What a month it has been! From traveling around the state with Chancellor Caret, to celebrating the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science's 90th anniversary, to catching up with board members old and new at our most recent meeting, it has been a highly productive and successful month. We kicked off Chancellor Caret's statewide listening tour in Southern Maryland (more below) and it has been encouraging and inspiring to hear how the USM supports our state as well as learning what we could be doing better. It also was a wonderful opportunity to spend more time with friends, colleagues, and Chancellor Caret outside of the office, giving us a chance to strengthen our relationships and collaborative efforts.

 

At our October 20^th USM Foundation board meeting, we heard from Javier Miyares and Darren Catalano from the University of Maryland University College (UMUC). Darren and his colleague Peter C. Young played a significant role in developing the analytics UMUC used in maximizing enrollment, improving retention and graduation rates, and better assessing student, faculty, and staff needs. Their work has become the founding basis for the newly formed HelioCampus, which is available to other higher education institutions. It was a fascinating topic and one that I know was of interest to many of our board members.

 

These last few months of the year promise to be just as engaging. With Chancellor Caret's inauguration just a few weeks away, it will be an exciting and special occasion to officially welcome him back to Maryland and celebrate with peers from institutions all over the country. 

Earlier this month, Chancellor Robert L. Caret embarked on a four- day statewide listening tour, which gave him the opportunity to meet with regional leaders and community members from various industries. The tour allowed Chancellor Caret to hear firsthand how the USM successfully serves the distinct geographic regions of Maryland and where it can improve its efforts. A key goal of the tour was to identify and cultivate partnerships to better serve USM students, the Maryland business community, and the state as a whole. Beginning in Southern Maryland, the tour made its way around Maryland to the greater Baltimore region, the Eastern Shore, Prince George's County, and western Maryland before ending in Montgomery County. The chancellor and his colleagues on the bus logged about 900 miles on the tour.

Visit the USM's Facebook page to see photos and videos from the tour.

In a recent Board of Trustees meeting at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP), university officials announced that the Mathematics Building has been renamed William E. Kirwan Hall in honor of chancellor emeritus Brit Kirwan. Brit joined the Department of Mathematics at UMCP in 1964 and served as a tenured department faculty member for 46 years, rising through the ranks to become department chair, provost, president, and finally, USM chancellor. Since retiring in June, Brit has spoken of his plans to move back to the math department, which resides in the building now named for him.