Fall 2023

Parting Shot

football team runs through "Go Terps" banner

Rewriting the Script

Popular Football Uniform Returns Full-Time This Fall

Post-Grad

Underexposed

Can You Make Sense of This Horseplay?

Post-Grad

Lessons in Flavoring

Food Scientist Melds Chemistry, Culinary Passion at McCormick

Post-Grad

Lynde Washington poses in front of his artwork

Brush With Greatness

Former Cornerback Tackles Subjects’ Essences on Canvas

Post-Grad

Cheers to Safe Bars

Alum Serves Up Resources to Improve Health, Equity of Hospitality Industry

Post-Grad

The Sweetest Connection

From College Park to the Caribbean, Sugar Hill Sisterhood Celebrates 50th Gathering

Post-Grad

fans watch as Mighty Sound of Maryland marches by

Alumni Association News

Meet the New Members; 3 Reasons to Return for UMD Homecoming

Features

A white truck was driving down a country road

Roads to Recovery

In rural Maryland, a new “been-there-done- that” approach to the opioid crisis offers hope on four wheels.

Features

All Hail David Do

Alum named NYC taxi commissioner navigates ridesharing’s rise, drivers’ economic woes—and plenty of midtown traffic.

Features

two students sit on WMUC couch. Inset photos: students install radio tower; students review tally sheets

‘Get Listening, Kids’

How do you track 75 years of college radio at Maryland? Decades of deejays replay history, hijinks and the music that made WMUC.

Explorations

Burning Question for Babies’ Health

UMD Leads National Study on Long-Term Effects of Wildfires

Explorations

Building AI You Can Trust

Researcher Heading New $20M NSF-Backed Institute Says Systems Should Support Societal Good

Explorations

An Ally for Access

Palm-sized Robot Navigates Touchscreens for Visually Impaired Users

Explorations

Jennifer Smallwood-Holmes talks to kids in classroom

Preschool Director Explains How to Turn Tots’ Chatter Into Conversation

Ask an Expert: Advice for Real Life

Explorations

Better Together

We’ll Give Up a Lot to Share Experiences With Loved Ones, Study Shows

Explorations

Gimme (Green) Shelter

UMD-Grown, Plant-Packed Bus Shelters Debut Near Campus

Class Notes

News on Friends and Classmates

See all Class Notes from this issue

90s

Shana Cochrane Smith ’95

Shana Cochrane Smith ’95 was appointed senior executive vice president and chief legal officer of ScanSource, a leading hybrid distributor connecting devices to the cloud. Smith most recently served as vice president, general counsel and corporate…

90s

Ricardo Jackman

Ricardo Jackman ’95 was hired as a partner at the Washington, D.C., office of Morris, Manning & Martin, where he chairs the new sports and entertainment practice. Most recently, Jackman served as co-chair of Ballard Spahr’s sports and entertainment…

Passings

Darren Drozdov ’94

Former football player and pro wrestler Darren Drozdov ’94 died June 30 in Pomona, N.J. He was 54, according to The New York Times. Drozdov grew up in Mays Landing, N.J., and spent most of his adult life there. After graduating from UMD, he was signed as…

Passings

Robert Joseph Werrlein M.S. ’67. Ph.D. ’74

Robert Joseph Werrlein M.S. ’67. Ph.D. ’74 died at his home in Bel Air, Md., on May 29, 2023, at age 85. Born in Essex, N.J., he graduated from Hobart University, where he was captain of the men’s lacrosse team, and earned graduate degrees in microbiology…

00s

L.S. McKee M.F.A. ’05

“Creature, Wing, Heart, Machine,” the debut collection of alter-ego poems by L.S. McKee M.F.A. ’05, confronts the surveillance gaze of online desire. Her work has appeared in Narrative, The Massachusetts Review, Best New Poets, Cincinnati Review, The…

80s

Todd D. Brown ’84

Todd D. Brown ’84, an attorney with Shulman Rogers in Potomac, Md., was named to Best Lawyers 2024, a recognition based on peer review that he has earned every year since 2019. He practices in the area of land use and zoning law.

10s

Letam Duson ’10

Letam Duson ’10 was named to The Daily Record’s 2023 list of Leading Women Under 40. Duson is senior assistant state prosecutor in Maryland’s Office of State Prosecutor. She is responsible for investigating and litigating political corruption and public…

60s

Peter Michael ’66

Peter Michael ’66 had his eighth book published, “First Explorer,” a biography of the Swiss humanitarian—and the author’s ancestor—Frantz Michel, who in 1704 was first to explore the Maryland colony beyond the shores of the Chesapeake Bay. Three of his…