A future top ten college town? New images for East Campus development.

Check out the July 14th presentation here: http://eastcampus.umd.edu/Image/Meeting/Jul14_Presentation.pdf

They make this happen and I'll re-enroll as an undergrad again.

They make this happen and I'll re-enroll as an undergrad again.

The first phase I think is scheduled to be completed by 2012. That's a long time. The economy should be much better by then. I'd be interested to see what kind of retail they would have.

That's amazing! I've seen some renderings before, but not the complete plans. The scale of this project is amazing and will definitely transform College Park.

This is over near the metro station, off of Adelphi and behind Fraternity Row, right?

This is over near the metro station, off of Adelphi and behind Fraternity Row, right?

At the corner of Paint Branch Parkway and Route 1. Right in front of the campus Chapel across the street. Nestled in between frat row and Paint Branch Parkway .

I'd like to see if this ever really does come to fruition. In my life UMD has never had a good college atmosphere, so if this does happen, it'll be one heck of a breath of fresh air. But what UMD needs to solve is the housing problem.

this development looks like a winner, if it happens!!!:okay:

More Pics from Rethink College Park

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/232/464811597_4dcd399abb.jpg?v=1178236525

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/189/464811581_eb23dd700e.jpg?v=1178236494

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/172/464811577_c19c403ab0.jpg?v=0

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3203/2593850463_6961465d3f.jpg?v=0

I am really liking the concept here!! It should do a ton of good for the east side of campus. I love it!

^^yeah, should create an entire new wave of partying......lol. i think ALL acc schools are party schools.

In earlier concepts I think they had a purple line stop, but it looks like they've taken that out? In either case, it's going to be simply amazing to have an actual "downtown" to go to in college park... too bad I graduate in a year.

^^yeah, should create an entire new wave of partying......lol. i think ALL acc schools are party schools.

I disagree. Now, if you said the Big East or SEC then I might be with you. The ACC features some of the most academically stout schools in the country. Duke, Carolina, Virginia, Boston College, 1ake Forest, Georgia Tech, Maryland and Miami are all either among or very close to being top-50 schools.

Florida State is a crazy party school tho.

More Pics from Rethink College Park

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/232/464811597_4dcd399abb.jpg?v=1178236525

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/189/464811581_eb23dd700e.jpg?v=1178236494

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/172/464811577_c19c403ab0.jpg?v=0

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3203/2593850463_6961465d3f.jpg?v=0

These renderings are a bit outdated. I think a year or more. The link in the first post gives you the most recent renderings from a presentation last month. It is more toned down than the first initial drawings.

Nice plans. I think it's funny how all the cars in the renderings have European license plates. :lol:

Those renderings are the old conceptual plans, the ones going for approval have a more Neo-Traditional/Colonial look. Just think College Park main campus, off campus.

I disagree. Now, if you said the Big East or SEC then I might be with you. The ACC features some of the most academically stout schools in the country. Duke, Carolina, Virginia, Boston College, 1ake Forest, Georgia Tech, Maryland and Miami are all either among or very close to being top-50 schools.

Florida State is a crazy party school tho.
yeah, you're right. i just saw princeton's top 20 party schools for 2008. 5 out of those 20 are SEC schools; only 1 from the ACC (FSU like you said)

I disagree. Now, if you said the Big East or SEC then I might be with you. The ACC features some of the most academically stout schools in the country. Duke, Carolina, Virginia, Boston College, 1ake Forest, Georgia Tech, Maryland and Miami are all either among or very close to being top-50 schools.

Florida State is a crazy party school tho.

Newsweek's 100 Top Global Universities list has UMD at #45!

Uh that's CRAZY!

I wish Morgan had something like this.

Those renderings are the old conceptual plans, the ones going for approval have a more Neo-Traditional/Colonial look. Just think College Park main campus, off campus.

Good. Although this would've been an interesting juxtaposition.

Good. Although this would've been an interesting juxtaposition.


The newer ones have a Bethesda Rowish look to it. Though there is more brick. One thing I think is awesome is the rendeing for the Birchmere. Very rustic, industrial looking. Likes it's been there for 50 years and not something that looks like it was built this century. Very old school. If anyone knows how to grab photos from PDFs, I could post the renderings here.

The newer ones have a Bethesda Rowish look to it. Though there is more brick. One thing I think is awesome is the rendeing for the Birchmere. Very rustic, industrial looking. Likes it's been there for 50 years and not something that looks like it was built this century. Very old school. If anyone knows how to grab photos from PDFs, I could post the renderings here.

Check ur PM box.

In the latest US. News & World Report, UMCP ranks #53 in public national universities. We have a longgggggg way to go to be a top 20 university.

Whaaaa? How do they do the ranking for that list? As I posted earlier in this thread, Newsweek's 100 Top Global Universities list (from 2007 I think) puts UMD at #45... either way though, there's still a lot of room for improvement.

What I'd be curious to see is how our individual departments rank against other universities... I know our engineering school is pretty good (but nothing compared to Penn State or Virginia Tech)... and some of the professors in our geography department like to brag about how they're second only to Berkley (though I seriously doubt that)

UMCP ranks (US News & World Report):

#17 in engineering
#39 in Business
#36 for Chemistry
#13 in Computer Science (Woo hoo! My field. :-))
#21 in Math
#13 in Physics (wow!)
#25 in Public Affairs (though we'd be higher being close to so many lawmakers)

They aren't too far from the top 20 in regards to special areas of study. In some, we're in the top 15!

Physics is #13! Thats great, my friend's uncle is the head of the physics department lol

I wonder... if we're in the 20+/- range for that all that stuff, what brings us down overall?

In the latest US. News & World Report, UMCP ranks #53 in public national universities. We have a longgggggg way to go to be a top 20 university.

Maryland doesn't have the resources to be a top-20 university and this comes from a guy who's looking at a UM degree on his wall as he types this.

Cal is the most higly rated public school and it's #21 on that list. UVa, another VERY GOOD public school, is #23. These lists have a lot to do with endowments and alumni donations. Maryland has been doing a better job of late attracting large gifts, but it still has a ways to go in that department.

President Mote has done a terrific job getting Maryland to where it is today. The campus has NEVER looked better than it does right now. Lots of upgrades to residential buildings and green spaces, incredible new academic buildings, top-notch athletic facilities and highly rated academic programs.

Maryland is currently the 16th best public school in the country and several of the schools ahead of it are from the University of California system. That's a better barometer by which UM should be judge, IMHO.

Projects like East Campus and M-Square will certainly help bolster Maryland's national reputation. Remember, before 2002 (when I matriculated), Maryland's average student GPA was 3.0 or so and it's average SAT score was just about 1000. To get in now you should have about a 3.8 GPA in high school and a 1200 on the SAT. The quality of student is certainly getting better which will bear fruit in the future.

Go Terps!!!

Projects like East Campus and M-Square will certainly help bolster Maryland's national reputation. Remember, before 2002 (when I matriculated), Maryland's average student GPA was 3.0 or so and it's average SAT score was just about 1000. To get in now you should have about a 3.8 GPA in high school and a 1200 on the SAT. The quality of student is certainly getting better which will bear fruit in the future.

Go Terps!!!

That's for sure. I know that when I was a freshman in high school, people used to talk about Maryland as their safety school, but when it came time for us to apply, a lot of my friends were wait-listed. I'm a senior at UMD now, and if I had to reapply using my high school grades and SATs, I don't think I'd be able to get in!

Dang. I didn't know it was that hard to get in.

Dang. I didn't know it was that hard to get in.

Yeah...Maryland is a tough school that's now akin to a Florida or Texas or Penn State.

Entrepreneur programs help in U.S. News survey
By Gazette Staff

http://gazette.net/stories/08252008/businew170708_32484.shtml

Doing more than just getting by, the business school at the University of Maryland is moving up the charts with a little help from its friends.

The Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship and Maryland Technology Enterprise Institute, known as MTech, have helped boost the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business to a No. 9 ranking in the business specialty category for Entrepreneurship in the latest rankings by U.S. News & World Report magazine.

The school had a No. 11 ranking last year, according to university officials, but has now moved past the University of California-Berkeley and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.

The magazine's America's Best Colleges 2009 issue hit the newsstands Monday and is available online at: colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/college/spec-entrepreneur.

The Dingman Center and Mtech, which is part of the A. James Clark School of Engineering, are centers for entrepreneurship learning which offer varied programs, competitions and business community links for students, faculty and alumni focused on innovation.

"We are excited to see the university's entrepreneurship efforts recognized on a national scale," said Dr. James V. Green, director of Mtech's Hinman CEOs Program and associate director of entrepreneurship Education, in a statement. "Technology creators who comprehend entrepreneurial concepts will help weave innovation into the fabric of industry. That means new companies that create new jobs, stimulate the economy, and bring life-saving, life-changing and life-enhancing technologies to consumers."

Asher Epstein, managing director of the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business, said, "The Dingman Center — with its network of resources and experience growing firms from the back of a napkin to the first million dollars — serves as a great catalyst to many Mtech ventures and vice versa."

The Hinman CEOs program is comprised of an equal number of business and engineering undergraduates. MTech's goal is to educate the next generation of technology entrepreneurs, help them create successful ventures and connect Maryland companies with university resources to develop new products and to help them succeed.

3 years have went by, has any of those projects of 'rethink college park' came into play yet?

Not yet unfortunately. UMD deserves a much better college town than the crap it has now.

3 years have went by, has any of those projects of 'rethink college park' came into play yet?

There have been a number of projects along Route 1 from the Beltway to the North Gate. It may not be "Rethink College Park" but there is activity in the vicinity.

There have been a number of projects along Route 1 from the Beltway to the North Gate. It may not be "Rethink College Park" but there is activity in the vicinity.

Two great bars just opened in College Park. The Barking Dog with its sister location in Bethesda and Looney's which is awesome. Been there twice. They are a B-More area sports bar with entertainment. The great thing about it is no one under 18 is allowed and after a certain time, no one under 21 is allowed. They check your ID at the door which is great because no one can sneak in.

In addition, there are some great restaurants opening up soon in the new student housing buildings along route 1.

East campus I thought wouldn't break ground until at least 2013. The university still has to move all of their maintenance facilities to the new location at the old Washington Post plant in Greenbelt. I'm not sure if that has even started yet. In addition, the developers for East Campus have been rather quite. There was a community meeting, but no detailed site plans have been submitted or even shared with the community yet.

The good news is PG is working to fast track a lot of developments that have been stuck in the red tape approval process. So, perhaps East Campus will get a much needed push soon. I wouldn't expect anything to open until 2014-2015.

Edit: Looks like I wasn't too far off.

The long-delayed East Campus development project to create a bustling college town at the corner of Route 1 and Paint Branch Parkway is on its way to officially breaking ground in spring 2013 (http://www.diamondbackonline.com/news/east-campus-to-break-ground-in-spring-2013-1.2576841#.To41HrIxY08), according to university officials.