DRUM - Digital Repository at the University of Maryland

DRUM collects, preserves, and provides public access to the scholarly output of the university. Faculty and researchers can upload research products for rapid dissemination, global visibility and impact, and long-term preservation.

 
Submit to DRUM

Submit to DRUM

To submit an item to DRUM, login using your UMD credentials. Then select the "Submit Item to DRUM" link in the navigation bar. View DRUM policies and submission guidelines.
Equitable Access Policy

Equitable Access Policy

The University of Maryland Equitable Access Policy provides equitable, open access to the University's research and scholarship. Faculty can learn more about what is covered by the policy and how to deposit on the policy website.
Theses and Dissertations

Theses and Dissertations

DRUM includes all UMD theses and dissertations from 2003 forward.

List of Communities

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UM Community-managed Collections

Recent Submissions

Item
Queens United: Building a Descendant Community Network
(Visual Resources Association, 2024) Floyd, Joni; Porter, Kevin
In recent years, several academic and cultural heritage institutions have joined forces to share best practices for engaging with the descendants of individuals whose enslavement contributed to the prosperity of these institutions. However, there is still a need for more testimony from these descendants, particularly regarding their support systems that existed long before many institutions began their outreach efforts. As both descendants of the same enslaved family and representatives of their institutions, the authors draw upon their unique perspectives to provide insight into the foundation of their emerging descendant network. By highlighting three members of this network—Aisha L. Abdul Rahman, Irving Gaither, and Robin Proudie—readers will gain a better understanding of the spiritual foundations, skills, experiences, and sophistication present in these networks. These insights will enhance the readers' cultural competency.
Item
Language and Policy: Preservation of Minority Languages in China
(2025-04-10) Senturia, Margaret; Kuske, Rowan; Jordan, Alexandra; Stojkovic, Milenko; Phillips, Aidyn; Chau, Ashley; Huffman, Benjamin
This paper explores the effectiveness of language preservation initiatives in China, a nation rich in linguistic diversity and home to 128 spoken languages, 107 of which are minority languages or facing endangerment. Language loss threatens cultural diversity, educational quality, social mobility, and social identity. Prior research discusses the importance of language preservation, the advantages of language policy, as well as how language policy has developed over time. Building upon that research, this research examines ineffective language policy, considering what factors may contribute to its decreased impact. This research was conducted using content analysis performed on existing literature, as well as narrative analysis on two interviews conducted with members of the affected groups. It concludes that language policy is ineffective due to the failure to account for the social and economic circumstances of the affected groups, reinforcing the necessity of inclusive language policy and preservation efforts to support cultural inclusion, identity, mobility, and education.
Item
Lava River Cave IMU (Moasure) Traverse
(2025) Wang, Jingchuan; Schmerr, Nicholas; Porter, Ryan; Whelley, Patrick
Lava River Cave near Flagstaff, Northern Arizona, is a lava tube approximately 1.25 km long and 15 m wide. The cave has been previously mapped by manual sketching and, recently, mobile light detection and ranging (LiDAR; King et al., 2023). However, large discrepancies remain in the absolute positioning of the cave passage, likely owing to poor GPS reception in the pine forest. To address this inconsistency, we performed a 350 m traverse of the cave passage starting at the cave entrance and ending at the pillar where the tube bifurcates and reconnects, while tracking the movement using a Moasure 2 PRO, a motion-based measuring tool (inertial measurement unit). The resulting 3D spatial dataset in Cartesian coordinates was then georeferenced using a straight path north of the cave and the nearby parking lot as base stations.
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Democratizing Academic Librarianship: Ten Years of Community-Building Through a Graduate Fellowship
(ACRL 2025, 2025) Shaw, Benjamin; Gammons, Rachel; Pierdinock-Weed, Amber
Developed in partnership between a University Library and a College of Information, the presenters have created and led a three-semester teacher training fellowship that prepares MLIS students for careers in academic librarianship. In celebration of the Fellowship program*s 10th anniversary, we offer reflections from a decade of research and practice, including findings from an ongoing qualitative study featuring interviews with Fellowship alumni. While this presentation focuses on our institution’s Fellowship program, the implications of our findings are relevant to anyone interested in supporting early-to-mid-career librarians as they navigate the challenges, opportunities, and future of the profession. Objective 1: Participants will be able to identify and apply effective strategies for developing and maintaining professional development programs based on a decade of insights from a student-centered fellowship program. Objective 2: Participants will learn to evaluate which components of a professional development program are most impactful for participants, drawing on qualitative findings from interviews with fellowship alumni. Objective 3: Participants will gain actionable recommendations for supporting early-to-mid career librarians in navigating career transitions, building scholarly portfolios, and fostering community-building, informed by findings from interviews with fellowship alumni.
Item
S1: Life After MPLP?
(2024-11-14) Wrubel, Ben; Parker, Elizabeth; Deng, Claire
I firstly propose new terminology for these "Forced Indigenous Labor Schools"; whereas they are called FIBS by the Federal Investigative Report, I suggest "FILS" as "Forced Indigenous Labor Schools." I argue that these methods of cultural dispersion (and the "civilizing mission" as a whole) are rooted in values of whiteness, which include English literacy, Christianity, nationalism, racism, and "individualization" (or hard work). I also categorize numerous "memory relationships," which are the ways that the United States government, Indigenous tribes, FILS students, and their families think of one another, and indicate changes and continuities about these perceptions in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. I use newspapers from the Carlisle Industrial Training School and the Genoa Indian School to determine this information. I ultimately argue for further reconciliation efforts between the United States government and the Indigenous tribes and their affected family members.