Career Q&A: Richard Byrne ’86, English

Every so often, we’ll chat with an alum about what they do and how they got there. Today we’re talking with editor Richard Byrne ‘86, English, about his career and work with the UMBC Magazine.

Name: Richard Byrne
Job Title: Editor, UMBC Magazine and Special Projects

Q: Why did you choose to come to UMBC?
Transferring to UMBC in 1984 was one of the best decisions I made in my young life. I found terrific professors who helped to shape my intellectual and creative life. I met alumni who mentored me in my desire to become a writer, and I found comrades who helped me to put UMBC’s literary magazine (Bartleby) back on a positive trajectory that continues to this day.

So after making a career in journalism, the opportunity to come back to my alma mater and help create a new university magazine that would build and expand UMBC’s relationship with its alumni and other constituencies was a very attractive proposition indeed. UMBC has a terrific story that just keeps getting better and better and I enjoy helping to tell it.

Round-Up: UMBC in the News

One of the things that makes UMBC great is how wonderful our alumni, students, faculty and staff are. Because of these amazing people, UMBC often finds itself “in the news,” so each week, we’ll be sharing with you a round-up of the most newsworthy achievements from our community.

• Theatre Alumni David Brasington ’12, Katie Kopajtic ’11, Jesse Poole ’13 and Anderson Wells ’13 in ‘b’, the Baltimore Sun and City Paper
• Dr. Kenneth Gibbs ’05, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, in Science Magazine
• Faculty Members Vin Grabill, Neal McDonald and Steve Silberg, VA, in Baltimore Sun
• Assoc. Professor Anne Rubin’s Civil War History Class Appears on C-SPAN
• Princeton Review Names UMBC a “Best Value College”
• Kate Drabinski, Gender and Women’s Studies, on WYPR’s Humanities Connection

Check out all the other great campus news on Insights Weekly.

Emmanuel Nicolaidis ’99, English, featured in City Paper

Emmanuel Nicolaidis ’99, English, was recently featured in the Baltimore City Paper for his work in fine craft woodworking.

From the City Paper article by Rafael Alvarez:

“Nicolaidis’ goal this summer is to produce a showroom full of design prototypes—chairs, tables, and desks. At press time, he was putting the finishing touches on a sleek and gorgeous tool chest, the kind you can buy out of cheap metal for $100 or less. This is something different, the dovetailed drawers silent as they move in and out.”

Read the full story.

Interview: Songwriter Adam Trice ’04, English, in City Paper

English alumnus Adam Trice ’04, discusses his “graveyard country rock” band Red Sammy in a new interview with Baltimore City Paper editor Lee Gardner.

Read the full interview here.

After graduating from UMBC, Trice earned his M.F.A. in creative writing and publishing arts from the University of Baltimore. His band, Red Sammy, recently released a third album, A Cheaper Kind of Love Song.

“Gravity Goddess” Marla Streb M.S. ’91, in City Paper

Former professional mountain biker Marla Streb, who earned her M.S. in Marine Estuary Environmental Science from UMBC in 1991, is featured in the Baltimore City Paper’s “bike issue” this week.

To quote the article:

She became a world-class contender in single-track downhill—in which, just as in downhill ski-racing, “you start at the top of a mountain and they time you as you go down, one at a time, a very treacherous course with jumps, and you get to the bottom in about five minutes,” she says. In her 16-year career, she won three national and two world championships, broke 24 bones, and wrote two books about it—a training guide and a memoir, Downhill: The Life Story of a Gravity Goddess.

Since returning recently to Baltimore with her family, Streb says she plans on working with city planners to make biking more accessible to all.

Read the full story in the Baltimore City Paper.