Orono, Maine — The Board of Trustees for the University of Maine System (UMS) will meet in Orono on Monday, Jan. 29.
The public meeting will begin with public comment at 9 a.m. in the Wells Conference Center at the University of Maine and is expected to end by 2:30 p.m.
An agenda and meeting materials are available at maine.edu/board-of-trustees/. As part of the Board’s commitment to transparency and accessibility, the public meeting will also be livestreamed here.
Consistent with the System’s new strategic plan, the Board is expected to take action on a number of property sales intended to address community needs and achieve System fiscal and energy efficiencies through the reduction of unused or underutilized buildings and land. This includes the sale of four acres to Bangor Housing Development Corporation to enable the development of a 50-unit affordable senior housing project and also sales of buildings in Presque Isle and Houlton.
Trustees will receive updates from System leaders, including about implementation of the Maine Graduate and Professional Center and student Research Learning Experiences — two initiatives to develop Maine talent and innovation supported by investments from the Harold Alfond Foundation as part of UMS TRANSFORMS.
They will also receive a report on the System’s progress to divest from fossil fuels. In 2022, the Board committed to doing so in response to strong engagement and education by students.
Contact: Samantha Warren, 207-632-0389, samantha.warren@maine.edu
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.