2009 Performance Accountability Report Vol. 2 - Maryland Higher ...

The numbers of undergraduate students enrolled in teacher training programs showed a decrease
in FY 2009, but increased at the graduate level (see input indicators for Objective 2.1). The number of
UMBC graduates employed in Maryland public schools has remained fairly steady since fall 2006, and is
still short of the FY 2009 target. MSDE has indicated that many LEAs, due to budget cuts, hired many
fewer teachers this year. In addition, it is important to note that due to the self reporting process the
LEAs use, as well as the time it takes to get data back from MSDE, the data are estimated to undercount
the true number of teachers hired. It appears that the enrollments in Education also reflect, at least in part,
the challenges of completing the requirements for certification in Elementary Education along with a
major in another field and a university language requirement. The fact that our education students are
required to major in another field may also affect the number going on to teach in Maryland, as this
broader education may enable them to pursue more lucrative careers in their chosen field of study or
make them more likely to go on to graduate school. Several new initiatives are focused on preparation of
teachers in the high need areas of science and technology. A leadership gift of $5 million from George
and Betsy Sherman funds the Sherman STEM Teacher Training Program, a program that is expected to
increase the number of UMBC graduates who move immediately into science, technology, engineering,
and mathematics teaching careers in at-risk and challenged schools in Baltimore City and throughout
Maryland. A new B.A. program in Physics Education received approval from MHEC in 2007, and a
program in Chemistry Education was approved by MHEC in July 2008. These programs will greatly
facilitate preparation of secondary science teachers by streamlining and coordinating the requirements in
science and Education so that students can complete the program in four years. The university has also
added post-baccalaureate certificates in Elementary/Secondary Science Education, Mathematics
Education, and S.T.E.M. Education.
Caliber of Students. The university offers students a wide range of opportunities to excel both
intellectually and in other types of competitions. The U.S. News & World Report America’s Best
Colleges Guide ranked UMBC as the #1 public national university in undergraduate teaching and also
included UMBC in a list of “outstanding opportunities for undergraduate research and creative projects.”
Undergraduate research is one of the hallmarks of UMBC’s designation as an Honors University in
Maryland, and the university is participating in a Leadership Cluster of the Carnegie Academy for the
Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (CASTL) focusing on undergraduate research. This year 200
students participated in Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement Day, an annual day-long
celebration of student research. Participants included recipients of the Provost’s Undergraduate Research
Awards, MARC U*STAR scholars, and students from many disciplines presenting senior honors projects.
Volume 10 of the UMBC Review: Journal of Undergraduate Research, was published in the spring.
This 280-page issue, the largest to date, contains the work of students majoring in American Studies,
Ancient Studies, English, Economics, History, Biological Sciences, and Psychology and research ranging
from the Metamorphoses of Ovid and Bernini to economic exclusivity and racial diversity in Columbia,
Maryland. Also published this spring was Volume 29 of Bartleby the university’s creative arts journal
consisting of students’ works of fiction, creative non-fiction, poetry and art.
Students’ academic and co-curricular accomplishments are also gaining national and international
recognition. Senior Hannah Saeed (Political Science) received a prestigious Jack Kent Cooke
Scholarship, and two students, Joshua Michael (Political Science) and Susan Kane (American Studies),
were finalists for a Truman Scholarship. The UMBC Chess Team reclaimed the “Final Four of College
Chess” championship, the 2009 President’s Cup for the fifth time in the past nine years, and holds the
national record for the most wins in the Pan American Intercollegiate Chess Championship. The UMBC
Biodiesel Club recently won $1,000 in seed funding in an MTV-sponsored, international environmental
contest (MTV Go Green) for their idea to make biofuel at a Maryland farm. Senior Trevor Simpson was
awarded first place in the pop/rock category of the student recording competition at the 125th Audio
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