Announcing the Do Good Campus Fund Recipients: Grant Program Returns to UMD for Second Year

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Landscape shot of Do Good Plaza, the Do Good sign in the background with a large cherry blossom tree in the foreground.

April 14, 2025

Now in its second year at the University of Maryland, the Do Good Campus Fund continues to ignite bold ideas that reimagine learning and advance efforts to serve humanity—both inside and outside the classroom. This spring, the Do Good Campus Strategic Leadership Council, in collaboration with Provost Rice and the Do Good Institute, awarded more than $415,000 in grants to faculty, staff and student groups driving meaningful change across campus. The funded projects include almost every school and college and reach virtually all parts of the campus.

The grants include support from Arts for All, the presidential campus-wide initiative, which provided 1:1 matching funds with the Do Good Institute for a total of $70,000 in arts-related grants for projects to expand our Do Good Campus.

Just as our inaugural class of Do Good Campus Fund grantees rounds out an exciting year of impact, we’re thrilled to announce a new crop of 22 teams as they gear up to implement an impressive range of projects. With so many disciplines, focus areas, units, and participants represented in the latest portfolio of faculty, staff, and student collaborations, we are all living and breathing what it means to be a Do Good Campus.

More and more, doing good has become an intrinsic part of what it means to be a Terp. I can’t wait to support and learn from these outstanding new grantees as they lead us Fearlessly Forward – building a brighter future for the University and the world.

James Stillwell Faculty Director, Do Good Campus

Campus Fund grantees will use their award to scale their impact according to the Do Good Learning Principles: experiential (TLTC definition), inclusive, innovative, social impact-oriented and in service of humanity. Meet the incredible groups across campus expanding their impact through the Do Good Campus Fund:

≤ $10,000

Designing for Impact: Community-Centered Capstone Projects through Monthly Heritage and Awareness Calendar ($8,000)

College of Information Studies

This project introduces a one-semester, community-centered, academic and co-curricular learning capstone course for master’s students in human-computer interaction and undergraduates in information science. During the semester, student teams will select a heritage or awareness month and engage with local community groups, examine their unique needs and offer relevant solutions.

Expanding Access to Amputee Healthcare through Human Subject Research ($5,000)

College of Behavioral and Social Sciences

This student-led project addresses the need to develop more affordable healthcare options for the amputee community. They aim to develop a prosthetic prototype by conducting trials with amputees and refining the design for future production. The funds will be used to enhance the open-source prosthetics design, buy 3D printing materials and assemble prosthetics for those in need.

Impact through Inquiry: Life Sciences in Action ($6,000)

College of Computer, Mathematical and Natural Sciences & Undergraduate Studies

This project helps students apply life sciences to real-world problems by considering social and ethical issues in science while fostering community engagement. Funding will support mini-grants for students to implement solutions to challenges identified by community members which could include disparities in STEM education, access to clean water, food deserts or ethical concerns in genetic engineering.

Justice for Fraud Victims ($5,000)

Slavery, Law, & Power: Terp Young Scholars Lab Course & Internships (in collaboration with College Park Academy) ($8,000)

College of Arts and Humanities

This project addresses public illiteracy about slavery’s role in U.S. history by developing primary-source-based curriculum materials linked to the digital humanities project Slavery, Law & Power in the British Empire and Early America. Students will gain experience in historical research and analysis, transcription, data visualization and presentation and engagement in digital humanities work.

The Unlocked Project ($5,000)

College of Behavioral and Social Sciences

This student-led project supports their peers affected by parental incarceration, helping them cope with shame, isolation, stigma and mental health challenges. With this funding, the project will scale its impact by providing students with care packages, book scholarships and access to mental health resources and support.

≤ $10,001 - $25,000

Doing Better with Mental Health: Building UMD capacity to serve people with intellectual disability ($14,884)

College of Education

This TerpsEXCEED project aims to overcome barriers to mental health care for individuals with intellectual disabilities. Funding will be used for Psychology graduate students and TerpsEXCEED Leadership Peer Mentors to receive training on working with people with intellectual disabilities, develop and deliver wellness programming for TerpsEXCEED students, and create toolkit materials to share with campus entities like the UMD Counseling Center, Health Center and Residence Life.

Expanding Career Exposure: Scaling the Intern for a Day Program at UMD ($17,764)

Division of Student Affairs

This project will help students gain essential career guidance and build social capital through in-person job shadowing in the DMV as well as virtual interviews with global professionals. The funding will help recruit more hosts and implement advanced technology solutions to streamline processes, thereby enhancing the program's efficiency, reach and sustainability.

Familias Activas/Active Families - Bridging Generations ($24,999)

Hands Building Bridges: Increasing Inclusivity through Connections to Deaf Culture ($17,300)

KidsFirst Maryland ($24,000)

School of Public Policy

This project expands the Karabelle Pizzigati Initiative to provide students with hands-on experience in policy advocacy for children, youth and families. Funding will be used to engage students in hands-on experiences in policy advocacy work that deepens their understanding of social issues and equips them with the tools to be effective in public policy advocacy.

Mainstreaming Development Ethics - A Toolkit for Development Practitioners and Policy Makers ($17,352)

FIRE - Office of Undergraduate Research - (Office of the Senior Vice President and Provost)

This project from the Office of Undergraduate Research is developing and testing Global Development and Design's Development Ethics Toolkit. Students will build skills through research, design thinking and international collaboration as they build a digital toolkit that is innovative, efficient and effective. Funding will cover technology costs for hosting the toolkit online as well as creating a course around the toolkit.

Preparing Responsive and Inclusive Instruction for Meaningful Mathematical Experiences (PRIME) ($20,135)

TLTC - (Office of the Senior Vice President and Provost)

This project will enable greater student success in gateway mathematics courses by equipping Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs) with advanced teaching skills and research opportunities to improve their instructional practices. Funding will be provided to GTAs to research and analyze their discussion sections to see how changes in their teaching practices can have a tangible impact on students.

VOTE (fearlessly)! ($12,800)

School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation

VOTE (Fearlessly)! uses art and design to educate students on voter registration for the 2026 elections, building on past work to create new structures that enhance civic engagement. As part of an interdisciplinary course, students will research, conduct interviews and contribute to designing materials for TerpsVote’s Fall 2026 efforts.

Where the Waters Blend: Contemporary Indigenous Perspectives on History, Traditions and Modern Issues Curriculum Expansion ($25,000)

College of Education

This project will establish a permanent University Honors Theory and Practice Track by expanding an existing course into two linked courses focused on Piscataway history and contemporary issues, emphasizing student activism, hands-on research with tribal experts and a 30-hour continuing professional development training for regional teachers. Funding will cover expenses for curriculum development.

≤ $25,001 - $35,000

Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias Caregiver Program ($30,000)

College of Agriculture and Natural Resources

This project will expand support to caregivers from diverse ethnic and geographic communities to help them navigate the challenges they face in personal finance, health insurance, mental health and nutrition. This funding will help establish foundational teaching approaches and resources for these communities that will ensure the sustainability of the program.

Creative Curricula: Integrating Black Art into K-12 Education ($27,933)

College of Arts and Humanities

This project aims to address the underrepresentation of Black art and artists in visual arts curricula for K-12 and college students. The funding will create opportunities for UMD undergraduates to train as museum educators and create curricula, lead tours and direct art-making activities with the aim of increasing visual literacy and multicultural awareness among students of all ages.

Engineering For Visually Impaired Students (E4VIS) ($32,095)

Making K-12 Pollination Science Lesson Packets Accessible to the Diverse Maryland Population ($26,000)

College of Computer, Mathematical and Natural Sciences

This project, a collaboration with the School of Languages, Literatures and Cultures, addresses the lack of quality Spanish-language educational materials on pollination by creating train-the-trainer videos and translating existing lessons and demonstrations. Funding will be used for scriptwriting, video production, editing and translation.

Saturday Freedom School Project ($30,000)

UMD Global STEWARDS Undergraduate Program: Experiential Learning at the Food-Energy-Water (FEW) Nexus ($32,906)

School of Public Health

This project will engage students in UMD Global STEWARDS classroom experiences, international webinars featuring FEW experts, and research internships or independent study opportunities with international partners from Nepal, Tanzania and Israel. The funding will provide stipends for student interns to conduct a 10-week research project focused on the food-energy-water nexus.

We Will Not Be Silent: Art Transforming Rape Culture ($25,532)

For Media Inquiries:

Megan Campbell

Senior Director of Strategic Communications

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