News

Several Scholars alumni were named to the Maryland Medallion Society during the 40th Annual University of Maryland Student Leadership Awards this month. The Medallion Society is a prestigious group consisting of 20 of the brightest student leaders at the university:

An entirely virtual environment for this year’s University of Maryland Do Good Challenge did not stop teams led by Scholars alums from earning significant monetary awards for their initiatives. The annual event features student teams that are working to make a difference competing for funding support. Of this year’s six finalist teams, three were helmed by those with ties to Scholars:

Following a year’s leave of absence, Kalyani Chadha has stepped down from her position as director of the Media, Self and Society Scholars program. Alison Burns, interim director of the program during 2019–2020, will be her replacement, starting immediately. The appointment was made by the Philip Merrill College of Journalism. Chadha, only the second director of Media, Self and Society, had headed up the program since 2004. During that time, she oversaw a gradual shift of the program’s focus from primarily popular culture to issues of particular resonance in society today.

College Park Scholars has awarded the inaugural Kenneth A. Joseph Memorial Endowed Scholarship, to first-year Media, Self and Society Scholars student Amanda Hernández. “Affording college was always something that I worried about, especially when I was trying to decide where to enroll,” says Hernández. “This scholarship is not only helping me on that front but has also inspired me to do more. I’m incredibly grateful for being chosen and hope to represent College Park Scholars more in the future.”

Broadcast journalist Alison Burns has been appointed interim director of College Park Scholars’ Media, Self and Society program. She takes over from Kalyani Chadha, who will be on leave during the 2019–2020 and 2020–2021 academic years. Burns’ appointment was made by the University of Maryland (UMD) Philip Merrill College of Journalism, which sponsors the Media, Self and Society Scholars program.

Marlen Cruz has taken on many roles in her scant 20-some years. First-generation American. First-generation college student. And: a commuter student. “My parents live five minutes away from campus. They were like, ‘There’s no way you’re living on campus,’” she relays, laughing. A public health science major who was in the Media, Self and Society Scholars program, Cruz says she was unhappy at first to not live on campus. “But then I realized, I liked going home and seeing my parents,” she says. The oldest of three, she is also close to her siblings and says commuting from home allowed her to keep tabs on them.