News

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 mourns the loss of Katherine McAdams, who died Sept. 29, 2020, at the age of 70. McAdams was Scholars’ second-ever executive director. McAdams led Scholars from 1997 to 2002, years of important expansion and recognition for the program. Under her leadership, the roster of Scholars programs increased to 12, with the addition of Business, Society and the Economy; Earth, Life and Time (now Science and Global Change); and Media, Self and Society. The Cambridge Community Center became part of the Scholars community as it opened its doors to Scholars classes and programs.

As a follow-up to its 25th anniversary year, College Park Scholars has updated its organizational mark. The updated design ties together the sun symbol, a clipart sun swirl that has informally represented the organization throughout its quarter-century history, with a design that was used in celebration of its 25th anniversary year during 2019–2020. The result is a modern “sunburst” that signifies:

Sophomore Scholars students received the following message from College Park Scholars on July 9: Dear students; I hope this email finds you and your loved ones safe and well, and finding ways to enjoy summer. It’s been a roller coaster of a year so far, and I am sure you’ve experienced some uncertainty over what fall semester might look like on top of it all. Over the past several weeks, College Park Scholars faculty and staff have been meeting regularly to address exactly that question, with a group dedicated specifically to the sophomore experience. We want our sophomore Scholars to receive the care and educational experience you deserve.

Incoming Scholars students received the following message from College Park Scholars yesterday evening:  Dear students, I hope your summer has gotten off to a good start, and you’re eagerly planning for fall as a University of Maryland (UMD) student. We in College Park Scholars are equally excited to welcome you in August! By now you should have received a message about UMD’s fall semester, as well as your on-campus housing situation if you were planning on living in the residence halls. I wanted to share with you some initial information on what College Park Scholars is doing to help make your first semester with us as fun and enriching as possible.

Rising sophomore Scholars students, as well as Scholars alumni who are rising juniors and seniors, received the following message today from College Park Scholars: Dear students,