Staff

David Hoffman is director of the Center for Democracy and Civic Life. He develops and teaches courses about civic communication and culture as a faculty fellow in UMBC’s Honors College, and has created and facilitated dozens of programs in which students develop the knowledge, skills, dispositions, and relationships needed to help their communities thrive. He serves as a member (and past chair) of the Steering Committee for AASCU’s American Democracy Project, and previously served as a member of the National Advisory Board for Imagining America. As a member of the inaugural cohort of American Democracy Project Civic Fellows, he led the development of the Civic Learning and Democratic Engagement Theory of Change, and works with Center for Democracy and Civic Life colleagues and national partners to amplify and implement it. David’s research and publications explore civic agency, civic pedagogy, democratic communication styles and techniques, and culture change within institutions. He is an alum of UCLA, where he served as student body president and University of California student regent. He earned J.D. and M.P.P. degrees at Harvard University, and his Ph.D. in Language, Literacy, and Culture at UMBC. When he’s not working, David often can be found setting his fantasy baseball lineups or taking photos; his practice of taking pictures on the UMBC campus once got him labeled as “the #UMBCsky guy.”

Ricky Blissett is associate director of the Center for Democracy and Civic Life. They develop and coordinate Center programs and initiatives, including the Center’s civic dialogue work as well as the Center’s research and evaluation agenda. They have served as a faculty member in educational leadership and policy at the University of Georgia, Seton Hall University, and Vanderbilt University. They are also the coordinator/founding member of the Just Education Policy Institute; program chair for the Policy and Politics division of the American Educational Research Association; affiliate faculty with the Asian American Justice + Innovation Lab; and principal investigator for the Democracy and Equity in Education Politics research group. Ricky has conducted and published research exploring citizen, activist, and policymaker ideologies in educational justice, democratic and equitable approaches to evaluation and methodology, and student advocacy. They received their Ph.D. in Leadership and Policy Studies at Vanderbilt University, and they are an alum of UMBC with a B.S. in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology. During their time as a UMBC student, Ricky was a participant in the first STRiVE leadership for social impact retreat in 2009, coordinator for an education service organization through the Shriver Center, and active member of UMBC’s Student Government Association (SGA), both as director of academic affairs and executive vice president.

Tess McRae is assistant director for connective learning with the Center for Democracy and Civic Life. She co-develops the Center’s programs, initiatives, courses, communications, and overall strategy with a special emphasis on practices and pedagogical approaches that support engagement, belonging, and civic contributions within the UMBC community. Tess is the lead organizer for the STRiVE leadership for public purpose program and supports the Center’s programs, particularly those for incoming, first-, and second-year undergraduate students, as a designer and facilitator. She is also UMBC’s campus liaison to the American Democracy Project (ADP), a faculty fellow in UMBC’s Honors College, secretary of UMBC’s Exempt Staff Senate, convener of the UMBC Student Government Association (SGA)’s Appeals Board, and a reviewer of undergraduate degree proposals for UMBC’s Individualized Study (INDS) department. Tess is a founding staff member with the Center and worked as an undergraduate student intern for four years prior to entering a full-time role. During her time as an intern, Tess served as co-chair of the University System of Maryland (USM)’s Student Civic Leaders Committee, participated in STRiVE and Alternative Spring Break (ASB), produced and illustrated the virtual Co-Create UMBC Tour, worked as the director of communications for UMBC’s SGA and as a graphic designer with commonvision (UMBC’s Design & Print Center), and studied abroad in Brighton, England. Tess earned a self-designed B.A. in Civic Renewal and Creative Expression through UMBC’s INDS program. She loves to draw, paint, collage, write poetry, play piano, and sing. In addition to her artistic endeavors, she enjoys watching and learning about musicals, climbing in the treetops on aerial rope courses, and playing cozy video games (her favorites are Ilomilo and Animal Crossing: New Leaf).

Ann Tropea is assistant director for engaged media with the Center for Democracy and Civic Life. She brings many years of professional editorial, communications, and legal expertise to her position. She is a published author, experienced public speaker and interviewer, and podcast co-host. Prior to joining the UMBC community, Ann served as the editor-in-chief of Seapower magazine, the flagship publication of the Navy League of the United States. She is also the former communications director at Career Valet, a woman-owned professional services firm. A licensed attorney in Louisiana and the District of Columbia, Ann has represented a variety of individual and multinational clients in both federal and state court litigation. Her additional writing and publishing experiences include: managing editor and food & lifestyle writer for online news website TheLatest; editor and publisher of a community cookbook for the U.S. Consulate General in Jerusalem; managing editor of the Law Journal for the Loyola University Chicago School of Law; editor-in-chief of New York University’s Department of Culture and Communication magazine Medium Cool, and associate publisher and nightlife editor for New York City’s GO Magazine. Ann holds a law degree from Loyola University Chicago School of Law, and graduated magna cum laude in mass media communication studies from New York University.

Trentqual Rhone serves as coordinator for political engagement with the Center for Democracy and Civic Life. In this role, he works to help UMBC community members find their voice in civic and political spaces, with a focus on elections, policy engagement, and community organizing. A staunch advocate for increased community outreach and engagement, Trentqual is committed to addressing systemic barriers to justice by creating more socially conscious spaces and advocating for a more equitable world. Through his work at the Center, he strives to create spaces where individuals can explore and develop their civic agency. His focus is on empowering students and engaging communities to recognize and harness their power to organize, lead, and create meaningful change in the world around them. Trentqual’s professional background includes communications roles on Capitol Hill and with Protect Our Care, as well as grassroots advocacy with socioeconomic and racial justice organizations, including The Poor People’s Campaign and Woke Vote. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Thee Illustrious Alabama State University and a Master of Arts in Media and Strategic Communication from The George Washington University. He is also a proud member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. and Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity, Inc. Outside of UMBC, Trentqual enjoys road trips, especially returning home to Alabama for football games. He is a tuba player currently learning the saxophone, and his other interests include writing poetry, visiting art galleries, hiking, and watching (perhaps too much) YouTube.

Maryada Bhattarai is a Cyber Scholar majoring in information systems with a minor in management. As a special projects intern with the Center for Democracy and Civic Life, she’s excited to help lead initiatives that reach students from different backgrounds and interests, making civic engagement more approachable and meaningful across the UMBC community. Maryada is passionate about intersecting technology, business, and leadership. She is a member of the Honors College and was part of the Shriver Living-Learning Community during her first year. She served as a first-year ambassador in UMBC’s Student Government Association (SGA) and later became the secretary of SGA’s Finance Board in her second semester at UMBC. She is involved with the Nepali Student Association and Entrepreneurs at UMBC, and is the co-founder of Flow for All, a new student organization working to raise awareness around menstrual equity and access. In 2022, she launched her nonprofit campaign, Hygiene Awareness for Youth, to promote basic hygiene education and resources for young people, both locally and globally. In January 2025, she participated in STRiVE, UMBC’s immersive leadership for public purpose retreat. She will also be a teaching assistant for UNIV 101 in fall 2025. Outside of school, Maryada enjoys traveling, exploring new cafés, and learning new languages.

Quynh Nguyen is a psychology major with specializations in human service psychology and diversity, inclusion, and multicultural psychology. As a special projects intern with the Center for Democracy and Civic Life, she hopes to create spaces for individuals with various backgrounds and expertise to connect and collaborate. Through these spaces, she hopes individuals can derive meaningful lessons and make long-lasting changes within themselves and their community. On campus, Quynh is also an undergraduate research assistant at the Culture, Child, and Adolescent Development Lab and a member of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) club. Outside of school, Quynh enjoys drawing, playing games, and exploring cafes and restaurants.

Carly Shearer is a Center for Women in Technology Scholar majoring in computer science and minoring in gender, women’s, and sexuality studies. In her second year as an intern with the Center for Democracy and Civic Life, now serving as evaluation intern, she hopes to explore the impact of the Center’s initiatives across campus and beyond. Carly participated in the STRiVE leadership for public purpose program and a Change Makers Dinner in the 2023-2024 academic year, was a site coordinator for STRiVE in 2025, and will serve as a STRiVE 2026 coach. In addition to her involvement with the Center, Carly is a SI PASS leader for CHEM102, president of the Musical Theater Club, and student representative on the executive board for the Maryland College Learning Center Association. Outside of school, she enjoys weightlifting, live theater, and traveling.