March 1, 2019
A newsletter for students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends
Track Star+English Major=
UMES Love Story
UMES Homecoming 2019 theme: There is no place like home. This is true for Clayton Nichols, an Ocean City native, and Shaneka Schoolfield Nichols of Berlin. The Stephen Decatur High School graduates have known each other since the sixth grade in Worcester County and their story would continue at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. Clayton (’97), a cross country / track star and art education major, says his mother influenced his decision to attend school close to home. Mother does know best. Shaneka (’97) sought to make her own mark, following family members who also attended the university dating back to its Maryland State College days. “He was an athlete … so you know, they can be kind of cocky. I’m also a ‘Type A’ person,” Shaneka said. In explaining how their relationship came to be, Shaneka described herself as outgoing and let it be known among her friends she would be the one to date Clayton. “Every time I turned a corner, she was peeping around a door,” Clayton
said as they laughed together. The couple poke fun at their different recollections about shared experiences, such as “Remember, you told me you had a girlfriend when I first asked you out on a date?,” Shaneka said. “I didn’t have a girlfriend,” Clayton insisted with a chuckle. “I said no because I was pledging” Phi Beta Sigma fraternity (’95). The campus buzzed about Clayton the athlete who often
Happy anniversary Batman, Superman Brad & Spider-man ByHudson
Carmall After graduating with a Washington, bachelor’s degree in studio art from the University of Maryland, sequential arts student I looked for a graduate program in sequential arts but had trouble finding one that fit my budget. Creating this unique program at UMES has enabled me to help students like myself. Most of the handful of institutions that do offer this program charge tuition fourto-five times more than UMES. So, the university can rightfully claim to be a good value for students with these unique skills. The spring 2019 semester will yield the largest graduating class for sequential arts at five students, or about half the projected number of graduates studying fine arts. As the program celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, I dream someday about being able to offer UMES students a Master of Fine Arts in sequential arts.
INSIDE
When I started teaching as an adjunct instructor at UMES in 2000, there were no sequential arts courses, which today nearly two decades later are distinctively unique offerings in the university’s Department of Fine Arts. The department had just launched its applied design degree when I joined the faculty, and I was tasked with developing and teaching most of the courses for the graphic illustration concentration. After implementing those new courses, I sensed among students an interest in comic book drawing and story-telling and saw an opportunity to create something new. So the department experimented with some elective courses in sequential arts to gauge whether UMES should incorporate this option in the curriculum. Once I proved demand existed, I proposed creating another concentration of courses in the field of sequential arts. Since 2009, UMES has been the home to Maryland’s only sequential arts program. The university is also the nation’s lone historically black institution with this program, and the only public institution that affords this opportunity to its students. When I was a student, I loved comic books and cartooning but was discouraged by instructors from pursuing that interest.
Page 2
Homecoming generosity IIE Seal of Excellence UMES love story cont.
Page 3
Alumna & the anthem Anderson in Md. leadership class
Page 4 - 5
… No place like Homecoming ’19 photo album
LOVE STORY / continued on page 2
Page 6
Worsley named to MEAC HOF Hawks’ Hoops: A family thing
Page 7
Work-study abroad in D.R. UMES hosted robotics competition
Page 8
Henderson photography exhibit Rhythm & Hues: March and April events