Winter 2024

Testudo turtle mascot with open arms. Vintage mascot photos in background

January 12, 2024

From Turtlenappings to TikTok Shenanigans, How an Unassuming Reptile Evolved to Represent Terp Spirit

rainbow turtle, turtle with pink and light blue pattern, "Support #TransTerps" pin. "Debilitating Queerness", "they" pin

January 16, 2024

Twenty-five years ago, the LGBTQ+ Equity Center opened to support queer Terps who felt invisible, isolated and harassed. Some of the founders recount its humble start and hard-won victories.

View of low, tan buildings against a large sky. Dessert terrain.

Features

January 12, 2024

American Indians have long been denied fair access to homes, health care, schooling and jobs. For Joseph Kunkel M.Arch. ’09, the mission to change that is personal.

Post-Grad

January 12, 2024

The Alumni Excellence Awards

Parting Shot

January 12, 2024

Testudo Watches Over McKeldin Mall From Perch of Nearly 60 Years

"Testudo II" wheels near stands at football game

Post-Grad

January 12, 2024

An ‘Underexposed’ Photo of UMD History

Alex Kin ’08 and Sarah Tostanoski ’09 on wedding day

Post-Grad

January 12, 2024

Alums Celebrate Wedding at Homecoming Tailgate

Cheese board with M in middle; Kara McGrath inset portrait

Post-Grad

January 12, 2024

5 Tips for Making a Board Bursting With Flavor and Color

Post-Grad

January 12, 2024

Image Chosen by Postal Service Opened New Avenues to Treat Brain Diseases

Bonnie Bernstein portrait and "She Got Game: Inspiring Women, Inspired by Sports" illustration

Post-Grad

January 12, 2024

Sports Journalist’s Podcast Links Women’s Success in Careers to Experiences on the Field and Court

Post-Grad

January 12, 2024

Departing Washington Post Columnist Shares 20 Years of Family Tales, Reader Favorites

three people sit on stage at PROGRESS launch

Explorations

January 12, 2024

Initiative to Offer Research, Solutions to National Crisis

Explorations

January 12, 2024

Maryland Mesonet to Provide Early Weather Warning in a Changing Climate

Explorations

January 12, 2024

Bald Eagle Expert Joins Legendary Explorers Club Honorees

Arlington House perched atop Arlington National Cemetery

Explorations

January 12, 2024

At Robert E. Lee’s Former Residence, Researcher Opens Door to Overlooked Legacies

Class Notes

News on Friends and Classmates

See all Class Notes from this issue

Passings

Jonson Marin ’00

Jonson Marin ’00 of Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., died on Dec. 15, 2023, due to complications from Lyme disease. He was 46. Born in San Miguel, El Salvador, Marin was a software engineer. He was an avid downhill mountain biker, snorkeler and paddle boarder.…

10s

Tiffany Casey ’14

Tiffany Casey ’14 was selected for the American Public Transportation Association’s Leadership Class of 2024. Casey is the director of performance improvement at the Memphis Area Transit Authority in Tennessee.

Passings

Chulai Hsiao Ph.D. ’77

Chulai Hsiao Ph.D. ’77 of Waltham, Del., died on Oct. 21, 2023, at age 76. Born in the farming town of I-lan, Taiwan, Hsiao was the oldest of seven siblings, the first to attend college and the only one from his family to leave his native country. He…

Passings

Donald H. MacDonald Jr. ’56

Donald H. MacDonald Jr. ’56 of Winchester, Va., died on Oct. 7, 2023, at age 93. A native of Baltimore, he majored in electrical engineering at UMD, then served in the U.S. Army as a first lieutenant from 1952 until 1963. He worked his entire career at…

00s

Scott Shewfelt M.Jour. ’07

Scott Shewfelt M.Jour. ’07 returned this fall for “Jeopardy’s!” new Champions Wildcard tournament, which pitted winners from the previous two seasons against each other for a spot in the Tournament of Champions. Shewfelt earned $48,000 in three…

70s

Pia Marie Winters Jordan ’78

Pia Marie Winters Jordan ’78 wrote the book “Memories of a Tuskegee Airmen Nurse and Her Military Sisters,” focusing on the years during World War II when up to 28 Black women from the Army Nurse Corps—including her mother—staffed the station hospital on…

Passings

Vernon Mason Briggs Jr. ’59

Vernon Mason Briggs Jr. ’59 of Ithaca, N.Y., died on Oct. 1, 2023, after a short illness. He was 86. Briggs was president of his senior class at Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School and at UMD, where he majored in economics and received the Algernon Sullivan…

00s

Vanessa Smith MBA ’04

Vanessa Smith MBA ’04 was appointed chair of Teach for America-Greater Philadelphia after serving on its advisory board for the past three years. She is president of ServiceNow.org and in 2021 was named one of the 50 Most Powerful Women in Technology by…