University of Maine at Presque Isle

After a fire three years ago in an on-campus renewable energy facility, the University of Maine at Presque Isle is building a $1.2 million solar array that will save the school $42,000 in electricity costs per year.

Twenty-foot-tall figures heralded the entrance to the band Phish’s IT Festival in 2003. The University of Maine at Presque Isle later acquired the figures, which now need restoration. A cabin master who’s a passionate Phish fan is thrilled by the opportunity.

The Maine Solar System Model is unique to Aroostook County and as a tourism attraction because it’s a naturally socially distanced activity. New marketing materials will include brochures for all 62 chamber offices across Maine.

The $99.4 million campus development project includes the creation of a 580-bed Portland Commons Residence Hall, a Career and Student Success Center and a one-acre campus green. 

The new so-called test-trace-isolate strategy for the spring semester will require weekly COVID testing for all UMS community members with in-person experiences.

Raymond Rice, president of the University of Maine at Presque Isle, said the new program "will not only help us to better meet the workforce needs of our region and state, but also provide our students with new avenues for prosperous careers."

Most principals seek dual-certified teachers. The collaboration is designed to gear education students for greater success when they enter the job market and meet a serious workforce development deficit.

By 2021, the John Lisnik Nursing Simulation Center will accommodate more than 100 nursing students pursuing a bachelor of science degree through the University of Maine at Fort Kent on the University of Maine at Presque Isle campus.

UMPI's new master's program in organizational leadership, the first graduate program in the school's 117-year history, will start with a cohort of 15 students this fall.

The funds, to more than a dozen colleges and universities throughout the state, were awarded through the U.S. Department of Education’s Student Support Services Program.