By AUDREY BENGTSON
Officials and staff from College Park participated in the 27th annual Maryland Day at the University of Maryland (UMD) on April 26 by handing out information about the city.
The event included more than 400 free, family-friendly events and activities from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., including a book giveaway, a trivia game and button-making at the city’s tent, and “a lot of fun stuff for people to come and enjoy and talk to us and learn more about the city of College Park,” said Ryna Quiñones, the city’s communications and events manager, who helped staff the tent on McKeldin Mall.
Also at the booth were representatives of the College Park Arts Exchange and the Education Advisory Committee. The city’s animal control officers staffed another tent and talked to participants about how to adopt pets.
“It’s building community, bringing people together in one place and showcas[ing] how strong we are as a community,” College Park Mayor Fazlul Kabir said. “We are not divided. You know, in many other university towns, you see, there’s a tension between the university and the long-term residential community, which is not a good thing. College Park actually, unfortunately, used to have this kind of environment many years ago. But thankfully, over the years, we’ve come a lot closer.”
City staff and officials attend the event every year to share information “to not only current students, but to prospective students and their families, so that they can get to know the home that they’ll be living in for the next four years or so,” Quiñones said.
The outdoor event is UMD’s springtime open house, featuring ice cream and hot dogs,the Red-White 2025 football scrimmage and tents from each academic department.
“It’s a special day,” language professor Manel Lacorte, who has taught at UMD for 25 years, said. “When I had my children and they came here for the first time, I could see how special it is. Now they remember, and it’s one of the memories they are going to have forever.”
Molly Rubinstein, a 1975 UMD graduate who lives in Greenbelt, said she has visited every Maryland Day for six years.
“It gives the surrounding community an idea of what the University of Maryland does, besides holding classes,” Rubinstein said. “Whatever the City of College Park can do to make students feel welcome, not only on campus but throughout the community, is very important.”
