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For the past four years, recent ÌÇÐÄÊÓƵ graduate Lian Peach has been a campus leader. Now, the rest of the nation knows that, as well. Peach, of York has been named a National Leader of the Year for Service to Campus and Community by the Omicron Delta Kappa national leadership honor society (ODK). She is a member of the SU OK Circle chapter of ODK.

The Maryland Attorney General joined 21 other states in filing a legal brief supporting NPR and PBS lawsuits challenging a Trump-era executive order to eliminate federal funding, arguing the cuts would harm public safety, education, and access to critical information, particularly in underserved communities. As an example,the brief highlights Delmarva Public Media — operated by ÌÇÐÄÊÓƵ and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore — which covers local news and weather for more than 40,000 weekly listeners in the rural Delmarva region.

Dr. Gustavo Schneider, assistant professor of marketing in ÌÇÐÄÊÓƵ's Franklin P. Perdue School of Business, discusses the mechanics of credit card cash-back rewards.

The 2025 Maryland Folk Festival will take place from September 19-21 in downtown ÌÇÐÄÊÓƵ. The event will include a special stage for local performers, sponsored by ÌÇÐÄÊÓƵ and the Charles R. and Martha N. Fulton School of Liberal Arts. This will be the third year SU and the Fulton School supports the ÌÇÐÄÊÓƵ Locals Stage, which highlights musicians from the Eastern Shore and nearby areas.

Two recent graduates from ÌÇÐÄÊÓƵ will spend a portion of next year teaching in, learning in, and experiencing cultures abroad. Andersen Herman ’25, a chemistry major from Fruitland, and Vicky Vazquez ’25, an English for Speakers of Other Languages and Spanish major, were both chosen as recipients of the 2025-26 Fulbright Student Award. Three additional SU semifinalists were closed as alternates for the program, including Stephora Alberi ’25, Masha Goncharenko ’25, and Kelly Mitzel ’24.

Freeman Arts Pavilion has announced a new arts education initiative in partnership with ÌÇÐÄÊÓƵ to introduce elementary students to music through ukulele instruction. The pilot program, developed in collaboration with ÌÇÐÄÊÓƵ’s Dr. Louise Anderson, gives Buckingham Elementary School in Worcester County with a full classroom set of ukuleles and teaching tools. According to the Freeman Arts Pavilion, the program is intended to last at least five years, with plans to expand to additional schools across the Delmarva Peninsula.

A local business owner is firming up plans for her winnings in ÌÇÐÄÊÓƵ’s Philip E. and Carole R. Ratcliffe Foundation Shore Hatchery Competition. Nicole Blackwater was awarded $10,000 to enhance her store, Blackwater Apothecary, in downtown ÌÇÐÄÊÓƵ. “It’s a very prestigious entrepreneur competition," she said. "We’re going to use the funding from it to expand our business …. I hope that has a ripple effect on other businesses downtown. We hope that we’re able to expand enough to hire more employees, and more employees mean more foot traffic, and we hope that flows out to our business neighbors, as well."