The Graduate School Newsletter
Spring 2020
Welcome from the Dean of the Graduate School
To all of our new and returning graduate students, welcome to a new decade and spring semester at Hood College! In this issue, you will find features about inspiring initiatives for YOU, our students, like the Red Sand Project, Mental-Health Minute, and our annual Grad Career Series featuring alumni panels. This issue is packed with new certificate and online options for current students, plus several upcoming events and the exciting transformation of our existing library to a “learning commons” (coming Fall 2020!).
Last night’s new-student orientation was energizing as we welcomed ~70 new students to our various programs. Such events remind me of our team’s happy purpose: to serve and support all of our graduate students, regardless of your background, home town or current professional/personal situation. Please do not hesitate to let our team know how we can improve your time here at Hood. We have staff dedicated to every facet of your success from admission to degree progress and career development, so use your Hood resources early and often.
As we embark on a new decade together, I am full of hope whenever I engage with our graduate students, and I am grateful for the insights and talents you bring to Hood College. Best wishes for a successful spring semester!
April M. Boulton, Ph.D.
Dean of the Graduate School
301-696-3600
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It’s that time again—time to brag! We are always looking for stories about the wonderful accomplishments of our students—both current and alumni. To facilitate the collection of such good news, we have a handy online form for you to use, as often as you like. Whether you just presented at a conference or received an academic award or work promotion, we want to know about it! So what are you waiting for? Let us know!
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Given industry need, we are launching a new project management certificate this semester, which has separate, specialized tracks for our computing and life science graduate students. Depending on your degree progress, you will need to add 1-2 courses in order to graduate with both a master’s degree and a certificate in project management. Want to increase your earning potential and learn more? Contact program director, Dr. Anderson, or stop by the graduate school on the third floor of Apple Building.
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Welcome to the spring semester! I hope you had nice holidays and you are ready to begin or continue a wonderful journey with us here at Hood College. The Graduate Student Association is here to support, sustain and encourage you on your journey here at Hood College. Our goal is to enrich the graduate student experience, so YOUR voice matters to us. We are always looking to improve our offerings, so do not hesitate to share any concerns, needs and interests you may have. All graduate students automatically belong to our association for FREE, so we hope you will join us and expand your professional network!
In closing, I want to extend an invitation to be part of our executive board. You will have the opportunity to strengthen your leadership and teamwork skills while you support and determine initiatives that will benefit you. If you are interested in joining our team, please email us at GSA@hood.edu. As the GSA President, I am excited to share with you all the activities that we have planned for you: networking and career events, social gatherings, and many more! To keep up with our events, be sure to follow us on social media: LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Again, I am looking forward to meeting you at our GSA events! Have a wonderful 2020!
Laura Espinosa President, Graduate Student Association (GSA)
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- B.A. Biology/M.S. Biomedical Science Dual-Degree Program
- B.A. Psychology/M.S. Counseling Dual-Degree Program
- B.A./M.S. Environmental Biology Dual-Degree Program
- B.A./M.S. Information Technology Dual-Degree Program
- B.A./MBA Dual-Degree Program
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Although we are all fortunate to be part of a welcoming, resource-rich campus like Hood, we know that a handful of students, especially those without a campus meal plan, struggle with food insecurity from time to time. There is a new campus initiative designed to support such students—both graduate and undergraduate. Dubbed “Hood Pantry,” this pilot program aims to provide modest food staples and hygiene items to students with temporary or long-term need via an anonymous system. If you are currently experiencing food insecurity, simply email our secure mailbox at hoodpantry@hood.edu, which Rev. O'Malley moderates, to receive additional information on requesting/receiving this support. You can find additional community resources that support food-insecure students here.
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IT and cybersecurity expertise are in-demand throughout this region and globally. To meet this need, we have recently launched fully online versions of our IT and cybersecurity graduate degrees. Switch to the online version or add an online course to your existing load, in order to accommodate your busy schedule, which will only catapult you into that new job or promotion more quickly. Want to learn more? Contact program director, Dr. Dimitoglou, or stop by the graduate school on the third floor of Apple Building.
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Doctoral Domain
This spring, our inaugural doctoral cohort will participate in a hooding ceremony, recognition of the completion of their doctoral program of study at Hood College. The inaugural doctoral cohort entered their program of study in the fall of 2016, completing rigorous coursework along with their dissertations. The Hooding Ceremony is a special event at which time a doctoral hood is placed on the candidate to symbolize their degree completion and to recognize their status as a doctoral scholar. To complement the custom, our inaugural doctoral cohort, with support from our marketing team, have designed blue and grey doctoral gowns. The hood, an important element of doctoral academic regalia, is distinctive of their discipline; brown for a Doctorate in Business Administration candidates or citron green for a Doctorate in Organizational Leadership. The doctoral candidates will reveal their full academic regalia during the Commencement ceremony this May, where their doctoral degrees will be officially conferred.
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Meet Alumna | Maryam Faiz M.S. '16
Maryam Faiz M.S. '16 is a successful IT professional and has a passion for innovation. After working in the IT industry for several years, she enrolled as an international (F1) student in Hood College’s graduate program in information technology. She currently works as a Support & Sustaining Engineer in a fast-evolving software company called Cloudbolt Software. Read more about Maryam's success and advice here. We are #HoodProud of her!
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As we grow our online and hybrid offerings at the Graduate School and continue to support our busy students, we are adding support services that can be accessed remotely and at a time convenient for YOU. ThinkingStorm is the new and 100% free online tutoring resource available to Hood College graduate students! To access online tutoring, click on the ThinkingStorm link in your Blackboard environment. You will be automatically signed in to the online tutoring site; no separate username or password is required.
ThinkingStorm is available 24/7 for topics like Writing, Math, Science, Statistics, and more. Once you're logged in, simply use the menus on the ThinkingStorm homepage to connect with your desired option. Live support is available for most subjects, and you can also submit essays for asynchronous feedback via the ThinkingStorm Writing Center. Here are the grad-level tutoring topics available this semester: Advanced Stats, Writing & Live Writing Support, Accounting, Finance, Markup & Programming Languages
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Hood College proudly supports its military students including veterans, active duty, and spouses/dependent undergraduate and graduate students. As such, Hood’s Military Community Support Committee aims to support, engage, and recognize Hood’s military students.
If you – or someone you know - are an active duty Fort Detrick soldier and would like to take advantage of the Hood College/Fort Detrick educational agreement to take graduate level courses and earn a graduate degree (certificate or Master's) FREE OF TUITION CHARGE, visit our Hood Fort Detrick Soldiers website for additional information.
Mental-Health Minute
The Graduate School Mental Health Task Force (MHTF) was busy this year! As a team of graduate faculty, staff, and graduate students, we worked to try and identify issues impacting graduate student mental health concerns, including depression and anxiety. Efforts were wide-ranging and included:
- Working with Hood College Counseling Services to provide hours of availability tailored for graduate students
- Collaborating with the Hood College Risk Assessment Committee to identify graduate student concerns
- Developing of reference guides, handbooks and flowcharts to help graduate students and faculty provide proper support for graduate students in need
- Securing a campus-wide license of ThrivingCampus™, an online app that provides graduate students with a range of mental health practitioners in the community
- Supporting the Maryland Collaborative, the Frederick County Health Department, and Going Purple Initiative, Maryland and Frederick County initiatives working to combat risky drinking and the opioid epidemic
Finally, in partnership with the MHTF and Student Life, the Counseling program, led by Dr. Megan Shaine, implemented Hood College’s first campus-wide program for National Depression Screening Day (NDSD). The NDSD seeks to raise awareness and decrease stigma surrounding mental health challenges by providing free screenings for depression, anxiety, and other concerns. Counseling faculty and Counseling Services staff supported advanced Counseling master's students in running a three-day event (Oct. 21-23, 2019) across campus, providing screenings to over 100 students, including a multitude of graduate students. Students screening positive for further mental health evaluation were referred to Hood College's Counseling Services (501 W. 7th St.) and/or ThrivingCampus™. The Graduate School Mental Health Task Force is excited for the new semester and to continue to find innovative ways to support our students' needs!
NEW: Hood is a Smoke-Free Campus
To support Hood College's Strategic Plan, Pillar III: Strengthening the Hood College Community, Objective 1 (6), and as part of continuing efforts to improve the health and well-being of the Hood College community, Hood College became a smoke-free and tobacco-free campus, as of August 1, 2019. This policy applies not only to smoking any substance, but also to the use of e-cigarettes and any form of tobacco anywhere on Hood’s campus.
Where to Get Assistance with Smoking Cessation:· MDQuit.org, info@mdquit.org 410-455-3628
· Frederick County Health Department, www.FrederickCountyMD.gov/FCHD/Tobacco Free 301-600-1755
· Frederick Memorial Hospital, Smoking Cessation Program:
What to Expect
If you're ready to quit, Frederick Health Hospital and Freedom From Smoking can offer you a step-by-step process to quit for good. It is a free 6 week, 6 session program. You will work through the quit process individually, while being supported in a small group setting. To learn more, contact Shanna Cline at 240-566-3622 or kickbutts@fhh.org.
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The Beneficial-Hodson Library and Technology Center is about to undergo a MAJOR transformation into a learning commons (see a video rendition of the impending changes here). The renovation, beginning this month (January 2020), will last roughly 10-12 months, but the result will be a one-stop shop and a dynamic learning space. Read the full story here.
The goal of the library team is to minimize the renovation’s disruption to students. To that end, Access Services and Reference staff will be located in the old Whitaker post office. Library support will still be provided to our Saturday doctoral students using Tatem 224. Several study rooms have been reserved for student use in the following spaces (on a first-come, first-served basis):
• Hodson 106, 129A, 206, 218, 307, 318
• Alumnae Hall 126 & 303
• Tatem 121G, 218, 224, 313, 326
• Rosenstock 1, 2, 3, 4, 19, 120, 216, 317
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January 30: Join Us For The Red Sand Project
Our Primary Designated School Official (PDSO) and the dean of the Graduate School will explain the policy and procedure for securing curricular practical training (CPT) or optional practical training (OPT) on your F-1 visa in the Whitaker Campus Center 220 from 3:30 to 5 p.m. on February 25, 2020. We will also have a staff member from the Career Center there to demonstrate how to use some of their search engines for locating such OPT/CPT opportunities. The highlight of the event is the alumni panel, which always provides excellent job/interview tips. Please RSVP here.
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February-March: Career Series for Graduate Students
We are committed to supporting our graduate students in and out of the classroom, in partnership with the Career Center, to offer a series of career resources. All of the below events are preparation for our large, culminating Career Fair on March 26 from 3:30-6:30 PM in BBT Arena.
- Alumni Panels – gain valuable insights from recent Hood graduate students on interviewing tips, internship/job searches, promotions and more!
o February 4 – BMS/BIFX Alumni from 8:00-9:00 p.m.
o February 4 – Environmental Biology Alumni from 8:00-9:00 p.m.
o February 12 – MIS/MBA Alumni from 5:00-6:00 p.m.
o February 19 – IT/CS/MIS/CYBR/BIFX Alumni from 8:00-9:00 p.m.
- Graduate Workshops in Résumés, Interviews & More – the below events are tailored to graduate students and will provide invaluable training in both business etiquette and preparing for job searches.
- Thurs., February 6 – Career Center Open House, 4:30-6:30 PM, Career Center
- Tues., February 18 - Mock Interviews, 6:00-8:00 PM, Whitaker Commons
- Fri., February 28 – Etiquette Dinner, 5:00 – 7:00 PM (registration opens at 4:45 PM), Coblentz Seminar Room
- Mon., March 2 – Resume and Job Search, 5:00-7:00 PM, Career Center
- Suit UP, Professional Dress Event - Sun., March 22, 6:30-9:30 PM, JC Penney’s, Frances Scott Key Mall. This event offers Hood students only a special professional dress consultation and shopping opportunity. All professional dress for men and women will be an additional 30% off regular or sale prices.
- Career Fair is on Thurs., March 26 from 3:30 – 6 PM. This drop-in event will host 80+ employers in the region, and graduate students, at all levels and across a variety of disciplines, are encouraged to attend. Bring your business cards (if you have them) and several copies of your polished résumé or CV.
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Janet Hobbs Cotton ’59 and her husband, John Cotton, generously support our cybersecurity master’s program with the Cotton Cyber Lecture Series, which brings nationally and internationally recognized leaders in cybersecurity to campus to speak twice annually. Stay tuned for the spring lecture, which will feature a notable cyber professional in Rosenstock Hall (Hodson Auditorium) from 7-8 PM.
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The Graduate School is hosting our 5th Annual “3-Minute Thesis” event on March 26th @ 6 PM, and it is open to all current students and to students who have graduated since September 2019. This event is internationally recognized and features student talks in a wide array of disciplines from the sciences and business to the humanities and education fields (and everything in between).
I am consistently hearing from our external advisory boards that employers really value the ability to relay technical information to non-technical audiences (e.g., the media, policymakers, colleagues in other depts.). You can learn more info about this event on the national site or on Hood’s 3MT site.
If you have completed a capstone, advanced project, thesis, internship, etc., this is a great opportunity for you. You not only gain practice in a valuable skill, but there are three cash prizes for the winner and people’s choice awards. We have external judges from a variety of fields from research and education to business leaders, who will decide the winning talk. The People’s Choice Awards will be determined by audience vote. Thus, even if you do not want to compete, it’s a great event to attend and cast your vote. Ready to win? Simply click here to submit your abstract for consideration (DUE MARCH 6th).
Here is a snapshot of the event:
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April 2: The Holi Festival of Colors
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April 25-30: Grad Student Appreciation Week
In the final weeks of the semester, we know that stress is at an all-time high. During this period, we have a tradition where Hood faculty/staff like to show their support! It’s called “Grad Week.” We will have a table set up in the lobby of all the major buildings before classes in the evening (and doctoral classes during lunch on Saturday). Stay tuned for more information as the semester draws to a close!
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The entire campus community is invited to this special dinner in observance of Ramadan on April 28 @ 8:00 p.m. in Whitaker Campus Commons. This is an inclusivity event co-sponsored by the deans of the chapel and graduate school and the Saudi Student Association. Learn more about Ramadan and Muslim culture while enjoying a delicious meal. To reserve your seat, please RSVP here. See you there!
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May 13: Doctoral Hooding Ceremony
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May 13: Graduate Degree Recipient Reception
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All graduates from September 2019 through May 2020 are cordially invited to participate in this year's commencement ceremony. Order your graduate ceremony cap and gown, as well as other commencement products through Herff Jones, via the Hood College Bookstore webpage by April 16, 2020. For students who miss that deadline, please purchase your required regalia at the Bookstore after May 1, 2020.
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About The Graduate School
Email: gofurther@hood.edu
Website: www.hood.edu/graduate
Location: Hood College, Graduate School, Rosemont Avenue, Frederick, MD, USA
Phone: (301) 696-3600
Facebook: facebook.com/hoodgradschool
Twitter: @hoodgradschool