UMBC is a leading public research university known for innovative teaching, relevant research across disciplines, and a supportive community that empowers and inspires inquisitive minds. UMBC serves 14,000 undergraduate and graduate students, and combines the learning opportunities of a liberal arts college with the creative intensity of a leading research university. At the same time, UMBC is one of the country’s most inclusive education communities. UMBC also contributes to Maryland through strong government and industry partnerships that advance K–16 education, entrepreneurship, workforce training, and technology commercialization.
Meredith Oyen, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
The White House has distanced itself from the US House speaker’s potential visit to Taiwan. But does it still signal a shift in policy over diplomatic ties with the island?
Crowdfunding can be a great way to raise money for political candidates and causes, but it can also have unintended consequences.
Joos Mind/The Image Bank via Getty Images
Sanorita Dey, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Crowdfunding has become a go-to means of raising money for political causes, but the monetary show of support can cause opponents to double down on their opposition.
A view of the Kaaba at the Grand Mosque during the hajj pilgrimage in the Muslim holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia on July 6, 2022.
AP Photo/Amr Nabil
The start of the hajj is reigniting debates around its commercialization, but pilgrimages are also a time for seeking business opportunities, writes a scholar of Islam.
A dozen states now provide a total of $89 million in funding to pregnancy centers.
Yuji Ozeki/Digital Vision via Getty Images
Offering free pregnancy tests, sonograms and counseling, the pregnancy help movement maintains more than 2,700 resource centers throughout the United States.
Research shows women who study engineering do better when mentored by other women.
Nitat Termmee/Moment via Getty Images
A negative environment dissuades many women engineering students from staying in the field. Can colleges and universities do anything to reverse the trend?
Ohio GOP Senate candidate J.D. Vance won his primary after Trump endorsed him.
AP Photo/Joe Maiorana
Traffic crashes kill and injure millions worldwide every year and are a major drain on economic development. Improving road safety would produce huge payoffs, especially in lower-income countries.
Pondering a shift in strategy on Taiwan? Possibly not.
Nicolas Datiche/Getty Images
As the world locked down and a country’s racial reckoning heated up, this social scientist refined her approach to studying the lives of Black moms.
Thirty-six percent of surveyed families with young children said they did not have enough diapers during the pandemic.
Tony Arruzza/Corbis Documentary via Getty Images
Researchers find that households without enough diapers for their children are more likely to struggle with other hardships.
Hackers can disrupt local government services, like this library in Willmar, Texas. The town suffered a cyberattack in August 2019.
AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez
Richard Forno, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
With Russia poised to launch cyberattacks on US targets, many local governments find themselves without the staff or resources to even recognize when they’re under attack.
Telling elders scary stories about online scammers is not the best way to keep them safe.
Olga Gavrilenko/EyeEm via Getty Images
Older Americans are often taught to be fearful of hackers and scammers in their midst while also being told to investigate potential threats. Better advice is to not engage.
Demonstration for the rights of the Uyghurs in Berlin, 2020.
Leonhard Lenz, Wikimedia Commons
Meredith Oyen, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Taiwanese authorities are allowing its tiny contingent to attend the opening ceremony in Beijing despite a long-running dispute over its name in the Olympics.
Parents say there has been a lack of academic and social learning opportunities for children during the pandemic.
SDI Productions/E+ via Getty Images
The pandemic and shifts to virtual learning have set many children back academically. The setbacks can be particularly challenging for children with disabilities, but recovery is possible.
Associate Director of the Center for Women in Technology and Research Assistant Professor in the Engineering and Computing Education Program, University of Maryland, Baltimore County