Dr. James H. Page, UMFK Class of 1975, today (March 20, 2012) has begun service as the ninth Chancellor of the University of Maine System – a first for any Maine native. He is also the first Chancellor to be a graduate of one of Maine's public universities. As a proud alumnus of UMFK, Jim's first public appearance after the announcement of his appointment was during the Can-Am Sled Dog Race at UMFK's Acadia House.

I have known Jim Page for nearly 15 years – since shortly after he returned to Maine to take the helm of the Joseph W. Sewall Company in Old Town.  There, Jim took a century-old forestry and surveying firm and built it into an integrated geospatial, engineering, and forestry consulting business with special expertise in environmental engineering, renewable energy, and web-based technologies.   Jim transformed the Sewall Company by understanding client needs and turning it into a client-focused firm.  He has the skills and experience to do the same thing to Maine’s public universities – focusing on the needs of students and their potential employers.

Given his reputation at the Sewall Company, many people do not realize his deep roots in the academic community.  Jim, a UMFK graduate in History, also holds a Master of Philosophy from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, and a doctorate in philosophical foundations of mathematics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has held academic appointments in Boston, New Hampshire and Kansas – as well as at the University of Maine.

Jim understands the vital role that rural public universities like UMFK play in the larger picture of Maine higher education.  I look forward to working with him to create a brighter future for Maine’s public universities and especially his alma mater.

New Dean Assignments

   Please welcome Ellia Sablan-Zebedy as Dean of Enrollment Services and Student Life.  Her responsibility will be to provide leadership for -- and coordinate support of -- our efforts for student success.  She will oversee the Department of Admissions, the Division of Enrollment Services (including the campus One-Stop Center, Financial Aid, Registrar, Student Success, and Career Planning & Placement) and the Division of  Student Life (Student Activities, Student Government, Residential Life, and Food Services).  Her office will be in the One-Stop Center once it is completed in August.  Until then she will have temporary quarters in the TRIO offices.

    Congratulations also to Scott Voisine who becomes Dean of Community Education effective July 1^st.  Scott's new position, funded by System resources.  He will oversee UMFK’s Early College High School initiative, workforce development, and educational outreach functions.  Scott will have primary responsibility for the university’s educational/curricular outreach and collaboration with the K-12 sector, businesses, community organizations and agencies, and other potential consumers of community education services. 

Division of Professional Management debuts

July 1^st is also the official start date for the Professional Management Division, formerly housed in the Natural and Behavioral Sciences Division.  Faculty in the new division are Ray Albert, Tony Enerva, Tony Gauvin, Darrell Oullette, Brad Ritz, Roger Roy, Leo Trudel.  Roger Roy will serve as the inaugural chair of the division.

7/10/2011

After three months of discussion and negotiation, I am pleased to announce that, effective March 1, 2011, UMFK will become Maine’s incubator of an Early College High School program based upon the Gates Foundation model. For five years the University of Maine at Fort Kent and its K-12 partners in the Upper St. John Valley College Community project have been offering collaborative bridging programs for students in rural Maine communities.  This initiative will expand the College Community project partnership to create Maine’s incubator Early College High School.

Please look further in the Communications section of The President’s Desk for an Executive Summary of the project and a narrative explaining Early College High School and its objectives.

Now, some ten days after the conclusion of the IBU Biathlon World Cup, the glow lingers on.  It was an extraordinary event pulled off with great flair.  Having had the good fortune to spend time with visiting athletes, sponsors, and dignitaries, I wanted to share my observation that our guests were universally impressed by the event and our community. 

As Governor LePage stood up to leave the venue, he said to a small group around him “I just want you to know that I have been governor for just over a month.  The past 24 hours have been the best day I’ve had since I’ve been governor.”

Yet, despite all the accolades, the impressions of visiting dignitaries, and the international media attention, one thing stood out above everything else – the spirit of volunteerism and good will of the people involved in hosting the biathlon.  Our UMFK corps of volunteers (staff, faculty, and students) distinguished themselves by their selfless dedication to making the World Cup such a resounding success.  They deserve the highest praise.  We couldn’t be more proud of how you joined together in the spirit of service to others.  You are all truly World Class.  Thank you all!

In an effort to keep us all abreast of developments with the Trustees, I will use the President’s Desk to share news from Board Meetings.

Minutes from the November 14^th & 15^th Board of Trustees meeting held at UMF have recently been released. UMFK was cited for its ongoing program revitalization work in connection with New Challenges, New Directions.

At the meeting Student Representative Bernie Michaud elicited a verbal commitment from the Chancellor to develop a System-wide initiative on AEDs (Defibrillators). Good work Bernie!

The System web page listing all Board-related meetings in November and December is . . . http://www.maine.edu/board/NovemberDecember2010Minutes.php

I am pleased to share with the campus community the NEASC Commission on Institutions of Higher Education’s response to the University of Maine at Fort Kent’s Fifth Year Interim Report.  The Commission met on September 17, 2010 and acted to:

•  accept the report and …
•  schedule a comprehensive evaluation for Fall 2015

Shortly after my arrival on campus I was tasked with providing a “Five Year Prospective” for the NEASC Fifth Year Interim Report – a daunting task for a new president only weeks into his tenure. Thanks to a strong presidential transition process, a solid self-assessment in the Interim Report, the new UMFK Strategic Plan, and my decades of experience with NEASC and other regional accreditation agencies, I think a meaningful perspective emerged.

It emphasizes the need to focus on student success – especially enhancing experiential and “high engagement” pedagogies. It also focuses on the need to build enrollment management capacity and measure persistence to graduation as a key performance indicator of our goals for financial stability. Program review and assessment will be critical components to continuously monitor and improve performance across the institution.

It is hoped that this brief strategic overview of the University of Maine at Fort Kent’s fiscal, enrollment, pedagogical, programmatic, and assessment plans will give readers a clear understanding of the strategic priorities for UMFK as seen through the eyes of an experienced president, but one that is new to UMFK. I believe it is a fair representation of the course that we need to steer through the uncharted waters facing all of higher education during the next five years.

I encourage everyone to take a look at it.