At a Glance

Year: ‘26
Major: Political science (sustainability and environmental politics concentration) 
Activities: Honors College, Emerging Scholars Program, Love of the Game, Marching Band
Why UML? “I was able to apply ‘undeclared,’ and it was very affordable.”

Political Science BA

As a political science major, you will gain the knowledge and skills to engage in the complex realm of national and international politics.

Political Science BA

As a political science major, you will gain the knowledge and skills to engage in the complex realm of national and international politics.

From the time he was in first grade, Colin Ormond knew that he wanted to protect the environment.

“When I was 6 or 7, I really wanted to make a solar panel-powered car, and I thought then everyone would be saved,” he says. 

By the time he was a senior in high school in Melrose, Massachusetts, Ormond knew it was more complicated than that. But he didn’t know what he should study in college to work toward a sustainable future. 

Business? Maybe, because it’s versatile, “but I didn’t think I would have been passionate about it,” he says. Earth science? He wasn’t sure he had the dedication for that, either.

Then, he learned that he could apply to UMass Lowell without declaring a major. A trumpet player, Ormond also was a fan of the UML Marching Band. An annual $2,000 scholarship and admission to the Honors College sealed his decision to become a River Hawk.

Once on campus, Ormond quickly decided to major in political science, thanks to a first-semester class, Introduction to Environmental Politics. He chose the concentration in sustainability and environmental politics, one of five options within the major. By his junior year, he had added minors in German and economics.

That was also the year in which he took advantage of an “amazing” paid research opportunity sponsored by the College of Fine Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. As an Emerging Scholar, he helped Political Science Assistant Professor Aaron Smith-Walter and Mechanical Engineering Assistant Professor Jasmina Burek study the effects of a 2022 state law that aims to keep textiles out of landfills and promote recycling.

Ormond says that the research and professional skills he developed, as well as his work with staff at the Rist Institute for Sustainability and Energy on campus, helped him to successfully apply for a yearlong public policy and research fellowship with the state’s Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs.

As one of five Office of Energy Transformation fellows, Ormond is working on two projects: reducing the state’s reliance on natural gas and exploring the potential for creating “clean energy zones” to attract businesses to the state.

“I feel like I hit the lottery with this whole program,” he says. “I’ve just learned so much about how an office in public service works, as well as about energy policy and the clean energy sector.”

For his honors research and thesis, Ormond plans to focus on the MBTA Communities Act, which requires the 177 communities served by state-subsidized commuter rail, subway lines, buses and ferries to allow multifamily housing in an area close to public transportation.

All that research experience will help Ormond toward his next goal: getting a master’s degree in regional and urban planning, with an environmental focus. 

But college life hasn’t been all work and no play, he says. A track and cross-country athlete in high school, Ormond serves as president of Love of the Game, a student organization that hosts monthly sporting events for people aged 16 to 35 who have developmental disabilities. 

He plays in the UML Marching Band, and he also studied abroad in Cuba with the Honors College.

"During our salsa class in Cuba, I somehow ended up as the example for everyone, which was both terrifying and hilarious,” he says. “I had no idea what I was doing, but I just leaned into it and had as much fun as I could!"

Advice to students

Colin Ormond.

"Take risks and look for opportunities to take advantage of."