Spring 2025

Explorations

A New Twist on Tornado Tracking

Undergrad Coproduces First Database Documenting Events Worldwide

Explorations

house floating in water with flames in background

Losing a Game of Risk

Insurance Expert Proposes Plan to Save Homeowners’ Coverage

Explorations

Bottleneck Buster

After Key Bridge Collapse, Engineer Seeks to Ease Commutes in Baltimore

Features

Solutions to Bird Flu Hatched

On the farm and in the lab, researchers are fighting a virus that’s pushing up food prices and threatening a new pandemic

Post-Grad

couple and two kids wearing Maryland gear at Testudo statue

Alumni Association News

Love of a Lifetime; 5 Reasons to Join Now

Post-Grad

mom and daughter look at dinosaur at museum

‘Jurassic Park,’ a Little More Real

At New Dinosaur Museum Led by Paleontologist Alum, Visitors Can Dig In

Post-Grad

Beating the Drum for Brain Benefits

Alum’s Rhythmic Fitness Regime Exercises Body and Mind

Post-Grad

Maia Shanklin Roberts portrait with images of Barry Farm

Building on a Legacy

Alum Strives to Help Residents Reclaim Vibrant Black Community in Redeveloped Barry Farm

Post-Grad

A Towering Terp Achievement

An ‘Underexposed’ Photo From UMD History

Parting Shot

Sweet Success

Women’s, Men’s Basketball Teams Advanced to Sweet 16 Together for First Time

Class Notes

News on Friends and Classmates

See all Class Notes from this issue

00s

Matt Daddio ’03

Matt Daddio ’03 joined Columbia National Real Estate Finance as deputy chief underwriter, based in the Towson, Md., office. He serves as vice chair of the advisory board for the Howard County Department of Housing and Community Development and as the Real…

Passings

Louis C. Gasbarre M.S. ’74, Ph.D. ’78

Louis C. Gasbarre M.S. ’74, Ph.D. ’78 of Boerne, Texas, died on April 11, 2025, at age 76. He grew up in western Pennsylvania and graduated from Ridgway High School and Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He served in the Navy as a corpsman and earned a…

90s

Poonam Gupta Ph.D. ’98

Poonam Gupta Ph.D. ’98 was named deputy governor of the Federal Reserve Bank of India. She is formerly a senior economist at the World Bank, where she worked since 2013.

00s

Chris Orr ’05

Chris Orr ’05 was named chief information officer of Orrstown Bank. He previously served as chief digital officer at Sandy Spring Bank. He holds an MBA in finance from Loyola College in Maryland, and a leadership certificate from the Wharton School. He is…

70s

Adele L. Abrams ’74

Adele L. Abrams ’74 joined Littler, the world’s largest employment and labor law practice representing management, as senior counsel in its Washington, D.C. office. Abrams previously led an Occupational Safety and Health Administration practice across…

90s

Josh Prangley ’99

Josh Prangley ’99 joined Truist Securities as managing director, leading coverage of the building products and basic materials sector. Prior to joining Truist, Prangley was at Greenhill & Co., and started his banking career at J.P. Morgan. He earned…

00s

Conrad Bolston ’09

Conrad Bolston ’09 returned to the law firm Vinson and Elkins as a Washington, D.C.-based counsel in the firm’s environmental practice. He most recently served as a senior environmental counsel at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Bolston earned a…

Passings

Vinod Kumar Jain Ph.D. ’94

Vinod Kumar Jain Ph.D. ’94, 80 of Ashburn, Va., died on April 20, 2025. Jain earned a B.S. and M.S. in statistics at the Indian Statistical Institute in Calcutta. After working for Coca-Cola as a marketing research executive in Delhi, Jain earned an M.S.…