honestly and critically from their own experience with the goal of mutual learning.” 

First In Class

“That means a big part of the work is giving students tools they didn’t even know they yet need, says Michael Hunt ’06, M13, mathematics, director of the UMBC McNair Scholars Program and a current doctoral student in the Language, Literacy & Culture program at UMBC…so you get them to sort of recognize what they are able to do and help them take that to the next level. And that’s what it is for us. It’s okay; I’m going to show you how to play the game.”

UMBC’s Jasmine Lee elevates diversity and inclusion work as director of new Initiatives for Identity, Inclusion, and Belonging

Jasmine A. Lee, director of inclusive excellence in UMBC’s Division of Student Affairs, is now also leading UMBC’s Initiatives for Identity, Inclusion and Belonging (i3B)…as the featured speaker at UMBC’s recent Hill-Robinson McNair Lecture, she also shared the impact of her experience with the McNair Scholars Program. The national program, which has supported 392 students at UMBC since 1992, prepares talented college students who are first-generation, low-income, or from underrepresented minority groups, for doctoral study.”

Building Community, Block By Block

“It’s a place I can feel heard and understood, where all scholars are supporting each other’s work towards the same goal. My McNair family is the backbone in all of my other endeavors.” Diane Stonestreet ’22 REM 28

Enjoy the Process:” Charles Mason III ’14 on art, grad school, and his new “Two Lane Stories” exhibition 

“Creating a diamond takes a lot of pressure, and that pressure that you get from undergraduate or graduate school…is important to your development and you should have fun doing it. Take that time. Enjoy the process.” – Charles Mason III ’14

Returning Women Graduates Offer Advice

“It’s not easy being a first generation, non-traditional student, but I think that every student at UMBC faces their own unique challenges. Gratitude and humility will help you take inventory of what you have and what you need, and carry you through each new obstacle.” – Emma Matthews, McNair Alumna

Q&A: April Householder ’95, New Director of Undergraduate Research

This article highlights a former Assistant Director of the McNair Scholars Program who is now the current Director of Undergraduate Research and Prestigious Scholarships. Throughout this article there are Q&As about her experiences as a UMBC Alum and working for UMBC.

Green Works

“Kelsey Donnellan ’15, B.A., Interdisciplinary Studies (Community Health and Nutrition), is a McNair Scholar who has received two BreakingGround grants to launch and extend community initiatives with impact.”

Happy Retriever Love Week!

This article highlights various love stories that have begun at UMBC. Highlighted is a UMBC alumna, Leah Concannon Mayer ’02, psychology, whois now the director of Siena Heighs University McNair Scholars Program.