The University of Maryland (UMD) has announced its student speaker for its Winter 2021 Commencement: Kiara Anthony, an alum of the International Studies Scholars program. Anthony, a government and politics major, boasts a diverse array of experiences from across campus, from being a member of the UMD equestrian team to co-chairing the University Student Judiciary and more. She also reportedly likes to consider issues from a global, interconnected perspective—something she no doubt became good at doing during her time in International Studies Scholars.

The University of Maryland recently announcement its roster of senior marshals for Winter Commencement, taking place Dec. 20. Among the 32 graduating seniors are four College Park Scholars alumni:

Three College Park Scholars alumni were among the 19 Philip Merrill Presidential Scholars named by the University of Maryland (UMD) this past week: Sam Varga, Science, Discovery and the Universe Scholars Rina Torchinsky, Science, Technology and Society Scholars Selena Cen, Global Public Health Scholars Merrill Scholars, which are selected by the academic college and schools with undergraduate major programs, annually honors the university’s most successful seniors and their designated university faculty and K–12 teachers for their mentorship.

College Park Scholars has awarded its inaugural Rebecca Basena Kampi Memorial Scholarship to Joy Nash, a junior materials science and engineering major and an alum of the Media, Self and Society Scholars program. The scholarship provides financial support for undergraduate students in College Park Scholars who, through their leadership and public service, work to produce social change and support social justice.

David Tomblin, director for the Science, Technology and Society Scholars program and the new Science, Technology, Ethics and Policy minor, has received the Dean’s Outstanding Performance for Professional Track Faculty by the A. James Clark School of Engineering. The award, instituted in 2020, recognizes exceptionally influential accomplishments in one, or both, the areas of research and teaching.

Alexandra Marquez, a Media, Self and Society Scholars alum and a 2021 graduate of the University of Maryland, was recently named Standout Undergraduate Student by the All in Democracy Challenge, a coalition of 850 higher education institutions across the country. The All in Democracy Challenge empowers colleges and universities to achieve excellence in nonpartisan student democratic engagement.

When the Scholars Citation Class of 2021—all 930 of them—stepped onto the University of Maryland campus in August of 2019, spirits were undoubtedly high. College Park Scholars was celebrating its 25th anniversary, with branded #ScholarsAt25 shirts, buttons and laptop stickers, and even a Maryland Dairy ice cream flavor created specifically for the occasion. But spirits sank in March of 2020 with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, sending the cohort into a virtual experience for the rest of their time in the program.

The Science, Technology and Society (STS) Scholars program has long pushed students to consider the ethical, social and political implications of science, research and technology. It’s the kind of thinking that isn’t readily incorporated into most STEM curricula, despite the high likelihood that these students will one day design or introduce innovations that could significantly impact society. Thanks to a new minor, however, more University of Maryland students will soon be exposed to STS teachings.

College Park Scholars is mourning the passing last week of Dr. John Lee Hellman, the founding director of the Life Sciences Scholars program—one of the four original programs in College Park Scholars. He served as director of Life Sciences from its launch in 1994 until 2009. Hellman was a lifelong Terp, having earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees, as well as his doctorate, from the University of Maryland, College Park (UMD). After earning his Ph.D. in 1975, he went on to serve as a professor in the Department of Entomology in the then–College of Life Sciences. (Entomology is now a joint department of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the College of Computer, Mathematical, & Natural Sciences.)

Kids bent over boxes of school supplies. Tubs of tomatoes, picked fresh off the vine. College students clad in waders, waist-deep in pond water. These were just a few of the scenes witnessed during College Park Scholars’ annual Service Day, which took place on Friday, Aug. 27, this year.