USM Langenberg Legacy Program Welcomes Inaugural Cohort of Student Fellows
Baltimore, Md. (April 12, 2022) – The University System of Maryland (USM) this month welcomes the inaugural cohort of the Langenberg Legacy Program. With the support of faculty or staff sponsors, student fellows across USM institutions will begin year-long, micro-level civic engagement projects that speak to macro-level issues.All projects are action-oriented, campus-level initiatives. Project topics range from environmental justice that engage local farmers and city officials, peer support initiatives for students impacted by gun violence, and such voter issues as engagement, registration, and turnout.
Through workshops, symposiums, and campus-wide exhibitions, Langenberg Fellows are showing up for civic engagement in fresh and novel ways.
The Langenberg Legacy Program evolved out of the Langenberg Lecture and Award program, which was originally established through a solicitation for an endowed USM Foundation fund in honor of former USM Chancellor Donald N. Langenberg upon his retirement in 2002. The new Langenberg Legacy reimagines the Langenberg Lecture within the context of USM’s Civic Education and Civic Engagement priority.
“We are excited to launch this new Legacy Fellows program that will encourage and support significant community engagement projects around the state,” said Nancy Shapiro, Associate Vice Chancellor for Education and Outreach. “We see these Legacy projects as a way of ‘paying it forward’ as USM students across the state bring their knowledge, energy, and passion to bear on building community and solving problems.”
“Don would have loved to meet these wonderful students who are carrying forward his legacy,” said Patricia Langenberg, Dr. Langenberg’s wife, a professor emeritus in the University of Maryland School of Medicine. “He was a physicist and a humanist, he believed in educating for democracy, equity, tolerance, and justice. He would be honored and humbled to know his legacy is being carried forward by these students.”
Over the course of the fellowship, students will gather with fellows from other USM institutions to grow connections, share best practices, and build a community of civic leaders. Students and sponsors also will receive stipends in recognition of their leadership and creative pursuit of civic engagement and education.
At the end of the Langenberg Legacy Fellowship, the USM will publish students’ final project reports in an annual publication and on the USM website.
(Graduate assistant Katherine Giannini in the Office of Academic and Student Affairs developed content for this announcement and can be reached through May 2022 at kgiannini@usmd.edu.)
The USM comprises 12 institutions: Bowie State University; Coppin State University; Frostburg State University; Salisbury University; Towson University; the University of Baltimore; the University of Maryland, Baltimore; the University of Maryland, Baltimore County; the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science; the University of Maryland, College Park; the University of Maryland Eastern Shore; and the University of Maryland Global Campus. The USM also includes three regional centers—the Universities at Shady Grove, the University System of Maryland at Hagerstown, and the University System of Maryland at Southern Maryland—at which USM universities offer upper-division undergraduate and graduate courses.
Systemwide, student enrollment is roughly 165,000. The USM and its institutions compete successfully for nearly $1.5 billion in external grants and contracts annually. USM institutions and programs are among the nation's best in quality and value according to several national rankings. To learn more about the University System of Maryland, visit www.usmd.edu.
Contact: Mike Lurie
Phone: 301.445.2719
Email: mlurie@usmd.edu