TerrapinSTRONG Symposium

Name: TerrapinSTRONG Education, University of Maryland
Price range: $

2026 TerrapinSTRONG Symposium: Sustaining People, Shaping Change

October 27, 2026 | 9 AM to 4 PM
Grand Ballroom, Stamp Student Union

Additional virtual session: Thursday, October 29

Now in its fourth year, the TerrapinSTRONG Symposium is a unique annual opportunity for faculty and staff to gather and share scholarship, skills and expertise for creating a more inclusive university community. Through the theme Sustaining People, Shaping Change, this year’s event will showcase dynamic collaboration, strategies for attending to individual & team capacity, approaches to authenticity and persistence, and pathways for cultivating a holistically sustainable, connected and thriving UMD.

Sponsored by TerrapinSTRONG Education in Belonging & Community, with collaboration from the Office of Faculty Affairs, University Human Resources, and the University Libraries.

Schedule at a Glance

8:30 AM Check-In
9 AM Welcome
9:30 AM Opening Plenary Panel
10:45 AM Morning Sessions
11:45 AM Networking Lunch
1 PM Afternoon Sessions
2:15 PM Closing Plenary Panel
3:45 PM End

Opening Plenary

Pathways to Possibility: Using Challenges to Shape Change

This panel will attend to systems, structure and institutional transformations, as well as cultivating possible futures. We know that periods of disruption and uncertainty can reveal limitations in existing systems while creating openings for transformation. This conversation hopes to explore approaches for questioning established structures, imagining alternatives, and turning moments of challenge into meaningful institutional change that could be relevant to staff and faculty.

Moderator:
Nihat Polat, professor and chair, Department of Teaching and Learning, Policy and Leadership, College of Education

Panelists:
Rashawn Ray, professor, Sociology & co-director, Social Justice Alliance and Anti-Black Racism Initiative, College of Behavioral and Social Sciences
Earl Cabellon, director, Staff Experience & Culture, Division of Student Affairs
Crystal U. Davis, associate professor, Dance Performance and Scholarship & Head of Dance Performance and Scholarship, School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies, College of Arts & Humanities

Nihat Polat

Panel moderator Nihat Polat (Ph.D., University of Texas at Austin), a first-generation college graduate, is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Teaching and Learning, Policy and Leadership in the College of Education at the University of Maryland. He has had over 15 years of leadership experience at various institutions, serving as Department Chair, Associate Dean, Center Director, and Program Coordinator. His research involves applied linguistics, teacher education, and educational psychology. He has authored/co-authored over many peer-reviewed publications in top-tier outlets (e.g., Applied Linguistics, TESOL Quarterly, The Modern Language Journal, Teaching and Teacher Education), including five books, while also making over 100 invited and peer-reviewed scholarly presentations. He has received several grants and awards, including the 2022 Leadership through Research Award from the SLR SIG of the AERA.

Rashawn Ray

Panelist Dr. Rashawn Ray is a professor of sociology and leads the University of Maryland’s Social Justice Alliance in collaboration with Bowie State University as well as the Anti-Black Racism Initiative housed in the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences. He is also a Senior Fellow at The Brookings Institution. Ray’s research addresses the mechanisms that manufacture and maintain racial and social inequity. As the founding Executive Director of the Lab for Applied Social Science Research (LASSR), Ray helped develop a virtual reality training program for law enforcement and led implicit bias trainings with thousands of police officers, military personnel, and employees at companies and organizations. He then led the development of a professional master’s program in Public Safety Leadership and Administration.

Earl Cabellon

Panelist Earl Cabellon is the Director for Staff Experience and Culture in the Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs. In this role, he shapes and drives a comprehensive vision and strategy that impacts over 1,500 full-time and part-time employees within the Division of Student Affairs. His leadership is dedicated to creating a dynamic, inclusive culture that champions talent acquisition, development, and retention.

Crystal U. Davis

Panelist Crystal U. Davis is a dancer, movement analyst, and educator. She has performed both her postmodern works and classical and folk forms of India across the country and abroad. Her creative work centers around the incongruities present between our daily behaviors and belief systems. Her current research explores preferences, aversions, and associations in dance through a critical theory lens and how social dynamics manifests in the body.

Morning Sessions

Location: Charles Carroll A

The transition from teacher preparation to professional practice is a critical period in which many early-career teachers experience high levels of stress, isolation, and professional uncertainty. These challenges can contribute to burnout, reduced job satisfaction, and decisions to leave the profession. Sustaining first-year teachers therefore requires more than encouraging individual resilience; it requires intentional systems of support that recognize the complex demands of entering the teaching profession.

This roundtable will explore the role of coaching as a mechanism for supporting first-year teachers’ professional growth, well-being, and retention. Drawing on work supported by a federal grant focused on coaching first-year teachers, the discussion will consider how sustained, relationship-based coaching can help new teachers navigate instructional challenges, develop confidence, strengthen problem-solving skills, and build a sense of belonging within their schools and profession.

Rather than presenting coaching as a single solution to teacher attrition, this roundtable will invite participants to critically examine what it means to sustain educators during their transition into the profession. Participants will engage in conversation about the types of support first-year teachers need, the conditions that contribute to burnout and persistence, and how schools, preparation programs, and educational leaders can share responsibility for creating sustainable working environments.

Guided by the theme "Sustaining People, Shaping Change, the session will ask participants to consider a central question: How can we design systems that sustain first-year teachers before burnout becomes a reason to leave? The discussion will generate practical ideas and perspectives for strengthening coaching and broader support structures for early-career educators.

Seyma Intepe, assistant clinical professor, CHSE, College of Education

Location: Charles Carroll B

Today, University of Maryland faculty and staff are experiencing myriad stressors in the workplace. This interactive presentation will assist participants in identifying healthy coping mechanisms to enhance well-being at work. Drawing on decades of research on coping (e.g., Carver et al., 1989; Lazarus & Folkman, 1984; Parker & Endler, 1992; Stanislawski, 2019), this presentation will describe ten coping strategies that have been shown to be effective in managing stress. Participants will be encouraged to create a plan to cope with a stressor at work and commit to engaging in one healthy coping strategy in the next week.

Karen O’Brien, faculty ombuds & professor of psychology, Office of the President
Nazish Salahuddin, faculty ombuds & professor of psychology, Office of the President

Location: Juan Ramon Jimenez

Building a resilient, connected university community requires breaking down traditional academic silos and reimagining how we share knowledge. This session presents a cross-curricular initiative at UMD that brings engineering and music students into the same workshop to design and build historical woodwinds. Featured in TERP Magazine and University Libraries coverage, this course demonstrates how interdisciplinary collaboration maximizes campus resources while cultivating a deep sense of belonging and mutual respect among students from vastly different fields.

Participants will learn how this hands-on model directly aligns with the 2026 TerrapinSTRONG theme, Sustaining People, Shaping Change. By pairing CAD modeling, acoustic analysis, and 3D printing with music literacy, score reading, and fine woodworking, the course creates a dynamic peer-to-peer exchange. Engineering students acquire artistic nuance, while music performance students gain technical confidence with digital fabrication.
This session offers actionable strategies for faculty and staff seeking to build sustainable, cross-departmental partnerships. Attendees will explore practical approaches to:

Capacity Building: Structuring peer teaching to enhance individual skills and boost team morale.
Resource Maximization: Utilizing campus maker spaces and library assets for cross-functional learning.
Inclusive Pedagogy: Lowering barriers between disciplines to create a collaborative, future-ready campus culture.

Robert DiLutis, professor of Clarinet, College of Arts & Humanities,
Ted Baker, director, UMD Terrapin Works

Location: Margaret Brent

If you work with people, part of your job is to understand what care means to them. This understanding creates opportunities to have conversations about what care and support can look like from multiple points of view. Care is normalizing that we all have a responsibility to create an environment where folks want to contribute, and acknowledging that how care looks is as individual as our fingerprints. Let’s recognize who we are and how our authenticity is an integral part of the ways in which we care. Come explore some practical options to identify tangible and intangible ways to sustain your people so that we can shape, and weather, change.

Natalie Taylor, associate director of aquatics & safety, University Recreation & Wellness
Monette Austin Bailey, consultant, Center for Leadership & Organizational Change (CLOC)

Networking Lunch

Join us in the Grand Ballroom on the first floor to pick up your boxed lunch. Build some new connections through informal conversations over lunch. Suggested prompts provided.

Afternoon Sessions

Location: Charles Carroll A

Spot It. Stop It. is an interactive session designed to help participants recognize the psychological and financial tactics scammers use to create urgency, build trust, and influence decision-making. Rather than focusing only on what scams look like, participants will explore why scams work and how emotions such as fear, excitement, curiosity, and pressure can affect financial choices.

Through real-world examples, interactive scenarios, and practical strategies, participants will learn how to identify red flags, pause before acting, protect personal and financial information, and respond when something does not feel right. The session also highlights how emerging technologies, including AI, are changing the scam landscape and creating new challenges for consumers.

Participants will leave with practical tools they can immediately use to protect themselves, their families, and their communities. By strengthening financial awareness and confidence, scam prevention becomes more than avoiding fraud, it becomes a strategy for sustaining financial well-being, building resilience, and shaping healthier financial behaviors.

Troy Anthony Anderson, extension agent & faculty, Family & Consumer Sciences, School of Agriculture & Natural Resources

Location: Charles Carroll B

This session focuses on building community in the classroom and using that community as a diving off point to shape change in the community. I think we can all agree that with the unprecedented changes going on around us, it is important now more than ever that we are on the side of helping our community. I think the best way we can start is by building communities in the classroom.

Students, by far, make up the largest population on campus and in our town, so I believe that our best pathway is to get them invested in our community. I believe that the best way to get students involved is to immerse them in the community through ideas like guest speakers from the community, interdepartmental collaboration on assignments and projects, building confidence in students to forge relationships with faculty, facilities, and staff, and- of course- providing resources for students that can help them connect to their community, both on and off campus.

Sydney Sharpstene, lecturer, Department of English, College of Arts & Humanities

Location: Margaret Brent

Restorative Circles are rooted in Indigenous and spiritual tradition- not from one specific Indigenous tribe, but rather, a philosophy and practice that has many forms across the globe. It’s a practice based in Restorative Philosophy that aims to build connections to ourselves, each other, the land we’re on, and the creatures and plants we share space with. In challenging times, coming together as a community and leaning on one another is key. In this interactive session, the facilitators will lead small groups in community-building, restorative circles to foster our connections with one another, build trust, and allow for authenticity. In a restorative circle, participants will have the opportunity to actively listen to other participants and share their own thoughts and stories in response to questions, and honor each other's humanity along the way. Restorative circles tend to begin with a formal opening, whether it be a grounding breath, quote, or activity, and include time for participants to respond to questions to explore a particular topic, and end with a formal closing. After the circle, the facilitators will debrief with participants and share information about Restorative Philosophy and ways it’s being integrated into life at UMD. Join us for an opportunity to slow down and reconnect with yourself and others.

Jordy Plieseis, plieseij@umd.edu, Graduate Assistant for Restorative Practices and Community Engagement
Nicole Garcia Diaz, ngdiaz@umd.edu, Assistant Director for Restorative Practices and Community Engagement
Nikita Kimani, nkimani@umd.edu, Coordinator for Deliberative Dialogue & Community-Centered Engagement
Dr. Stephanie Olson, sjolson@umd.edu, Coordinator for Community Development Initiatives
Dr. Laura Tan, lauratan@umd.edu, Senior Associate Director

Closing Plenary

Sustaining One Another: Belonging, Trust and Interdependence

This panel will attend to relationships, mutuality, connection and repair. Understanding that change is often sustained through relationships, this conversation will explore ways that belonging, trust, repair, and shared responsibility help individuals and communities remain connected and effective during periods of uncertainty and transition.

Moderator:
Nicole Garcia Diaz, assistant director, Restorative Practices & Community Engagement, Department of Resident Life, Division of Student Affairs

Panelists:
Carlton Green, assistant clinical professor, Department of Counseling, Higher Education, & Special Education and co-director of the Intergroup Dialogue Training Hub, College of Education
Blessing Enekwe, program director, Postdoctoral Affairs, The Graduate School
Beth Douthirt-Cohen, faculty and Head of Strategic Initiatives for Undergraduate Studies, School of Public Health

Nicole Garcia Diaz

Panel moderator Nicole Garcia Diaz (she/her/ella) is the Assistant Director for Restorative Practices and Community Engagement in the Department of Resident Life at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMD). Nicole has led the infusion of restorative practices and restorative justice at UMD. Nicole also facilitates the Latina/x/es in Higher Education Affinity Group at UMD, is a yoga instructor, and volunteers with the Smithsonian Museum of the American Latino. Originally from Miami, Florida, Nicole graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Education from the University of Miami, a Master of Education in Student Affairs from the University of Maryland, College Park, and a Graduate Certificate in Restorative Justice Facilitation and Leadership from the University of San Diego.

Carlton Green

Panelist Dr. Carlton E. Green is a licensed psychologist, trainer, facilitator, and speaker who seeks to engage people in identity-based conversations that lead to liberation. Currently, Dr. Green operates an independent practice where he provides psychotherapy, supervision, coaching, and consultation services. He also holds an appointment as a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Counseling, Higher Education, and Special Education in the College of Education at the University of Maryland, where he is serving as a co-director of the Intergroup Dialogue Facilitation Hub. Dr. Green earned his Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology, and received masters-level training in Mental Health Counseling and Pastoral Ministry, from Boston College. From 2018 to 2021, Dr. Green served as the Director of Diversity Training & Education in the Office of Diversity & Inclusion at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMD). His contributions to the field of psychology have earned him many awards over the years for his outstanding commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. Most recently, the Society of Counseling Psychology of APA recognized Dr. Green with the 2023 Best in Practice award for his work on drawing attention to and creating strategies for addressing anti-Black racism in organizations and systems.

Beth Douthirt-Cohen

For the past 20 years, panelist Beth Douthirt-Cohen has been deeply engaged in racial, disability, LGBTQIA+, and gender justice work, and addressing religious bias. Beth’s work builds capacity to interrupt and address contemporary and legacies of all forms of oppression, always centering racial justice, transformation, and healing. Beth’s research and teaching on the trauma of prejudice and the possibilities of solidarity explores how we can strengthen the capacity of people to engage across power and identity differences. Beth currently sits on the faculty of the School of Public Health as the Head of Strategic Initiatives for Undergraduate Studies.

Blessing Enekwe

Panelist Blessing Enekwe serves as program director for Postdoctoral Affairs in the Graduate School. She coordinates programs and outreach to serve postdoctoral students. Blessing holds a Ph.D. in government & politics from the University of Maryland. She has extensive experience working with nonprofit social change organizations including RISE UPP INCLUDES Alliances and Hope Africa.

Virtual Day 2 of Sustaining People, Shaping Change

What does it look like for research and teaching to empower students for success beyond their undergraduate careers? In this session, we explore different models for promoting student well-being and involving student researchers in community-based participatory research projects. We discuss concerns related to designing and implementing innovative programs that promote student well-being, fostering multidisciplinary connections across campus, involving students in community-engaged research projects, and resourcing students with tools to integrate their educational training with their personal development.

Lena Redisch, Program Manager, Student Services, School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation
Collin Mueller, Assistant Professor of Sociology, College of Behavioral & Social Sciences and faculty associate of the Maryland Population Research Center

What does it mean to sustain people in ways that help individuals, teams, and communities thrive? Maryland Food as Medicine Education (FAME)offers one practical example of how the University of Maryland can translate the TerrapinSTRONG commitment to connection, well-being, belonging, resilience, and a thriving university community into meaningful action.
This presentation will discuss FAME, a multidisciplinary community health and wellness model, which creates opportunities for students, faculty, UMD Extension, AGNR professionals, and community partners to learn and work across disciplines, transforming education into experiential learning and community impact. The central message is simple: When we create environments that nourish people, connect people, and empower people, we create conditions for healthier, more resilient communities to thrive.

Jennifer Dixon Cravens, faculty extension FCS educator & senior associate, College of Agriculture & Natural Resources, University of Maryland Extension

Universities depend on people's ability to adapt, collaborate, and persist through change. But the fact that the work gets done does not mean the way we work is sustainable. This talk brings a sustainability and systems lens to a simple question: Where does the capacity to do the work come from? When demands exceed available time, attention, or expertise, people adapt, often contributing effort that remains largely invisible. Resilience can keep the system functioning, while also making it harder to see what that functioning costs.

Using Demand, Capacity, Adaptation, and Renewal (DCAR) as a practical framework, this talk examines how we can distinguish work that depletes capacity from work that sustains or builds it. Collaboration offers an important example: it can add demands, but it can also create capacity by building knowledge, trust, and relationships that help teams thrive.

Sustaining people, then, means more than helping them withstand more. Participants will leave with DCAR as a practical tool for their own teams, and a question to take back: Are we sustaining our work, or depending on depletion to get it done?

Helene Nguemgaing, Assistant Clinical Professor, Office of Undergraduate Research

Dr. Galina Reitz, Director of the HCIM program in the College of INFO, has spent years building intergenerational mentoring into students' career preparation, starting with TechBridge. Her new course, The Mentorship Exchange, brings elders into the classroom as mentors to students. This session shares how she designed the course with her community partner, what she has learned from mentoring across generations at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, and how accessibility and inclusive design make this kind of engagement work for everyone. Attendees will leave with ideas for bringing community mentors into their own courses.

Galina Reitz, Director of the Master’s in Human-Computer Interaction (HCIM) program and Associate Director for Higher Education with the Maryland Initiative for Digital Accessibility (MIDA), College of INFO

Accessibility

In-Person Accessibility for Tuesday, October 27

The TerrapinSTRONG Symposium strives to be as accessible and inclusive as possible, so we have built in a number of features to support all participants.

ASL interpretation is provided for the Opening and Closing Plenary sessions.
The Symposium is a fragrance-free environment. We ask that all participants who attend the event please refrain from wearing scented products.
Live captioning should be on in every session. If a presenter does not have live captions turned on, feel free to remind them or find a TerrapinSTRONG Symposium committee member to assist.
Both printed and electronic versions of the program are available. Request a large-print copy of the program information from the check-in table.
The Stamp Student Union has accessible entrances, restrooms and elevators, as well as lactation rooms, water fountains and gender inclusive restrooms.
Virtual sessions are available on Thursday, October 29, 2026, open to all.

To view accessible pathways across campus, visit the campus map, click on Directions, and check the box that says Accessible Pathways.

Visit the Department of Transportation website for information about accessible parking and Paratransit.

TerrapinSTRONG Education is committed to providing access and equal opportunity in its services, programs, and employment. To discuss any access needs, contact Leslie Krafft in advance of the event at lkrafft@umd.edu.

Virtual Day 2 Accessibility for Thursday, October 29

Automatic captions will be provided for all sessions. To discuss any other access needs, please contact Leslie Krafft at lkrafft@umd.edu.

Past Symposia

2025: Navigating Change

Navigating Change: Turning Disruption into Direction focused on the experience of individuals, leaders and institutions managing change and finding ways to push through fear and freeze in times of uncertainty to continue moving forward. Topics ranged from the rapidly changing landscape of AI to leading institutions through change to creative ways to work through our personal responses to change through movement and the arts.

2024: Inclusive Leadership

Leadership happens at all levels of the university. As a leader, by position and/or by example, how do you ensure that everyone feels like a part of the institutional goals, large and small? But also, how do our experiences shape our leadership experiences? What are the challenges and opportunities of leading in a way that respects and embraces who you are?

2023: Belonging

We define belonging on campus as the understanding that faculty and staff members appreciate each other, feel welcome on campus, recognize themselves as important to the mission of the University of Maryland, and understand how their work contributes to the larger goals of higher education. We are interested in bringing together specific UMD efforts to enhance belonging in the workplace in conversation with more general scholarship and research on the topic from any discipline.

Snippets of the 2023 TerrapinSTRONG Symposium: Belonging