Maryland's Public System of Higher Education

USM Board of Regents to Hold Special Meeting March 1

Adelphi, Md. (Feb. 27, 2012) -- The University System of Maryland (USM) Board of Regents will hold a special public meeting at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, March 1. The meeting will be held in the Governor's Reception Room at the Maryland State House in Annapolis, MD.

The board will meet to review and vote on the plan for a structured collaboration between the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) and the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP).

The Board of Regents on December 9, 2011, charged USM Chancellor William E. "Brit" Kirwan, UMCP President Wallace D. Loh and UMB President Jay A. Perman to develop the plan. The plan is due on March 1.

Board action resulted from a comprehensive six-month study of the advantages and disadvantages of merging the two universities in response to a Maryland Joint Chairmen's directive. Based on the study, the board concluded that a structured collaboration between UMB and UMCP would yield more success than a merger.

At the conclusion of the meeting, a press briefing regarding the vote on the UMB-UMCP plan for enhanced collaboration will be held in the same location.

After the press briefing, in keeping with a schedule generated several weeks ago by the Maryland General Assembly, Presidents Loh and Perman will be delivering regular, annual legislative budget testimony before a Senate committee.

The agenda will be posted later this week at http://www.usmd.edu/regents/agendas/.

Sign language interpreters and/or other appropriate accommodations for eligible individuals with disabilities will be provided upon request. Please call 301.445.2756 (voice) or 301.314.7683 (TTY/ITT) for special arrangements.

For visitor information regarding the Maryland State House, see http://www.msa.md.gov/msa/mdstatehouse/html/visitor.html.

Contact: Mike Lurie
Phone: 301.445.2719
Email: mlurie@usmd.edu