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Maryland Moments, January, 2003 Space Shuttle Columbia
The space shuttle Columbia tragedy echoed its sadness around the world, and the state of Maryland was hit particularly hard by the death of astronaut William McCool. He attended both the Naval Academy and the University of Maryland, was an outstanding distance runner on the Academy playing fields and No. 2 in his class academically. McCool was a pilot on the space shuttle, making his first trip into space. His death occurred to the month 17 years after the shuttle Challenger exploded on liftoff, killing Judith Resnik, Ph.D. Electrical Engineering �77. The deaths of McCool and Resnik give the university a unique, but unwanted, place in the history of space flight.
University Initiatives
Ray Paternoster, professor of criminology and criminal justice, released a long-awaited study on the fairness of how the death penalty is applied in Maryland. The study found prosecutors are much more likely to seek the death penalty in cases where blacks are accused of killing whites and that state geography by county plays a major role in whether a defendant faces a potential death sentence.
Nariman Favardin, dean of the Clark School of Engineering and professor of electrical and computer engineering, is one of "The Five to Watch in 2003" in business named by the Washington Post.
Black Enterprise magazine released its rankings for the first time in two years. The University of Maryland recorded a jump from No. 31 in 2001 to No. 22 in 2003. It was the most significant improvement of any school ranked in the the Top 25.
In the latest MBA Rankings by the Financial Times, the Smith School of Business is ranked No. 7 among business schools worldwide for faculty research, and the Smith School tied for #1 among the top-25 U.S. business schools in its "value for the money" category. The Smith School also ranked No. 7 in aims achieved by graduates; No. 7 among U.S. public business schools; No. 23 among U.S. business schools; and No. 33 among business schools worldwide.
The National Research Council proposed big changes in the methodology of its next survey of research-doctorate programs, to be completed in 2005. The survey, which is the definitive ranking of doctoral programs in the United States, would expand to 57 from 41 the number of academic fields judged. Pilot studies of the new methodology begin at nine institutions: University of Maryland, Auburn University, Florida State University, Michigan State University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Yale University, University of California-San Francisco, Southern California and University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee. Science & Technology
John Anderson, professor emeritus of aerospace engineering in the Clark School, was named an Honorary Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). The honor is the highest bestowed by the institute. (Anderson is curator for aerodynamics at the National Air and Space Museum.)
The University of Maryland, New Jersey Institute of Technology and University of California, Berkeley are developing the Frequency Agile Solar Radiotelescope. FASR was recently ranked number one in importance by the NRC Solar and Space Physics Survey Committee of the National Academy of Sciences.
Norman Hansen, professor of chemistry and biochemistry, and Bala Balachandran, associate professor of mechanical engineering, received $50,000 and $48,374 respectively from Maryland's Technology Development Corp. under its University Technology Development Fund. The program provides grants to Maryland universities for research and development projects with commercial potential.
The Washington Post credited the University of Maryland for its part in creating the whooping crane artificial insemination program, begun in 1964, when a broken-wing crane named Canus was domesticated from the Canadian wild. The super-procreator bird helped avoid extinction of the whooping crane, coveted bird. There are now over 400.
Agriculture Secretary Anne Veneman announced the inaugural class of the Department of Agriculture's Public Service Scholars and includes university student Aleta Haynes-Williams among the 14 appointees. The 2002 Public Service Scholars will become permanent employees of the USDA upon completion of their degrees. Until then, they will work as student employees and receive a scholarship covering their full tuition. Society & Culture
Confronting Consumption, published last summer by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Press and co-edited by Ken Conca, associate professor of government and politics, did something few books manage to do well. It attracted the attention of academic scholars, environmental activists and everyday consumers. The book has now been named winner of the International Studies Association best book of 2002 on international environmental affairs.
Maryland was ranked among the top ten schools and colleges for its dining policies of providing vegan and vegetarian fare in its dining halls by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. More Maryland Moments in January
Director of athletics Deborah Yow served on the Secretary of Education's Commission on Opportunity in Athletics, which reviewed the Title IX laws conerning collegiate athletics and women's participation.
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 Information provided by the Office of University CommunicationsEmail University Communications at emailum@umd.edu |
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