OFA Events Calendar

Legacy Lectures: An Update on the Purple Line

Join us for an engaging talk with Professor Emeritus Ralph Bennett, Board President of Purple Line NOW!, a long-standing advocacy group championing the Purple Line—one of the region’s most transformative transportation projects.

Professor Bennett has been a dedicated educator at UMD since 1977 and brings decades of experience in architecture, housing, and community design. His perspective is especially valuable for the College Park community, as five of the Purple Line’s twenty-one stations will be located directly on or around the UMD campus.

He’ll provide an update on the project's progress, its expected benefits, current timeline, and how it will connect the region through Metro, MARC, Amtrak, bus systems, and a new hiker/biker trail.

Register now to reserve your spot!

Moderator:
Marie Howland, Professor Emerita, School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation

University of Maryland Retired Faculty Association (UMDRFA) presents programs of particular interest to retired faculty and those faculty who are nearing retirement; however our programs are open to the whole campus community (UMD faculty, staff, students and their guests). Please add guests in your RSVP.

If you require accommodations, please email umdfacretirees@umd.edu

Faculty Forum: Research in & with P-12 Schools

The Office of Faculty Affairs is partnering with the Center for Community Engagement to bring you an information session to explore and enhance research with P-12 schools. Research and practice partnerships with P-12 schools are happening across the university. This session aims to support those both active and interested in research parternships in schools consider and share information and experiences to ensure UMD school collaborations are intentional, effective, and mutually beneficial.

You'll walk away from this session with:

• Resources and strategies to partner with schools
• Knowledge of school priorities and expectations for researchers
• Connections with folks of similar research interests

Speakers:

Tania D. Mitchell, Associate Provost, for Community Engagement

Ariel Bierbaum, Associate Professor, Urban Studies and Planning, School of Architecture, Planning & Preservation

Kelly Mix, Associate Dean for Research, Innovation and Parternships and Professor, Human Development & Quantitative Methodology, College of Education

Facilitator:
Laura Rosenthal, Director for Faculty Leadership

Mattering Matters: Increasing Well-Being at Work

Thrive Thursday is CLOC’s free learning session series, offering tools and tips to help you flourish at work and home.

Mattering Matters: Increasing Well-Being at Work (Thursday, April 24, 2025, 9:00-10:30 a.m.)

Mattering, the need we all have to feel valued and to add value, is a concept that has been increasingly viewed as a fundamental human need, and as something worthy of attention in the workplace. Learn about a basic overview of the concept of mattering and its connection to well-being, discuss examples from your own workplace experiences, and learn strategies for cultivating a sense of mattering and prioritizing this in your work environment.