To the editor:
On behalf of the University of Maine at Presque Isle, I would like to thank County voters for their strong support of Question 2 in the November 5 election. The success of this bond not only has a very real impact for us here at UMPI and at our University of Maine System campuses across the state, but also has some very tangible benefits for all of us in Aroostook County and the State of Maine.
Statewide, our campuses will be able to complete $15.5 million in much needed upgrades and renovations to classrooms and laboratories, which will significantly enhance learning spaces that help us to train our students for careers in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) fields.
Here at UMPI, we are very pleased that the bond approval will allow us to complete $1.2 million in renovations and upgrades to more than 10,000 square feet of classroom and lab space in Folsom Hall, one of our major classroom buildings. As soon as we are able to move forward on this effort, we’ll be replacing obsolete and aging microscopes, computers, fume hoods, and other furnishings in our laboratories. These improvements impact several of our academic programs, including biology, chemistry, geology, physics, geographic information systems and several allied health science programs. They also help us to provide that state-of-the-art learning experience that is so crucial for our students to have and give us a leg up in recruiting top-level students to our STEM programs. And that ultimately has an impact on the Maine economy, as preparing our students for entry into the STEM job market is essential to Maine, and keeps them here both during college and when they head out into the career field.
As University of Maine System Chancellor James Page said after news of the bond’s passage, these are careers that Maine needs, Maine employers have, and Maine students want.
Thank you again for making all of these important things possible.
Linda Schott, president
UM-Presque Isle
