College of Behavioral and Social Sciences, University of Maryland

It's Election Day, and there are a handful of tight contests you may want to keep an eye on tonight! Kris Miler, an associate professor of government and politics and expert on congressional representation, shares a few in this article for Maryland Today. https://lnkd.in/e4q55DPc

A new nonpartisan website co-created by University of Maryland Department of Economics grad Logan Delavan-Hoover ’24 makes it simple for voters to see where candidates “from the White House to the state house” stand on key issues. To learn more about Delavan-Hoover and his team's website, Ballotwise, visit https://lnkd.in/ewYnecQn.

Jean Elizabeth Spencer, a former professor of the Department of Government and Politics (GVPT), and the first female to graduate with a Ph.D. from the department, has left a lasting legacy in multiple respects. In one, her namesake fund has been providing support to outstanding GVPT doctoral candidates for the last 30 years. Her three surviving sisters, and fellow UMD alumnae, created the Jean Elizabeth Spencer Award in 1994, following Jean's sudden passing at the age of 58. To learn more about Jean and the impact of the fund created in her honor, visit https://lnkd.in/eMqyZzgY.

When veterans and military family members serve in election jobs, including as poll workers, they play a critical role in strengthening public trust in elections, finds a new study by the Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement and nonprofit partner We the Veterans and Military Families. Read all about the study and its findings at https://lnkd.in/e8gqaj4N.

Alejandro “Alex” Flores, an assistant professor in the Department of Government and Politics, has tracked Latino outreach efforts over the years, culminating in the 2024 presidential battle in which both candidates are wooing Spanish speakers in unparalleled ways. See what he had to say to Maryland Today about each candidates' efforts at https://lnkd.in/eYr3n3uE.

In a conversation with Maryland Today, Department of Government and Politics Professor James Gimpel—who studies America’s rural electorate—discussed common misconceptions about rural voters, his thoughts on Harris’ Democratic vice-presidential candidate, Tim Walz (who attended college in Gimpel’s hometown), and his observations about both candidates during the Election Day sprint. For his thoughts, visit https://lnkd.in/eq9i2WS4.

Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice alumni, if you're attending the annual meeting of the American Society of Criminology this year, join CCJS for a reception featuring networking, food, drinks, karaoke, and dancing! Learn more and register at https://lnkd.in/e8ztiyKx

A new poll from The Washington Post and the University of Maryland’s Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement (CDCE) finds that Democrat Angela Alsobrooks has maintained her double-digit lead over Republican opponent Larry Hogan in the race to fill Maryland’s open U.S. Senate seat, a key contest in determining which party controls the chamber. For insights from Oct. 17-22 poll, visit https://lnkd.in/ez_xk5T9

The Department of Sociology's Annual Morris Rosenberg Memorial Lecture is happening in two weeks, on Friday, November 8. This year's featured speaker is Dr. Adia Harvey Wingfield, the Mary Tileston Hemenway Professor of Arts & Sciences and Vice Dean for Faculty Development and Diversity at Washington University in St. Louis. She will be delivering a talk titled, "From Discrimination to DEI: The Possibilities and Limits of Addressing Race in the Workplace." To learn more, visit https://lnkd.in/eYkgr_Vn

Two of the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences’ neurodiversity experts have been tapped to help Melwood, one of the largest employers of people with disabilities in the country, execute a five-year, $8 million project to expand their “AbilIT Across America: Advancing Neurodiversity in the Workplace” program to Hampton Roads, Virginia and Oregon. Learn more about the project, plus Kathy Dow-Burger and Nancy Forsythe's roles in it, by visiting https://lnkd.in/eRfAA3nF.