Let’s assume the snow is over for the '25-'26 academic year. Now let’s all admit how much we liked the photo in Friday’s Maryland Today of the snow covered Japanese plum blossoms. No wonder it was tagged as the "photo of the week!" I found it to be a great start to the second Friday the 13th of 2026.
Later in the day, I saw the UMD Research Brief and was thrilled to see that Anne Simon and Utpal Pal were both honored at the Maryland Research Excellence Celebration! After a total of 14 years in states that rely heavily on the citrus industry, I understand the significance of Anne’s RNA technology to fight citrus greening disease, even if I don’t understand the mechanism. Similarly, I attended a portion of Utpal’s NIH project team meeting on Friday morning last week and learned about their efforts to interrupt the tick lifecycle using host–vector–pathogen interactions. I recognize the threats that ticks pose to people, pets, and livestock yet don’t know much about ticks other than to avoid them. The work this team is doing is truly transformational. Congratulations to all of the awardees for your impactful accomplishments.
The AGNR leadership team met last week. We spent much of our time talking with the group in academic programs about our student numbers, particularly translating student acceptance letters into enrollment and then, once enrolled, keeping our students in AGNR through graduation. There is more conversation to be had with a broader group across the college, including our students. Providing an exceptional experience and education for our students is AGNR’s highest priority and a key component of our commitment to excellence. Research and Extension opportunities are integral to that experience. I remain convinced we can provide a better student experience that is energizing for instructors/faculty/lecturers without being an additional workload.
Like many, I still worked during the two days of spring break for faculty and staff but it is much easier to check some things off the to-do list when I have days of unstructured time to think and strategize. I have quite a bit of reading to do and at some point I suspect performance evaluation materials will show up again in my Workday inbox. I am taking this whole week off and out of College Park in search of sun and waves. Included in this ‘break’ is skipping a post next week as I don’t plan to have much that is relevant to share. While I am not publicizing my location, I will share that I am not in Miami, a favorite destination for our students this week.