Celebrating Returning Adult Learners Class of 2025

At the close of each semester, the Women’s, Gender & Equity Center proudly hosts a Graduation and End-of-Year Celebration to honor the accomplishments of students in our Returning Adult Learners (RAL) Program. This year, in keeping with tradition, we celebrated our RAL Scholars and Affiliates with a Spring ceremony. These celebrations are a recognition of…

Environmental Justice and Sustainability in Baltimore

On a hot summer day in Curtis Bay, the air feels thick, not just with humidity, but with the smell of diesel, chemicals, and burning trash. For many residents, this isn’t just unpleasant; It’s a daily threat to their health. "We want to open windows. Windows should be open. People should feel a breeze. People…

To the World We Live In

Bear with me. As a self-proclaimed feminist since age 14, it might surprise you that the first time I was actually taught about feminism was at age 22. My first women’s studies course was at CCBC, in the spring of 2022. Near the end of the course, I recall a particular discussion about the feminist…

Home, Home Again

by Katlynn Seghetti! Or, a gentle recap of an endlessly busy semester, and a philosophy of activism One of the main struggles people have getting involved with activism is getting started, knowing where to go, what your strengths are, and how long you can keep going. Ironically, I’m having the same issue with this blog…

Fall 2024 Returning Adult Learners Update

The Women’s Center was excited to see four of the Returning Adult Learners scholarship recipients graduate at the end of the Fall 2024 semester!  Returning Adult Learners are identified as undergraduate students over 25 seeking their first undergraduate degree. The Returning Adult Learners Program at the Women’s Center offers monthly workshops and programs focused on…

From Texas to Maryland and Back Again

“We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time.” – T.S. Eliot It’s 2021, senior year of high school, and as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to surge we sit anxiously at our computers awaiting responses from…

What Does it Mean to Be “Just A Girl”?

Because femininity is a concept, it can be constantly reshaped, redefined, and distorted based on the beliefs of the society it exists within, and social media works to heighten and mirror that. As a young, Black queer woman navigating both the virtual and physical world, I am able to notice and reflect on instances where…

Am I an Activist?

What comes to mind when I think of an activist are images of figures like MLK Jr., Gandhi, Rosa Parks, and others who became symbols of resistance, fighting for civil rights, freedom, equality, or education. This association has made activism feel out of reach for me, something only the Malcolm Xs and Malala Yousafzais of…

Sex Will Be Good Again

The week the pandemic shut down all the schools, I went to the gynecologist. Over the past six months, I had been plagued by non-stop yeast infections, and I had tried every home remedy under the sun to cure myself. Then the gynecologist told me I actually had chlamydia. The diagnosis started me on a…

The Future of (UMBC’s) Neurodiversity

Katlynn speaks on their experiences as an autistic girl growing up, and what she hopes to do for the Women's Center in the Fall 2025 semester