Ellicott Block Party

Getting ready for upcoming GSC events?  Wondering what events Gemstone has been involved with since the beginning of the semester?...

The Ellicott Block Party was held on September 27^th after being rained out on the 12^th. 

Thankfully, the second time was the charm and the weather held up enough to allow students to participate in various carnival-style games, including bowling and trivia games. 

The students who participated in the Block Party had the ability to win raffle tickets for sunglasses, candy, gift cards, and even the full Burger King mascot costume. Students could get free cotton candy, snowballs, and popcorn.  Early birds to the event were given free water bottles.  There was also a very popular moon bounce and a DJ.

Did you miss the block party?  Don't worry! GSC has a number of exciting events coming up soon. Check out the Gemstone Program FB page or on Twitter @GemstoneProgram for updates, opportunities, and upcoming event information!

-Tori Queeney: Class of 2017 

Upcoming GSC Events: AAC and SAC Present:

Team Gemstone: Sophomore Perspective

Each September, the newly formed Sophomore Gemstone teams get a special opportunity at the CRS Challenge Course, located behind the ERC.  The teams work together to climb the Pirate Ship challenge course and experience a unique environment to help facilitate team-bonding and cohesiveness.

Sophomore, Lauren Amrhein of Team SAVIOR, weighs in on her experience at Team Gemstone:

Team Gemstone was a bonding activity as well as a way for us to get to know each other as teammates. One of the best things we were able to do was cheer each other on as we climbed the challenge course! Hearing everyone’s encouraging voices and seeing everyone put their all into getting to the top of the tower was so exciting and empowering! I personally made my way to the top of the challenge course, even though I

slipped a few times off my footholds. It was exhilarating to be able to get to the top of the tower with the help of my teammates belaying me. I loved belaying my fellow teammates and allowing them to get to the top of the tower as well! It was such a wonderful feeling! We were also able to take tons of team pictures throughout the time, giving us some great ways to pose and get some laughs in as a team. We took over 100 pictures! The pictures were silly and allowed us to have a laugh and become better friends with all our team members!

We participated in some icebreakers and get to know you activities as a team too! Some of the games were meant to get us active by using pool noodles to tap each other like samurai, and others were meant to have us work together as a team. The games with pool noodles were used to help us understand what everyone enjoys and to help us bond on a personal level. The game that had us work together was much more challenging. We had to lower a hula hoop with just one finger touching from everyone at all times. The game was designed to get us to work together on a single project. It also allowed us to reflect on the challenges we had as a team trying to work as one. Some challenges we really had were trying to put blame on others when we should be trying to solve problems, and yelling over each other to try and be heard. We overcame this by accepting that it is important to listen to all members of the team and keep an open mind that everyone is trying their hardest to complete the task. We were able to discuss these issues and how we can carry the simple messages learned from the hula hoop activity into our actual team work in the future.
Overall, team Gemstone was a great experience for Team SAVIOR. We were able to bond as our friends and as a team who will be working together as efficiently as possible! We had even made matching shirts to commemorate the occasion! I think we have a better understanding of how our team dynamics are right now. I also think that we are all closer friends as a result of Team Gemstone! It really was a blast!

-Lauren Amrhein: Class of 2016: Team SAVIOR

Team MEGA: Senior Team Update

 This past summer was an exciting one for senior Team MEGA culminating in the construction of their greenhouse and small-scale aquaponic systems on the South Campus Diner Rooftop. The team worked continuously over the summer break to assemble their designed systems and the final phase of research.  Not only was the team making strides in their research, but they were also fortunate to have member Kevin Li travel along with Dr. Skendall and Jason Burtnick of Team AWE to the 2013 Undergraduate Research Conference in Amsterdam.  The conference's theme, Urban Challenges, focused on building healthy, smart & creative cities for the future.
Team MEGA has been having great success moving forward with their final year of research in the Gemstone program. 
This semester five members of Team MEGA, Kevin Li, Jessica Lu, Luke O’Connor, Adam Louie, and Kelly Misner, were selected to attend the Thought for Food World Summit in Berlin, Germany. The conference focused on discussing innovative and sustainable ideas necessary to feed the 9 billion people of the world community projected for 2050. 

"It was a wonderful opportunity to see different parts of the world, exchange innovative ideas, and maybe take a little bit of time off.”- Kevin Li

Prior to the 3-day conference, MEGA met in D.C. with the CEOs of Syngenta, a company dedicated to the realization of plant-life potential using fewer resources, to participate in the launch of their new Good Growth Plan.  Team MEGA hopes to continue with this momentum in order to finish their thesis and apply for publication.

-Luke O'Connor: Class of 2013: Team MEGA

Gems Camp 2013: Turning Back Time

Gems Camp is the University of Maryland Gemstone Program's flagship new student orientation program designed to aid incoming students in their transition from high school to college and into the ranks of the Gemstone living-and-learning program.

At Gems Camp, freshman immediately develop a diverse social network of fellow classmates, upperclassmen, and Gemstone staff. Helping start college with the pride and excitement of a True Terp along with an introduction to campus culture & traditions! 

Incoming students will receive a postcard with more information and an email invitation to the "Gemstone Class of 2017" Facebook group! 

Sophomore Team Perspective: Team SILVER

Our sophomore year has been the best for me thus far.  When I first came into Gemstone, I was eager to see where this program would take me. All I really knew going in was that it was a four-year research program. What I did not know was how all of my best friends would be kids I met at Gems Camp, or during my

freshmen year, or even on my Gemstone Team, Team SILVER.

As a sophomore team, we have just begun doing our work in the lab. Last fall, we wrote our Thesis Proposal, and with guidance from both our mentor and our GEMS202 section leader, we have made great progress. We were awarded a grant that covers our entire proposed budget, and we are well on our way to working towards what I believe to be a great project: one that I a look forward to talking about after its completion in our senior year. Because we are only in the beginning stages of our research, I cannot say how far our research will take us beyond our research plan. Ideally, I would like to see us blow away not only the expectations of others, but also our own expectations of our own capabilities.

-Thomas Brown: Class of 2015: Team SILVER

Senior Team SWAMP Gives Back to the Maryland Community

On April 6th, the University of Maryland at College Park held a "Good Neighbor Day" event where groups of volunteers and political figures were gathered to clean up and plant trees around the neighborhood. This event is a collaborative initiative by the City of College Park, MNCPPC Parks & Recreation, and the University of Maryland. This year, Team SWAMP was able to donate leftover grant funds into purchasing over 1000 bare-root trees to plant around the Paint Branch river to repair the riparian buffer. The team was awarded $1000 for the Keeping Maryland Beautiful Grant from the Maryland Highway Administration, and one of the requirements was to participate in community involvement with press coverage. After finishing up their research, the team had enough funds to fully cover the plants for this event, with species such as swamp oak, black gum, chestnut oak, swamp dogwood, and many other trees and shrubs. Team SWAMP and 40 other volunteers were able to plant over 800 individual trees along the Paint Branch riverbed that runs across from Comcast Center towards Route One. Thanks to the generosity of the Keeping Maryland Beautiful grant program, Team SWAMP was able to help the University of Maryland campus environment and also raise awareness of environmental issues around campus.

-Lisa Liu: Class of 2013: Team SWAMP