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USM Advocacy Day to be Held Feb. 11 in Annapolis

University System of Maryland Faculty, Staff and Students to Rally for Budget Support

 

Adelphi, Md. (Feb. 7, 2015) -- University System of Maryland (USM) leadership councils representing students, faculty, and staff are urging members of the USM community to participate in USM Advocacy Day in Annapolis on Thursday, February 11.

The Council of University System Faculty (CUSF), Council of University System Staff (CUSS) and USM Student Council (USMSC) will meet as a group with key legislators during the morning of Feb. 11 to discuss the issues that are important to faculty and staff.

The day will begin with a welcome and briefing by USM Vice Chancellor for Government Relations Patrick N. Hogan in the Miller Senate Office Building (Conference Room West I & II) at 9:30 a.m., followed by recognition of the respective councils on the floors of both the House and the Senate.

All students in the USM are encouraged to join this group, and to follow updates on Twitter at #students4MD.

A reception for all USM Advocacy Day participants will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the Miller Senate Office Building. Reception attendees will hear remarks from the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House. The USM Foundation is sponsoring the reception.

CUSF, CUSS, and the USMSC will urge legislators to remember that strong budgetary support of the USM helps to ensure continued economic development and improvement in the quality of life for Maryland citizens, advance commercialization and technology transfer, and foster cutting-edge research and discovery in such areas as health care, energy, and cybersecurity.

A critical message during USM Advocacy Day is that an investment in the USM is an investment in the state of Maryland. The USM drives the state's economic and workforce development by:

   Increasing the number of STEM graduates to meet the state's workforce and innovation needs;

   Working with public schools to increase the number of STEM teachers and enhance STEM teaching skills;

   Aligning academic programs across the system to meet the state's workforce needs.

The USM leadership groups will focus on lawmakers who sit on influential committees and represent USM institutions. The USMSC's legislative agenda centers on the advancement of USM students, on campus and in the work place, to ensure that Maryland's excellent public higher education institutions remain as accessible and affordable as possible for students of all backgrounds, while maintaining their high quality.

Students interested in participating can contact the following email address: usmsc.md@gmail.com.

Contact: Mike Lurie
Phone: 301.445.2719
Email: mlurie@usmd.edu

University System of Maryland
3300 Metzerott Road
Adelphi, MD 20783-1690, USA
301.445.2740