The University of Maine System Board of Trustees on Monday approved an initial engineering framework for the Maine College of Engineering and Computing (MCEC) leveraging the strengths of the University of Maine’s College of Engineering and the University of Southern Maine’s Department of Engineering for the benefit of students and employers statewide. The Maine College of Engineering and Computing will offer expanded educational opportunities in collaboration with programs across the System and address the need for thousands of new engineering and computing graduates required for Maine’s future economic development.
The Maine College of Engineering and Computing (MCEC) officially launches April 1 and is a signature initiative of the Harold Alfond Foundation’s historic $240 million investment to revitalize the University of Maine System UMS TRANSFORMS. The grant provides $150M ($75M commitment from the Harold Alfond Foundation with a $75 million challenge match) to address statewide needs for a highly skilled workforce and innovations that are critical to moving Maine’s economy forward.
“I congratulate the presidents and faculties of the University of Maine and USM as they undertake this innovative endeavor,” Dannel Malloy, Chancellor of University of Maine System explained. “One of our top priorities is to support our universities as they work together in an effort to raise the number of graduating leaders in the engineering and computing fields. The generous Alfond Foundation commitment helps us realize this important goal.”
By developing programs and attracting new faculty, MCEC will support students from across UMS who wish to pursue an education in engineering and computing fields, particularly in some of the emerging, interdisciplinary areas including renewable energy, biofuels, robotics, advanced materials, biomedical innovations, industrial engineering, and artificial intelligence.
“The Maine College of Engineering and Computing will be a critical state and regional catalyst for nationally and globally recognized innovation and research that can be integral to the student educational experience to meet workforce needs,” said Joan Ferrini-Mundy. University of Maine president and University of Maine System vice chancellor for research and innovation. “MCEC is a statewide resource made possible through the vision of the Harold Alfond Foundation and the collaborative leadership of so many community stakeholders, including Maine businesses that know the difference the college will make in shaping the future.”
Additionally, MCEC will help expand R&D for Maine-based industry by improving infrastructure for learning, including a new, state of the art Green Engineering and Materials (GEM) laboratory. This expansion will provide novel, unique opportunities to prepare the workforce of the future in areas that matter for Maine. Those include forest bioproducts, aquaculture and clean energy which we will advance in conjunction with the newly opened UMaine Ferland Engineering and Design Center, the USM Michael E. Dubyak Center for Digital Science and Innovation and GEM. MCEC’s primary goal is to provide nationally recognized preparation and skills for students throughout Maine and beyond.
“This is a proud moment for all of us. It reflects the excellent work and thoughtful consideration of many people at the University of Southern Maine and the University of Maine,” Jacqueline Edmondson, President of the University of Southern Maine shared. “MCEC marks the beginning of innovative and important work for the University of Maine System as we position ourselves as a destination for engineering and computing education. MCEC and the intentional collaboration with our sister universities will benefit our students and faculty, as well as the greater good of our state and region as we seek to offer educational pathways that fill this critical workforce need.”
The inaugural dean, Giovanna Guidoboni joins the new Maine Engineering and Computing College from the University of Missouri, where she served as Associate Dean for Research in the College of Engineering and held a joint appointment in electrical engineering, computer science, and mathematics. Guidoboni is a Fulbright Scholar and an elected member of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts. Her background is highly interdisciplinary with a research focus on mathematical modeling and data science applied to engineering and life sciences.
Contact: Tory Ryden, Strategic Advisor & Dir. External Affairs
tory.ryden@maine.edu, 207-852-5875.
About the University of Maine System
Established in 1968, the University of Maine System (UMS) unites seven Maine’s distinctive public universities, comprising 10 campuses and numerous centers, in the common purpose of providing quality higher education while delivering on its traditional tripartite mission of teaching, research, and public service.
In 2020 UMS became the first and only statewide enterprise of public higher education in the country to transition to a unified accreditation for the system. Much different than a merger or consolidation, unified accreditation is a new operating model for the University of Maine System that removes the primary barrier to inter-institutional collaboration.
A comprehensive public institution of higher education, UMS serves more than 30,000 students annually and is supported by the efforts of more than 2,000 full-time and part-time faculty, more than 3,000 regular full-time and part-time staff, and a complement of part-time temporary (adjunct) faculty.
Reaching more than 500,000 people annually through educational and cultural offerings, the University of Maine System also benefits from more than two-thirds of its alumni population residing within the state; more than 123,000 individuals.
The System consists of seven main campuses: The University of Maine (UMaine), including its regional campus the University of Maine at Machias (UMaine Machias); the University of Maine at Augusta (UMA); the University of Maine at Farmington (UMF); the University of Maine at Fort Kent (UMFK), the University of Maine at Presque Isle (UMPI); and the University of Southern Maine (USM). The System also includes a UMA campus in Bangor, USM campuses in Gorham and Lewiston-Auburn, the University of Maine School of Law, and the University of Maine Graduate and Professional Center.
Please follow these links to the UMS Logo, UMS and individual university style guides and an image and biographical information for Chancellor Malloy.
