Spring 2024

May 17, 2024

UMD-themed vanity plates are the highway four-leaf clovers we love to spot. We share some of the best—and the tales behind the tags.

Explorations

May 21, 2024

Researchers Use Recipes to Test Tool for Analyzing DoD Classification Guidelines

Parting Shot

May 17, 2024

Sculpture Dedicated to Late Groundbreaking Artist

people hold hands along Baltimore Avenue

Post-Grad

May 17, 2024

An ‘Underexposed’ Photo of UMD History

Post-Grad

May 17, 2024

Terp, Teammate Complete Race Across Atlantic in Record Time

collage of Lee Mendelowitz, Di Zou and Benjamin Eidelberg

Post-Grad

May 17, 2024

3 Alums Crunch Numbers as Sports Analytics Experts for Pro Teams in the DMV

Post-Grad

May 17, 2024

Alum Astronaut Joins International Space Station

Post-Grad

May 17, 2024

Terps ‘Do Good’ on Campus and Beyond

A couple sits behind a table with some card games on it

Features

May 17, 2024

A Fluctuating, Ever-Changing, Up-and-Down Journey to Gaming Success

The image is a stylized, futuristic illustration that depicts a hilly landscape with a car winding through it.

Features

May 17, 2024

Ninety-second battery fill-ups. All-day range. Unparalleled safety. UMD researchers are powering up EVs to save the planet.

Explorations

May 17, 2024

Is Neighborhood Wildlife Spreading COVID?

Explorations

May 17, 2024

Gabbing About Others Offers Unexpected Benefits in Social Groups, UMD and Stanford Researchers Find

Explorations

May 17, 2024

Researcher Finds That Moderate Movement Can Protect Memory and Cognition

Explorations

May 17, 2024

Professor Tells Stories Behind Her Traditional Tattoos

Explorations

May 17, 2024

New Center Links Humanities, Social Change

Class Notes

News on Friends and Classmates

See all Class Notes from this issue

70s

Myrna Chandler Goldstein M.A. ’73

Myrna Chandler Goldstein M.A. ’73 with Dr. Mark A. Goldstein ’68 wrote the book “Treatments for Anxiety: Fact Versus Fiction,” being released on July 25. It examines 25 well-known and well-studied options for combating anxiety. She is an independent…

20s

Shinta H. Hernandez Ph.D. ’21

Shinta H. Hernandez Ph.D. ’21 was honored with a Washington Business Journal Diversity in Business Award. Hernandez is the first dean of Montgomery College’s virtual campus, and previously served as department chair of sociology, anthropology and criminal…

Passings

Ellen Marie Johnson Lawther Kowalyk ’55

Ellen Marie Johnson Lawther Kowalyk ’55 died on April 9, 2024, at age 90. She was a third-generation Washingtonian. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in three and a half years from UMD’s College of Home Economics and was a member of Kappa…

00s

Ahmed Zaman ’09, M.Arch. ’11

Ahmed Zaman ’09, M.Arch. ’11 was named to the Washington Business Journal’s 2024 list of 40 Under 40. He is a senior associate at the global architecture and design firm Perkins Eastman.

00s

Kaycie Bowen ’04

Kaycie Bowen ’04 was named upper school principal at the independent Indian Creek School in Crownsville, Md. She previously served as an assistant principal at Archbishop Spalding High School in Severn and as a teacher in Anne Arundel County Public…

90s

Jennifer Disharoon ’94

Jennifer Disharoon ’94 was included in Women We Admire’s Top 50 Women Leaders of Maryland for 2024. Disharoon is the Chief Marketing Officer at GRF CPAs & Advisors. She is also the secretary of Iona Senior Services, where she has served on the board…

90s

Ali M. Tafreshi ’91, M.S. ’92, Ph.D. ’97

Ali M. Tafreshi ’91, M.S. ’92, Ph.D. ’97 was appointed chief information officer of Goddard Systems. He previously served as chief information officer at Authority Brands, LLC and served as an IT leader for the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport,…

Passings

Emily Ann Sakakini Murray ’69

Emily Ann Sakakini Murray ’69 died on April 10, 2024, in Hockessin, Del., at age 77. She graduated from Granby High School, and from UMD magna cum laude with a degree in library science. She was a lifetime member of the Phi Kappa Phi honor society and the…