The University of Maryland

I’ve addressed Maryland itself in an earlier blog, but have yet to discuss its University, which is where I went for undergrad from Fall 1986 (F86) to Summer 1990 (SS90).

College Park.   UMCP is the flagship campus, located northeast of DC within the Beltway, straddling Route 1.   The campus is actually fairly large, and continues to grow.  The northeast section has a huge agricultural zone full of long barns, the kind you find at agricultural fairs.  My dad told me that UM was quite advanced in agricultural technology, something about breeding better Thanksgiving turkeys or juicier pigs.  Something like that. 

There’s also UM-Eastern Shore, UM-Baltimore Campus, UM-Baltimore County (Catonsville), and UM-University College.  UM-UC covers the overseas operations around the world, primarily on-base education at US military bases.  The Munich campus closed in 1992.  From what I understand, although California’s state university system dwarfs Maryland’s, excluding UM-UC, if you add in UM-UC, Maryland’s system exceeds California’s. 

History.  The campus began in 1856, with Morrill Hall as the oldest – and it looks it, almost “H.P. Lovecraft Hall”.  It turned into Maryland Agricultural College (MAC), with mandatory ROTC, until it finally renamed University of Maryland in 1920. 

Majors.  I started out as a government & politics (GVPT) major, with most of my classes in LeFrak Hall.  By sophomore year I realized that business and government complemented each other, so I added a second curriculum of general business (BMGT) to get a second degree, for 156 credits in 4 years.  To do this I had to take summer courses after sophomore year (1988) and two more courses after spring semester of senior year (1990), but still managed to do it, so I could start law school in Fall 1990 at George Mason.  I actually applied for the University of Maryland law school, but was not accepted.  My diplomas, a B.A. in GVPT and B.S. in BMGT, are dated August 1990, with the commencement ceremony in December 1990.

Dorms.  The UCMP campus has 9 high rise dorms (plus 2 low-rise), of which I was in Hagerstown Hall for my freshman year (F86/S87).   The North Hill dorms were somewhat run down when I was there; I knew people in Somerset Hall, and a friend of mine – not an asshole – lived in Wicomico Hall.   I moved to Talbot Hall for sophomore year (F87/S88) and fall of junior year (F88), then to Montgomery Hall (South Hill) for spring (S89) and senior year (F89/S90).   Plus there are Old Leonardtown and New Leonardtown apartments on the other side of Route 1, just behind Frat Row.  I stayed in New Leonardtown during summer school, SS I&II 1988, and SSI in 1990.   As you can see from the pictures, the campus is sprawled out and very attractive.  Brief bits of “National Treasure II” (the Quad) and “St Elmo’s Fire” (Frat Row) are filmed at UMCP. 

Sophomore and junior years meant 4 different roommates, all 4 being unpleasant experiences.  Freshman year was Mike, who was fine; and senior year I had a huge single, in a suite with a bunch of guys I got along with fine.  Aside from Gene and I, they were all Theta Chi brothers (Gene, where are you?).  By the way, my brother also went to UMCP, a year behind me, and during my senior year – his junior year – he was also in Montgomery Hall, in the middle section.  My sister went to UM, had to drop out when she and her first husband moved to Arizona, and came back later and finished that off.  So our family has no less than three UMCP graduates.

Terps.  Our mascot, technically the Terrapins (a small aquatic turtle which no one fears) and personified by Testudo at sports events.  UMCP won the NCAA basketball tournament in 2002.  Neil O’Donnell was our QB while I was there, before going on to the Steelers.  Someone said our lacrosse program was supposed to be good.  I have no clue.  We were in the Atlantic Coast Conference, competing with UVA, WVU, Wake Forest, UNC, NC State, Duke, and Clemson, but now we’re in the BIG 10, a group I’ve ignored because until recently, UM was not part of it.  I can’t say I follow Maryland that zealously – if there’s a game on a TV at the gym I’ll pay attention. 

In all the time I was at UM living on campus, I maybe went to two football games at Byrd Stadium and one basketball game at Cole Field House – my usual reason for visiting either was to jog (Cole) or get horribly sunburned (Byrd Stadium).  Richie Coliseum was where we saw concerts:  Black Sabbath in 1994, and Megadeth earlier. 

Diamondback.  The school newspaper.  I remember the comics:  Clyde (Al Via), Pat Schaefer, plus the overindulgent Eric Dunn & his “aren’t I cool?” crap.  After I graduated Aaron McGruder started off his own strip which later became The Boondocks.  And there were our competing editorialists, Eron Shosteck (the GOP point of view, somewhat of a minority at uber-liberal UMCP, where you could fit the College Republicans in one room), and Dave Bitet, giving us the Opposition perspective, since the White House was in Republican hands during my time at UMCP – 1986-1990, i.e. Ronald Reagan and then George H.W. Bush, the father of the none-too-popular George W. Bush and his politically flailing brother Jeb. 

Alumni.  Jim Henson (Muppet guy) is the most famous.  I suppose Larry David (Seinfeld & Curb Your Enthusiasm) is #2, followed by the guy who wrote The Wire (David Simon).  Carly Fiorina, Connie Chung, and Oprah’s friend Gayle, are also UMCP alumni.