Spring 2023

Photo

red shoes peek out of a teal hammock on McKeldin Mall

In the Sling of Things

Students Embrace Warmer Weather on McKeldin Mall

Post-Grad

Underexposed

Can You Help Us Identify These Terps?

Post-Grad

Kylie D’Alessio films Alex measuring wall

Renovation Sensations

Thousands Follow Alums on TikTok, Instagram

Post-Grad

Ryan Bunch poses with "Oz and the Musical" book, on yellow background with white and gray Wizard of Oz illustrations

Following the Yellow Brick Road

Alum to Head International Wizard of Oz Club

Post-Grad

Sahil Rahman ’12 and Rahul Vinod ’11 pose outside Rasa restaurant

Serving Up Time-Honored Flavors Fast

Friends’ Fresh Take on Indian Cuisine Expands Across D.C. Area

Post-Grad

Amber Mayfield with "While Entertaining" magazine cover

Party Queen, Behind the Scenes

Alum Highlights Black Chefs, Artists at NYC-Based Event Agency

Post-Grad

Alumni Association News

Alums Share Advice at Terps Under 30, Women’s Leadership Development Conference

Explorations

woman with briefcase walking through red tape

Why Noncompetes Could Soon Be a Non-Thing

Maryland Economist’s Studies Fueled Federal Drive to Ban Controversial Employee Contracts

Explorations

Antidote to Overdoses: A Universal Treatment

New Compound Fights Both Fentanyl and Meth in Bloodstream

Explorations

A Season of Healing

REI-Funded Center Promotes Nature-Based Research and Reparation

Explorations

Roll Over, Paper Towels

Engineers’ Picker-Upper Is Even Quicker

Explorations

An On-Campus Oscar Nominee

Researcher Executive-Produced Lauded Documentary

Explorations

Wildlife Ecologist Explains How to Get Ticks Off, Not Ticked Off

Ask a Researcher: Advice for Real Life

Explorations

car going from house to brick office building

Maryland, Start Your Engines

Survey Shows Cars Fuel Post-COVID Commute

Explorations

$30M in Grand Challenges Grants Awarded

Unprecedented UMD Research Program Targets Climate, Racial Justice, Energy and More

Campus Life

Maryland women's basketball player shoots ball vs. South Carolina

Sports Briefs

Achievements by Women’s Basketball, Softball and Gymnastics Teams

Class Notes

News on Friends and Classmates

See all Class Notes from this issue

Passings

Robert Douglas Tune ’67

Robert Douglas Tune ’67, of Parkville, Md., died on April 8, 2023, just shy of his 79th birthday. A proud Maryland native, Tune graduated from Mount St. Joseph High School before earning a bachelor's degree from UMD, a master's degree from Towson State…

Passings

Michael Wright York Ph.D. ’69

Michael Wright York Ph.D. ’69 of Coventry, Conn., died on April 7, 2023, at age 84. Born in Dallas, he was a graduate of Southern Methodist University and earned a doctorate in clinical psychology from UMD. He was a general medicine and surgical…

Passings

Nancy T. Ladyman ’59

Nancy T. Ladyman ’59, of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, died on April 5, 2023. She was 87. Born in Yorktown Heights, N.Y., she graduated from UMD with a degree in international relations and moved to Germany, where she married, before moving to Liverpool, U.K. and…

10s

Andrew Griffin ’11, M.P.M. ’22

Andrew Griffin ’11, M.P.M. ’22 was promoted to senior vice president of government affairs at the Maryland Chamber of Commerce. He leads the chamber’s over 6,400 members on issues before the Maryland General Assembly.

Passings

David Dashiell Keck ’61

David Dashiell Keck ’61 died suddenly on April 27, 2023 while recovering from a heart procedure. He was 84. Keck was born in Baltimore, graduated from Westminster High in Carroll County and studied marketing at UMD. He served three years in the U.S. Army,…

Passings

Thomas Russell Watt Sr. ’74

Thomas Russell Watt Sr. ’74 of Punta Gorda, and more recently Largo, Fla., died on April 28, 2023, following a long illness. He was 88. Born in Washington, D.C., Watt served in the U.S. Navy from 1954 to 1957 and graduated from UMD. He worked as an…

90s

Susan Ferensic ’91

Susan Ferensic ’91 was named assistant director of the Weapons of Mass Destruction Directorate at FBI headquarters. She most recently served as special agent in charge of the Columbia Field Office in South Carolina. Ferensic joined the FBI in 1997.

Passings

Andrew Gwynn Bowie Jr. ’68

Andrew Gwynn Bowie Jr. ’68 of Annapolis, Md., and Swan's Island, Maine, died on May 1, 2023, after a brief illness. Gwynn was raised on his family farm, Beechwood, near Upper Marlboro and studied political science and French at UMD. He also graduated from…