Between the Columns: November 2013

APP APPRECIATION PG. 2 / TEACH WITH TECH PG. 3 / BIRD SENSE PG. 6 / ACCOLADES PG. 7 / ARTISTIC VISION PG. 7 / STAGING SISTERHOOD PG. 8

Between the Columns a newsletter for faculty & staff of the University of Maryland November 2013

TIPS TO TURN HOLIDAY HASSLE INTO HOLIDAY HARMONY PG. 4

Kid Researchers Help Nickelodeon Win Emmy

BY KAREN SHIH ’09

Slime all over the screen. A cat zooming toward you in a spaceship. A llama sprouting a clown wig.

Anything can happen when you hit the “Do Not Touch” button on Nickelodeon’s The Nick App—and that’s just what the kids in the Human-Computer Interaction Lab (HCIL) wanted.

It was their input on that button and other areas of the new app that helped earn it an Emmy for “Outstanding Creative Achievement in Interactive Media—User Experience and Visual Design” this year.

“Nickelodeon came to us and said, ‘We want to design this whole big universe. What kind of surprising things should we do?’” says Allison Druin, professor of information studies and co-director of the Future of Information Alliance. She worked with the KidsTeam, a technology design team of kids ranging from 7 to 11 years old in the HCIL, and fellow researchers to come up with some answers.

She created the team in 1998 as a new way to involve kids in the design process, and since then, it’s helped companies like Microsoft and Google and government agencies like the National Park Service develop kidfriendly sites, games and apps.

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For two years, they’ve been working with Nickelodeon, and their influence is all over The Nick App, including its focus on individual characters, since kids identify more with those than with shows; an increased use of polls; and, of course, the “Do Not Touch” button.

“At Nickelodeon, we work with kids a lot…but this particular method of working with children is new, ” says Katie Bessiere M.A. ’02, director of digital research, who was introduced to the HCIL as a student. “We get to find out what kids like and what they imagine, as opposed to just having them answer our questions.”

The free app is available for download in the iTunes and Windows 8 app stores.

Missed the Lists?

A heap of new national rankings place Maryland among the best in entrepreneurship, LGBT-friendly policies and practices, sustainability, and overall excellence:

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in the Sierra Club’s rankings of America’s greenest universities.

Teaching the Tech Generation New Center to Enhance Blended, Online Learning

BY LIAM FARRELL

Students raised on YouTube, PowerPoint and the seemingly limitless information available on the Internet expect more technology woven into their UMD educations than a whiteboard or textbook.

Maryland’s new Teaching & Learning Transformation Center will help faculty take on this challenge by offering training in new strategies, introducing them to the right tools, and measuring how well they work. The center, scheduled to open in the spring, will be a hub for innovation and assessment of learning at Maryland.

“If we as a campus want to support good teaching, we need an infrastructure to help,” says Professor Betsy Beise, associate provost for academic planning and programs. “This is meant to be the go-to place if someone has an issue with one of their courses and wants to do better.”

A recommendation from the Provost’s Commission on Blended and Online Learning, the center will bring together the Center for Teaching Excellence in the Office of Undergraduate Studies and the Learning Technologies and Environments group from the Division of Information Technology.

Another section will be a new Learning Analytics and Assessment unit that will develop ways to measure the effectiveness of classroom strategies.

Although a search is on for a location in the near future, the center will ultimately be housed in the planned Edward St. John Learning and Teaching Center.

Maryland is working to be more aggressive in its pursuit of technology as a catalyst for better learning, says Professor Ben Bederson, special adviser to the provost on technology and educational transformation.

“Our faculty are here because they love teaching. They don’t always find the structures and communities to help with that,” he says. “The new center will provide those.”

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15 &#16 for UMD’s undergraduate and graduate programs, respectively, in The Princeton Review’s list of top entrepreneurship programs.

Top

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on Campus Pride’s list of most LGBT-friendly colleges and universities.

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among U.S. public research institutions, No. 29 nationally and No. 38 worldwide in the 2013 Academic Ranking of World Universities from the Center for World-Class Universities at Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

President Wallace Loh presents the Spirit of Maryland Award to Stephanie Graf and Vaughn Midder at Homecoming 2013.

SEPTEMBER 2013 btc 3 Nickelodeon art courtesy of Nickelodeon. Loh photo by Greg Fiume.

turn holiday hassle into holiday harmony

BY LIAM FARRELL

Maybe your breaking point comes in a mall parking lot while competing with six other cars for the lone space within a quarter mile of a department store. Maybe it appears while baking an eighth batch of cookies for the eighth party in as many days. Or perhaps you reach it accompanied by the sound of barking dogs performing “Jingle Bells”.

Stress comes in many shapes and sizes during the holidays.

From familial, professional and social obligations to the logistics of gift giving and travel, the most wonderful time of the year can often feel more like the most nervewracking time of the year.

We spoke with Associate Professor Andrea Chronis-Tuscano and Assistant Professor Lea Dougherty, both in the Department of Psychology, on ways to cope in the last few weeks of 2013.

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4 btc NOVEMBER 2013 Illustration by Brian G. Payne

Take Care of Yourself If you don’t get enough sleep, you’ll be more physically and emotionally vulnerable to the effects of stress. Remember to exercise and avoid overindulging at the buffet table or bar.

“When you drink alcohol, you may be more likely to respond in ways that you normally would not, especially when you are around family members that challenge you,” Dougherty says.

Feeling worn out?

UMD has some stress-busting activities and events this holiday season PuppyPalooza: Stop by the Stamp Grand Ballroom 11 a.m.–1 p.m. Dec. 12 , when the Stamp Special Events staff, Maryland Parents Association and others bring in about 20 puppies and dogs from rescue foundations for stressed-out students, faculty and staff to pet, cuddle and take pictures with.

Acupuncture: Practitioners can help you relax or get energized through this treatment. Your health insurance may defray the $65 cost. Call 4-8184.

Massage Therapy: Your session might focus on Swedish, deep-tissue or stretching massage to increase circulation, relieve muscle tension and promote profound relaxation. The cost is $65 per 50-minute session. Call 4-8184.

Relaxation Training: Schedule a one-time session with a health educator to talk about specific stressors, stress levels and symptoms you’re experiencing, and get customized stress-busting strategies.

Call 4-1493.

Meditation Sessions: Free individual and group sessions are available year-round with a certified meditation counselor to use breathing techniques that will help you feel calm and relaxed.

Call 4-9629 or visit health.umd.edu/meditation.

Stress Relief Yoga: Unwind at 5 p.m.

Dec. 11 in the Cole Student Activities Building’s Multipurpose Room.

You must be a Campus Recreation Services member to participate.

Wellness Coaching: Focus on work-life balance, time management and more through this ongoing, free service. Call 4-1493.

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Older Birds Lend a Helping Wing

BY LIAM FARRELL

IF YOU’RE WORRIED about finding your way to grandma’s house this holiday season, take a cue from the animal kingdom when choosing road-trip company: There is wisdom in experience, not necessarily in numbers.

A research team led by the University of Maryland found migrating whooping cranes followed a more direct route from Wisconsin breeding grounds to Florida wintering areas if the group included an 8-year-old adult bird. On average, 1-year-old cranes with the older counterparts deviated fewer than 40 miles from a direct flight path, whereas 1-year-olds without the adult veered an average of 60 miles.

The research, published in Science, found genetic relationships, gender and group size didn’t make a difference in the migrations. What mattered, says biology Professor William Fagan, a co-author, was the “experience level” of the oldest bird around.

BOOKSHELF Shibley Telhami, professor of international relations, charts the past and future of a changing region in The World through Arab Eyes: Arab Public Opinion and the Reshaping of the Middle East.

In Latinos in the Legislative Process: Interests and Influences, Stella Rouse, assistant professor of government and politics, explores how a population’s growth is translating into the halls of government.

“It speaks to the importance of individuality in the migratory process,” Fagan says. “It is not just the number of birds flying together that matters.”

Efforts have been under way for years to bolster the endangered whooping crane population, and the Patuxent Wildlife Research Refuge in nearby Laurel, Md., is a breeding site. Each summer in Wisconsin, the nonprofit Operation Migration trains chicks to follow an ultralight aircraft to Florida, and subsequent, non-human-assisted journeys are then monitored. This unique data set was critical to the new research.

A perfect path may be unattainable, though. Fagan says whooping cranes develop preferences for stopovers.

“It is kind of like the case of a human traveler who would only stay at a Holiday Inn,” he says.

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6 btc NOVEMBER 2013 Wollesen photo by John T. Consoli

ACCOLADES The national headquarters of the American Institute of Architects displayed a special collection of work this fall from Roger K. Lewis, professor emeritus of architecture. Lewis is known for writing and illustrating his regular “Shaping the City” column in The Washington Post.

Eugenia Kalnay, professor of atmospheric and oceanic science, was appointed to the United Nations Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Global Sustainability.

Patricia Hill Collins, professor of sociology and Brandeis University alumna, received Brandeis’ Joseph B. and Toby Gittler Prize for lasting and outstanding contributions to racial, ethnic and religious relations.

Math Professor Ben Kedem worked as a Fulbright specialist at Portugal’s New University of Lisbon during October.

The National Council for the Social Studies gave Judith TorneyPurta, professor of human development and quantitative methodology, the 2013 Jean Dresden Grambs Distinguished Career in Research Award.

Jinhee Kim, associate professor of family science, received the Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning’s 2013 Outstanding Journal Article Award.

The firm of architecture Professor Garth Rockcastle, Meyer, Scherer & Rockcastle Ltd., won an Honor Award from the Maryland Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

Raising the Curtain New Clarice Smith Leader Brings Innovative Spirit

BY DAVID KOHN

MARTIN WOLLESEN HAS LIVED IN SINGAPORE , the Philippines, Egypt, Israel and Portugal. He has slept on top of the Pyramids, worked on a kibbutz and competed in triathlons.

Now, after more than a decade in California, he has his next challenge: making the performing arts at Maryland more accessible, lively and engaging.

In September, Wollesen became the new executive director of the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center.

Previously, he was artistic director for ArtPower!, a program that presented dance, music, spoken word and film at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD).

Wollesen was known there for his innovative programs designed to break down barriers between audiences and performers. He started a film festival and Wonderland, an international festival of contemporary dance. He opened the Loft, a lounge and wine bar where students and community members could see a wide range of performances, including pop music, poetry, dance and visual art. The goal, Wollesen says, was to make it easier for audiences, especially UCSD students, to enjoy the performing arts.

“We’ve created contexts that make the arts inaccessible,” he says. “We wanted to make the Loft friendly and less intimidating.”

Wollesen says he’ll bring the same spirit to College Park. He hopes to boost student input into the curating and planning of projects, and wants to attract new audiences in part by staging performances all over campus and elsewhere in the community.

“Audiences don’t have to always come to us,” he says.

“We can also go to them.”

Wollesen misses swimming in the ocean, something he did several times a week in San Diego. At the same time, he is looking forward to learning more about life on the East Coast.

“I embrace change,” he says. “I embrace discovery and exploration.”

“Audiences don’t have to always come to us.

We can also go to them.”

— MARTIN WOLLESEN, new executive director at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center

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Stage Right Big Ten Initiative to Support Female Playwrights, Roles

BY KAREN SHIH ’09

From writing to directing to acting, women are underrepresented in every area of theater production. A new initiative from the Big Ten Theatre Chairs aims to change that by commissioning, producing and publicizing up to five new women-written plays over the next five years.

“This is a very unique initiative. It’s about raising consciousness in order to represent the student population as well as the audience, both of which are mostly female,” says Leigh Wilson Smiley, director of the School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies and a new member of the theatre chairs group. “We need to start to get the female voice out there.”

The plays will not only be written by women but also feature substantial female roles. Naomi Iizuka of the University of San Diego, known for works reflecting her multicultural background, has been commissioned to write the first one. It will be ready for the 2014–15 season, and each Big Ten university will have the opportunity to perform it on a main stage or do a staged reading. It’s one way Maryland’s Big Ten membership is helping areas beyond athletics.

“I’ll have partners across the country,” Smiley says. “This is a chance to influence the national conversation.”

Sandwalk performance photo by Stan Barouh

Between the Columns is published twice per semester by University Marketing and Communications. Story ideas are welcome and should be sent to Liam Farrell, managing editor, at lfarrel1@umd.edu or by calling 301.405.4629. The mailing list is generated through University Human Resources. Any changes to names and addresses should be made through ares.umd.edu.

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