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COMMUNITY MATTERS DECEMBER 2021

A newsletter of the Center for Democracy and Civic Life at UMBC

NOTE FROM THE STAFF

In the run up to Election 2020, members of the Center for Democracy and Civic Life staff worked with leaders from the Student Government Association and Graduate Student Association to coordinate a voter engagement campaign. Rather than focusing narrowly on registering voters and getting out the vote, the coordinating group organized a variety of programs and messages encouraging members of the UMBC community to “Cast Your Whole Vote,” which means committing fully to building strong, inclusive, just communities in which everyone can thrive. The idea comes from Henry David Thoreau’s essay on Civil Disobedience. Thoreau observed that in the 19th century there were a lot of people who complained about what the government did or did not do, but took no real responsibility. They might vote in elections, but they did not learn about the issues, engage in conversations with members of their community, and contribute their time and talent to building a better world. Thoreau urged them to “cast your whole vote, not a [ballot] merely, but your whole influence.”

The impact of this effort on UMBC’s civic culture is difficult to measure with precision, but it appears to have been large. Thanks to UMBC’s National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement (NSLVE) report, released in late October 2021, we know that 82.5% of UMBC students eligible to vote were registered to vote in Election 2020. Of those registered students, 83.9% actually cast votes (up from 74.5% in Election 2016). UMBC’s overall voting rate (82.5% x 83.9% = 69.2%, up from 61.9% in 2016) is above the national average in a year when student voter turnout surged across the U.S.

We are proud of that outcome, but even more encouraged by the collaborative work that helped produce it, which involved the efforts of student leaders, Student Affairs staff from a variety of departments, academic centers, honors and scholars programs, Athletics, Institutional Advancement, and other campus leaders and organizations. By working together to emphasize the importance of both voting and practices by which ordinary people can shape their communities every day, we helped to strengthen our campus community. We also provided vital support for creative, meaningful, and hopeful civic engagement to address and transcend our ongoing challenges, individually and collectively.

Best,

David Hoffman Ph.D. ‘13, Romy Hübler ‘09, ‘11, Ph.D. ‘15, Caleb Ruck, Charis Lawson ‘20, Faith Davis, Garrett Posey, Markya Reed ‘18, and Tess McRae

Center for Democracy and Civic Life Staff

FEATURED NEWS

What’s Your Story? Promoting Youth Literacy through Storytelling

Members of the Center for Democracy and Civic Life staff have worked with campus partners to envision and develop a yearlong series of programs emphasizing the power of stories and storytelling. Participants in the UMBC Community Read will read and discuss We Speak For Ourselves by D. Watkins, a Baltimore-based author, teacher, and speaker.

The series launched on November 2 with What’s Your Story? Promoting Youth Literacy through Storytelling. The program featured a facilitated story circle developed by Center staff. Members of the Center staff trained undergraduate students Brianna Malbon, Clair Volkening, Dominique Henriques Melo, Logan Lineburg, Rehman Liaqat, and Wangui Nganga as story circle facilitators. Tess McRae facilitated a story circle, led a reflection on the story circles, and served as co-moderator for a panel of experienced storytellers.

Change Makers Dinner

On November 3, Charis Lawson, David Hoffman, and Romy Hübler led a Change Makers Dinner hosted by the Center for Democracy and Civic Life in collaboration with the Office of Health Promotion, the Graduate Student Association, and the Resident Student Association.

UMBC students, faculty, staff, and alumni spoke with a group of local leaders in public health communications about the challenge of credibly sharing scientifically sound public health information at a time when our society is divided and people invest their trust in different media sources.

"I love that these events make reunions/connections like this possible." — Change Makers Dinner participant

The Change Makers were:

  • Adam Abadir, Director of Communications, Baltimore City Health Department
  • Dr. Vic Madrid, Medical Director, University Health Services, UMBC
  • Dr. Mohammed Shafeeq Ahmed, President, Howard County General Hospital
  • Samantha Smith, Associate Director, Health Promotion, UMBC
"I was very surprised at the underfunding of public health." — Change Makers Dinner participant

Participants met with the Change Makers in small groups facilitated by Clair Volkening, Logan Lineburg, Rehman Liaqat, and Wangui Nganga, all of whom are members of the Center’s ConnectionCorps. The ConnectionCorps is a facilitator training initiative that prepares undergraduate students to foster democratic participation and authentic connections among participants in the Center’s workshops and programs.

"[I was] very surprised at how much I enjoyed this evening, a pleasant surprise." — Change Makers Dinner participant

Finding Community Away from Home

On November 17, as part of UMBC’s International Education Week, David Hoffman and Romy Hübler facilitated "Finding and Creating Community Away from Home," a workshop for international students and students who have studied abroad or intend to do so. The conversation focused on how participants have been or hope to be able to form meaningful connections and make contributions in their temporary communities (geographic, campus, etc.).

International Education Week is a joint initiative of the U.S. Department of State and U.S. Department of Education that occurs in November every year. UMBC hosted more than 20 programs highlighting its international student body and internationalization initiatives.

Civic Courage Journaling Project Gathering

On November 19, Charis Lawson and Tess McRae facilitated the final Civic Courage Journaling Project Gathering of the fall 2021 semester. During the Gathering, participants shared and discussed their responses to a prompt about the ways in which people’s beliefs and assumptions about them can be false or misguided.

The Civic Courage Journaling Project creates opportunities for individual reflection and group conversations about personal experiences that have important, often hidden civic dimensions. Civic Courage encompasses the ability to take risks, work through tension, be patient in the face of challenges, stay open and engaged, take responsibility for the foreseeable consequences of one’s actions, face changes bravely, and act in accordance with one’s core values and beliefs.

UMBC student, faculty, staff, and alumni journal bearers respond to prompts from the Center for Democracy and Civic Life. Journal bearers also can share their reflections publicly through social media posts, art projects, and conversations at monthly gatherings. Gatherings have taken place virtually and in person.

Civic Courage Journaling Project Gatherings will resume in January 2022. If you’d like to be involved, send us an email: civiclife@umbc.edu. The Center for Democracy and Civic Life will provide you with a journal.

Workshops

​​The Center for Democracy and Civic Life organizes and facilitates workshops that build community while orienting participants to new possibilities for their engagement in civic life.

Participants and facilitators in the FYS 107 Meaningful Careers Workshop smile behind their masks in a group photo.

On November 9, Charis Lawson and Tess McRae facilitated a Meaningful Careers Workshop for students enrolled in FYS107: Becoming Glocal. Participants considered ​​the connections between their passions and potential career choices; reflected on the contributions they hope to make through their careers; identified questions, concerns, and fears they have related to establishing a satisfying career; and brainstormed about skills they would like to develop while at UMBC.

On November 19, David Hoffman and Romy Hübler facilitated a Together Beyond the Pandemic workshop for the Executive Board of the Resident Student Association (RSA). Participants engaged in a facilitated listening circle in which they shared their experiences of the current phase of the pandemic, encompassing a fall semester in which increased opportunities for in-person connection have been tempered by the need to continue taking precautions against the spread of COVID-19. Participants also reflected on the insights they gained from each other during the conversation.

The workshop was a pilot for guided conversations for which the Center for Democracy and Civic Life plans to train facilitators in spring 2022. Its structure builds on a model the Center for Democracy and Civic Life and campus partners developed to facilitate conversations in the immediate aftermath of Election 2020.

National Convenings

On November 4, David Hoffman, Emily Paul ‘21, Felipe Filomeno, Nic Nemec ‘21, Romy Hübler, and Shannon Cheek ‘21 led a two-hour gathering of the PLACE Collaboratory, a national network of higher education leaders and community partners convened by Bringing Theory to Practice. The UMBC team reported on the Baltimore PLACE project, which has connected UMBC faculty, staff, and students with students and teachers at Ben Franklin High School in the Brooklyn/Curtis Bay neighborhood to develop community-driven plans to enhance students’ well-being. The team shared a photovoice exhibit featuring images and text created by Ben Franklin students to illuminate issues and opportunities relating to their mental health. Team members also reflected on themes that have emerged over the past two years of the project, and facilitated breakout sessions focused on approaches to developing undergraduate students’ civic agency and pursuing humanities research projects that center and amplify community voices.

On November 18, David Hoffman and Romy Hübler participated in a Kettering Foundation research exchange, the latest in a series of conversations among higher education leaders exploring approaches to Educating for Civic Professionalism. Building on pedagogical experiments led by the participants during the 2020-2021 academic year, participants shared their research findings and considered new possibilities. The project David and Romy led at UMBC featured interviews with alumni reflecting on how their UMBC experiences helped prepare them to enact their civic values in their professional roles. The project also involved facilitating Meaningful Careers Workshops and observing how students responded to the terms, ideas, and activities they introduced.

UPCOMING OPPORTUNITIES & PROGRAMS

Alternative Spring Break 2022 Launch

Friday, December 10, 2021

Participants in Alternative Spring Break (ASB) 2022 will convene for the first time, begin getting to know each other, and share the skills and perspectives they will bring to the ASB experience. They also will learn about how they will build community and explore their group topics in the months leading up to ASB and during Spring Break. Group topics for ASB 2022 are: Immigrant health equity; K-12 educational equity; and transformative justice.

To contact the Center for Democracy and Civic Life, email civiclife@umbc.edu.

To read the Center’s Annual Report for 2020-2021, click here.

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