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USM Advocacy Day: Faculty, Staff and Students Rally in Annapolis for Budget Support

 

Adelphi, Md. (Feb. 11, 2015) -- University System of Maryland (USM) leadership councils representing students, faculty, and staff today met with legislators in Annapolis to encourage their support of strong funding for the system.

The Council of University System Faculty (CUSF), Council of University System Staff (CUSS), and USM Student Council (USMSC) began the day with a welcome and briefing by USM Vice Chancellor for Government Relations Patrick N. Hogan in the Miller Senate Office Building.

The USM leadership groups focused on lawmakers who sit on influential committees and represent USM institutions.

At a midday reception, the group heard from Maryland Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, Jr. Senate President Miller told the group that the state stands firmly behind the mission of the USM. He noted his long-standing personal ties with several USM campuses-from his undergraduate days at the University of Maryland, College Park to his law degree at the University of Maryland School of Law in Baltimore, and relatives who have attended Towson University, Salisbury University, and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC).

An archive of photos from the day can be found on the USM Facebook page at this link.

USM Advocacy Day
 

Chancellor Caret (L) and Sen. President Mike Miller (2nd from R) with UMCP student leaders Deborah Hemingway and Patrick Ronk.  

 

To encourage engagement, the USMSC has used social media to promote awareness of the day and important themes for the balance of the legislative session. Updates can be found on Twitter at #students4MD.

CUSF, CUSS, and the USMSC urged 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.

The USM groups presented to the legislators a number of summary points regarding the USM's importance to the state of Maryland. Legislators learned about USM's $1.3 billion annually in contracts and grants to support research and development; partnerships with community colleges to ensure students' smooth transfer from two-year institutions to the USM; and continuously high rankings for 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.

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