AA Report 2015 - University of Maine€¦ · Communications worked closely with the OIED on...

Academic AffairsAnnual Report

2015

In January 2015 we began a year-long celebration of the 150thanniversary of the creation of the University of Maine. As Maine’sland grant university, UMaine was founded on the belief thataccess to a liberal education should be available to all capable

citizens regardless of social class. Furthermore, the institution shouldserve Maine by advancing its economy through research anddevelopment. It is wonderfully fitting that the UMaine’ssesquicentennial year coincided with the publication of the HistoricalAtlas of Maine. is remarkable book, the product of amultidisciplinary team of UMaine faculty and students, along withother Maine scholars, tells the story of Maine from its geologicformation to the end of the 20th century. Another significantaccomplishment coinciding with the university’s 150th birthday is therenewal of UMaine’s Community Engagement Classification of theCarnegie Foundation, one of only 361 colleges and universities in thecountry to receive the designation. e Carnegie Classification istestimony to the commitment to serve the state that is central toUMaine’s mission.

e 2015 Academic Affairs Annual Report provides strong evidence ofUMaine’s successes in education, research, economic development andservice to the state. e report summarizes and samples highlights ofthe past year, and concludes with some thoughts about challenges andopportunities that lie ahead. Invariably, creating a report of this typeinvolves hard choices about what to include. My apology to anymember of the Academic Affairs community who does not see someaspect of his or her work represented in the report. Please know thatyour contributions are appreciated.

e Division of Academic Affairs is made up of a diverse faculty andstaff who share a dedication to student success, advancement ofknowledge and betterment of communities. e accomplishmentssummarized in this report provide ample evidence of this dedication. Itis with pride that I present the report to you.

Jeffrey E. HeckerExecutive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost

Academic Affairs Annual Report

2015Academic Affairs Annual Report

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Overview

e 2014–15 academic year saw a four-year high in enrollment, with 11,286 undergraduate andgraduate students. In fall 2014, we welcomed the third-largest first-year class in UMaine’s history,including a growing percentage of out-of-state students. Fully 26 percent of students enrolled are“from away.” Over 260,000 student credit hours were taught and 2,120 degrees were conferredthis past academic year. UMaine’s faculty and students were remarkably productive researchersand scholars, securing 370 externally funded grants totaling over $50 million. e success rate forproposals submitted last year was a remarkable 76 percent. Faculty and students produced nearly1,000 scholarly publications and made well over 2,000 presentations.

We continue to make progress on implementation of the university’s strategic plan. Sevencentrally funded faculty lines were created to support Signature and Emerging Areas ofExcellence. Five of those positions have been filled and active searches continue for the remainingtwo. An additional 17 replacement lines were filled with promising new faculty members who willhelp to advance UMaine’s areas of excellence. In addition to faculty positions, six graduateresearch assistantships were funded and assigned to Signature and Emerging Areas. Over the pastyear, we have developed and implemented an integrated communication strategy to educateUMaine stakeholders about our strategic vision and areas of distinctive strength throughpresentations, and Web-based and traditional publications, as well as formal and informalgatherings.

Student success continues to be the driving focus in Academic Affairs. With the ambitious goal ofimproving first-year retention and four-year graduation rates by 5 percent and 10 percent,respectively, we have executed the Year 1 action plan included in the Provost’s Action Plan forRetention and Graduation. While Year 1’s strategies focused on early intervention and revampingof the Foundations and Explorations programs, in Year 2 the focus will be on moving students tograduation in a timely fashion.

Last fall, 36 new faculty members joined our ranks. e infusion of energy and new ideas thatthese new colleagues brought with them has been felt throughout campus.

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Community Engagement:

• e College of Liberal Arts and Sciences(CLAS) and the Office of Sustainabilityapplied for and received a Maine CampusCompact Davis Educational Foundation grant(Campuses for Environmental Stewardship) toembed service-learning pedagogy into courseson environmental stewardship.

• e ADVANCE Rising Tide Center hostedthe Annual Women in Academia Networkingconference involving multiple institutions inconference planning, presentations andworkshops. is event provided professionaldevelopment and networking opportunitieswith colleagues from institutions across thestate.

• Since opening in October, the EmeraAstronomy Center presented planetariumshows to over 5,500 visitors, including morethan 3,250 children.

• CLAS partnered with the nonprofit CentroHispano to celebrate Hispanic HeritageMonth with a series of lectures, bringingcommunity members to campus.

• e Maine Folklife Center received a grantfrom the National Endowment for the Arts tocreate a traveling exhibit about Maine’s fiberartists.

• Members of the Political Science Department(POS) shared their expertise on elections andother topics in a total of 105 media interviews.

• Work by Darren Ranco, anthropology/NativeAmerican studies (ANT, NAS) on the emeraldash borer led to the creation of an archive ofharvester knowledge, coordinated with theMaine Indian Basketmakers Alliance and theHudson Museum.

• Aria Amirbahman, civil engineering (CIE) isleading a committee of citizens and scientiststo assess the potential for water qualitydegradation in Maine’s lakes.

• Faculty in electrical and computer engineering(ECE) and the Foster Center for StudentInnovation organized the Maine InventionConvention at the New Balance StudentRecreation Center. Over 100 studentsparticipated in the state competition, chosenfrom more than 1,000 who competed locally.

• Engineering faculty and students were keypartners in putting on programs at theMarch 22 Maine Engineering Expopromoting engineering as a career choice. isyear, the expo had record attendance of 1,600.

• College of Education and HumanDevelopment (COEHD) faculty participatedin delivering reading instruction andinterventions through the Reading Recoveryand the Maine Partnerships in ComprehensiveLiteracy, reaching over 26,000 students across30 school districts.

• Cooperative Extension’s Maine HungerDialogues mobilized national andinternational students, professionals, and manyorganizations to develop local and regionalprojects to actively address the issue of hunger.

• Samuel Hanes, working with the FacultyDevelopment Center and supported by aMitchell Center Sustainability ResearchGrant, developed a one-of-a-kind agriculture-focused Web-mapping tool, “Bee Mapper,”that provides Maine farmers with criticalinformation impacting the health of their crops.

• e Hudson Museum hosted multiple eventssupporting classes and showcasing museum-related laboratories, engaging more than 175students. Examples include a Day of the Deadcelebration and Archaeology Day.

• e Office of Innovation and EconomicDevelopment (OIED), working with theMaine Development Foundation’s PolicyLeaders Academy, brought more than 80legislators to visit UMaine and tour SignatureAreas.

II. Serving Maine

e people and programs in the Division of Academic Affairs served the state and region throughcommunity engagement, economic development and workforce development. Highlights include:

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The Advanced Manufacturing Center worked with 27 companies on 37 individual industry projects last year.

2015 Academic Affairs Annual Report

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• Maine Business School (MBS) faculty andadministrators engaged with the communityby participating on boards of companies andnonprofit organizations; consulting andlending their expertise in various areas ofbusiness; and mentoring students’ projects andservice learning at the graduate andundergraduate levels.

• e Division of Marketing andCommunications worked closely with theOIED on legislative communication effortsand a monthly e-news alert to business leaders.

• Several College of Natural Sciences, Forestry,and Agriculture (NSFA) faculty memberscoordinated citizen science networks to tackleimportant issues. For example, Sarah Nelson’sSchool of Forest Resources (SFR) work on acitizen science effort includes 1,200participants in over 50 national parks.

• Wildlife, fisheries, and conservation biology(WFCB), School of Marines Sciences (SMS),and School of Biology and Ecology (SBE)faculty members worked with federal and stateagencies on andromous fish restoration in thePenobscot and other major rivers in Maine.

• e UMaine Museum of Art (UMMA)executed a new long-term lease, securing itspresence in downtown Bangor through June2031. In 2014, there were over 14,000 visitsto the UMMA.

• Cooperative Extension, with support from theClimate Change Institute (CCI) and theMaine 4-H Foundation, connected elementaryand middle school students in the state andacross the country with graduate studentresearchers. Students received a glimpse intothe scientists’ world by participating in liveexpedition updates and communicatingdirectly.

• e Cohen Institute facilitated half-day classvisits to Bangor High School by former U.S.Representatives Mike Kopetski and GilGutknecht.

• e town reports collection on the FoglerLibrary Digital Commons is a collaborationwith local town offices and historical societiesthat provided scanned records.

• e University Press collaborates withresearchers around the state and producesbooks that impact local communities. epress staff interacts with local bookstores,researchers and authors — activity that adds tothe cultural resources of the state.

Economic Development:

• Kristin Vekasi (POS) presented a symposium,“East Asian Giants: An Overview of Japan andChina’s Changing Markets,” for the MaineInternational Trade Conference to help recruitand prepare Maine companies for a fall 2015trade mission to Japan and China, headed byGov. Paul LePage.

• e Innovative Media Research andCommercialization Center (IMRC)established a new business membershipprogram for access to IMRC facilities.

• Bruce Segee (ECE) collaborated with O’BrienMedical in the development of the ETF(Electronic Tuning Fork) diagnostic tool. edevice allows early-stage diagnosis of diabeticperipheral neuropathy.

• A startup company founded by facultymembers Ali Abedi (ECE) and Marie Hayes,psychology (PSY) was awarded a patent on asleep monitoring device by U.S. Patent Officeand received a NASA grant to expand theapplication of wireless sensors to crew healthmonitoring.

• e Advanced Manufacturing Center workedwith 27 companies on 37 individual industryprojects.

• College of Engineering (COE) faculty andgraduate students are working with Iberdrola-Central Maine Power and RLC Engineering indeveloping Smart Grid technologies for theMaine electric network and on trainingindustry workforce.

• Cooperative Extension has been working withCape Seafood in Saco since March 2012 onfacility design, sanitation guidance, HazardAnalysis Critical Control Point plandevelopment and review, and cooking/coolingvalidation studies. With this support, CapeSeafood now has over 50 employees.

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• e Hudson Museum hosted the 20th MaineIndian Basketmakers Sale and Demonstration.

• OIED staff are leaders in the BlackstoneAccelerates Growth initiative to grow astatewide culture of innovation, commercializetechnologies, and connect resources to aspiringinnovators and entrepreneurs.

• UMaine’s Center for Cooperative AquacultureResearch (CCAR) is the only hatchery in theNortheast able to produce yellowtail tuna, ahighly valued aquaculture species withworldwide demand.

• Several of the businesses in Target TechnologyIncubator, CCAR and the Foster Center forStudent Innovation were successful inadvancing their business and productdevelopment, and raising funds through grantsand equity financing.

• e entrepreneurship concentration in theMBS undergraduate program is in its thirdyear and enrollment continues to climb.

• NSFA faculty partnered with more than 36companies and organizations on researchprojects, not including individual forest andagricultural landowners.

• SFR Ph.D. student Nadir Yildirim andbusiness partner Alex Chasse, ResearchRevolution Inc., received a $225,000 smallbusiness grant from the National ScienceFoundation (NSF) to help with the start of alab to refine the process of making foaminsulation using word fibers and organicpolymers.

• Faculty and staff in the School of Economics(SOE) conducted over 20 economic impactstudies, including potential economic impactof expanding marine port operations inWashington County, analysis of the financialstability of Maine dairy farms, estimating theeconomic loses of closing clam flats, valuing ofMaine rural forest communities, analysis ofproduction costs for wild blueberries andmaple syrup production, evaluation of solarenergy adaption, and economic impact of thePortsmouth Naval Shipyard and the CamdenConference.

• UMaine is a lead partner in the NSF EPSCoR$20M SEANET project, which includes 15other institutions, approximately 55 facultymembers, 23 graduate students and 38undergraduate students.

• Fogler Library staff engaged with communitiesand libraries statewide, providing resourcesand services to Maine, and contributing tocommunity engagement and economicdevelopment.

Workforce Development:

• e Maine Physical Sciences Partnership andMaine Elementary Sciences Partnershipcontinued to promote research-guided scienceinstruction for Maine students from earlychildhood through ninth grade, affecting thescience learning experience of more than20,000 children in Maine in the past yearalone.

Yellowtail tuna at UMaine’s Center for Cooperative Aquaculture Research.

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The Maine Physical Sciences Partnership and Maine Elementary Sciences Partnership affected sciencelearning for more that 20,000 Maine children annually.Photo by Edwin Remsberg

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• e Franco-American Centre cofunded andorganized a unique summer teachers’ institutein Québec for U.S. teachers of French,geography and history. Twenty-two teachersfrom 11 states enrolled.

• Graduate students in the School of Policy andInternational Affairs (SPIA) had internshipswith the U.N. in South Korea; a human rightsgroup in Galway, Ireland; CARICOM inHaiti; and e Cohen Group and theInternational Republican Institute inWashington, D.C.

• Students in the Art Department participatedin museum internships, including theDeCordova, the Farnsworth, the WestLichtSchauplatz für Fotographie, the Peabody EssexMuseum and the Clark Institute.

• More than 70 percent of 2015 civil andenvironmental engineering graduates had aninternship, co-op or engineering researchassistantship while undergraduates.

• All COEHD graduate programs are offeredonline, and in the evenings and weekends toaccommodate working professionals.

• In the past year, the Hutchinson Centerpartnered with ONProcess to provideinformation sessions, interviews and trainingto more than 100 people seeking employment.

• e Bureau of Labor Education (BLE)provided outreach to more than 700 Mainestudents through in-person presentations andcontinuing education unit trainings.

• e Honors College (HON) promotesengagement students with statewide partnersin research, community engagement, andsocial welfare through the College’s IdeaNetwork of Biomedical Research (INBRE)program, Citizen Scholar Initiative, and thenewly formed Sustainable Food SystemsResearch Collaborative (SFSRC) and otherinitiatives.

• e Foster Center provided counseling to90 students and business workspace for fivecompanies/innovation projects, and theInnovation Engineering program graduated itslargest number of undergraduate minors andgraduate certificates.

• e School of Nursing (SON) recentlyreceived notice of approval for Year 2 of thetwo-year Advanced Education NursingTraineeship (AENT) grant, funded by theHealth Resources and Services Administration,Bureau of Health Professions. Funding willcover tuition, fees, books and stipends fornurses enrolled in the MSN-Family NursePractitioner program.

• As reported in the Office of InstitutionalResearch’s Life After UMaine, 83.6 percent ofbusiness graduates found full-timeemployment within 6 months of graduation.

• SFR worked with the Maine Forest Service toprovide a workshop on professional forestertraining for forest licensing law overview. JeffBenjamin presented research findings for ahearing on a bill to fund the “Put ME to Workand Mechanical Harvesting OperatorProgram.”


UMaine nursing studentsbenefit from AENT grant.

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III. Culture of Excellence

Faculty Achievements

College of Education and Human Development

• Jim Artesani and Courtney Pacholski receivedthe 2015 President’s Research Impact Award.

• Susan Bennett-Armistead was named as thefirst-ever recipient of the Champion of LiteracyAward from Literacy Volunteers of Bangor.

• Dan Tillapaugh was the recipient of the MaineAssociation of Student Affairs ProfessionalsCollaboration in Student Affairs Award.

College of Engineering

• Rosemary Smith (ECE) received a 2015ADVANCE Career Recognition Award.

• Michael Peterson, mechanical engineering(MEE) was selected as the 2015 University ofMaine System Trustee Professor.

• Jean MacRae (CIE) received the Association ofEnvironmental Engineering and ScienceProfessors Distinguished Service Award.

• Bill Davids (CIE) was named the 2015Distinguished Maine Professor, and alsoearned Outstanding Reviewer Status for thejournal Engineering Structures.

Honors College

Honors faculty hold joint appointments and may be listed under specific colleges• Melissa Ladenheim and Jordon Labouff were

honored with the Distinguished MentorAward, All Maine Women.

College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

• Marie Hayes (PSY) received a 2015ADVANCE Career Recognition Award.

• Charlsye Diaz, English (ENG) won the IEEETransactions on Professional Communication’sRudolph J. Joenk, Jr. Award for Best Paper.

• CLAS faculty were honored with all three ofthe 2015 Presidential Outstanding FacultyAwards: Kirsten Jacobson, philosophy (PHI)— Teaching, Laura Lindenfeld,communications and journalism (CMJ) —

Public Service, and Richard Judd, history(HTY) — Research.

• Daniel Sandweiss (ANT) was elected anAmerican Association for the Advancement ofScience Fellow for his distinguishedcontributions to archaeology.

• Jay Rasaiah, chemistry (CHY) was honoredfor his lifetime work with a named symposiumat the national meeting of American ChemicalSociety, which also inducted Mitchell Bruce(CHY) as a fellow.

• An article by Joshua Roiland (CMJ, HON)was selected as Article of the Year by LiteraryJournalism Studies.

• Jennifer Moxley’s (ENG) most recent bookreceived the Poetry Society of America’sWilliam Carlos Williams Prize.

• Jon Ippolito, new media (NMD) was namedthe inaugural winner of the oma ArtsWriting Award for an established writer.

• Robert Glover (POS, HON) was named afinalist for the Ernest A. Lynton Award for theScholarship of Engagement for Early CareerFaculty by the New England Resource Centerfor Higher Education and the Center forEngaged Democracy. Glover was also namedto the “Top 40 under 40” by the Irish Echonewspaper.

• Douglas Allen (PHI) was invited to becomeHonorary Visiting Scholar by the IndianInstitute of Technology Madras for 2015–16.

Maine Business School

• Nory Jones received the 2014 Steve GouldAward for outstanding service to the universityand its ideals.

• John Mahon was one of five finalists for theAspen Institute’s Faculty Innovator award.

College of Natural Sciences, Forestry, andAgriculture

• Sandy Butler, School of Social Work (SSWK)received a 2015 ADVANCE CareerRecognition Award.

• Rebecca Van Beneden (SMS) received theRISE Center Mentor award.

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Faculty Achievements continued

• Paul Mayewski, Earth sciences (CCI, ERS)was highlighted by Maine Magazine as “Top50 Mainers Making a Real Difference.” Hewas also featured in two award-winning films— in Ice and Years of Living Dangerously

• Mary Ellen Camire, School of Food andAgriculture (SFA) received the 2015 GeneralMills Institute of Health and NutritionInnovation Award.

• Brian McGill’s (SBE) blog, “DynamicEcology,”was ranked one of the mostinfluential science blogs by a University ofMichigan survey.

• Ivan Fernandez (SFR, CCI) was appointed tothe U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’sScience Advisory Board’s Clear Air ScientificAdvisory Committee (CASAC) inWashington, D.C.

• Edward Grew (ERS) received the prestigiousCollins Medal by the Mineralogical Society ofGreat Britain and Ireland.

• Robert Seymour (SFR) received the CliffFoster “Tell It Like It Is” Award from MaineSAF.

Division of Lifelong Learning

• Carol Toner, director of Maine Studiespublished an article for the humanities-themedissue of the Maine Policy Review (June, 2015issue) entitled: “What Kind of Place Do weWant to Live In?” Place, the Humanities, andPublic Policy in Maine.

• Toner was invited by CLAS to give the 2015Maine Heritage Lecture, “Making Sense ofPlace in Maine.” She was subsequently askedto give the talk as the Mitchell Center Lecturefor the Mitchell Center for SustainableSolutions.

Gwen Beacham is UMaine’s 2015valedictorian and National ScienceFoundation Graduate ResearchFellowship recipient.

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Student Achievements


• Abigail Bradford’s (ERS, faculty supervisorKarl Kreutz, CCI) work on ice and snowsampling documenting recent changes inclimate was featured on the front page ofScience Nation, the National ScienceFoundation’s online magazine, and on the PBSNewsHour.

• Tyler Carrier (SMS) had a peer-reviewedpublication accepted as a first-author before hegraduated.

• Torey Bowser presented her honors thesisresults at an international meeting in Norway

• Marissa Giroux (SMS) presented her honorsthesis results at an international meeting inVancouver, Canada.

• Elizabeth Wood, biology (BIO, HON) wasnamed America East Scholar-Athlete of theYear and the America East Women’s BasketballFan’s Choice Player of the Year.

• Kelsey Rosebeary was ranked the top nursecadet in the nation with the 2015 U.S. ArmyNurse Cadet Excellence Award. She alsoreceived an Eastern Maine Medical CenterMedical Staff Scholarship.

• Gwen Beacham, biochemistry (BMB, HON)was the 2015 UMaine valedictorian. She wasawarded a Graduate Research Fellowship fromthe National Science Foundation.

• Seven animal and veterinary sciences studentsout of eight applicants were admitted intoveterinary school.

• He (Helen) Jiang, a Ph.D. student in ecologyand environmental sciences, received aStorkan-Hanes-McCaslin Foundation Awardfrom the American Phytopathological Society.

• Julia Mackin-Mclaughlin and MelissaHoffman received summer research awards toconduct marine sciences research projects atXiamen University in China during summerand fall 2015.


• CHY graduate student John Ahern wasawarded funding from USGS to support hisresearch.

• e UMaine Cyber Defense Team passedthrough the qualifying round and competed atthe Northeast Collegiate Cyber DefenseCompetition.

• Graduate students Patrick Callaway andDaniel Soucier (HTY) both won scholarshipsat the David Library.

• Michael Bailey (HTY) won the GeorgeMitchell Peace Scholarship to study atUniversity College in Cork, Ireland.

• Nathan Dunn, mathematics (MAT) placed inthe top 850 in the famously difficult annualWilliam Lowell Putnam mathematics problemsolving competition.

• Julia Sell (PHY) received a National ScienceFoundation Graduate Research Fellowship.

• Katelyn Massey (PSY) was named the 2015salutatorian.

• Mikaela Gustafsson and Autumn Murtagh,sociology (SOC) were nominated and selectedfor the American Sociological Association’sprestigious summer Honors Program.


• Kelsey Bolduc, chemical and biologicalengineering (CBE) was the TAPPI recipient ofthe 2015 Engineering Division Scholarship.

• e BioECar team was selected at the regionalAICHE conference to go to the nationalcompetition.

• Taylor Merk-Wynne (MEE) received a Centerfor Undergraduate Research (CUGR) awardto investigate the micromechanical modelingof woven fiber-reinforced composites.

• William Yori (MEE) received an NSFEPSCoR project undergraduate internship.

• ECE students in the Instrumentation andResearch Laboratory designed and constructeda 3-D printer.

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UMaine’s Carnegie Classification remains inthe High Research Activity category.

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Student Achievements continued

Maine Business School

• Management student Brady Davis received afellowship to do research on food hubs.

• Student Portfolio Investment Fund (SPIFFY,faculty adviser Robert Strong) manages a $2.3million investment portfolio. eir investmentreturn surpassed industry benchmarks againthis year. SPIFFY students make presentationson finance concepts in schools statewide.


• Graduate students co-authored 22 differentjournal articles and co-presented 25 times in2014–15.

Honors College

• Michele Girard and Aoife Ryle were awardedthe Davis Foundation Project for Peace Award(summer 2015) for their project in Haiti“L’eau, le bloc de construction de la paix —Water, the Building Block of Peace.”

Division of Lifelong Learning

• Students in the Peace and ReconciliationProgram promoted and co-sponsored the 11thannual ESTIA Conference on “BuildingSustainable Communities: International,National and Local Perspectives.”

Research and Scholarship

e 2014–15 academic year marked the firstyear since 1998–99 that research and graduatestudies were administratively organized into oneoffice. e reorganization brings synergy andfocus to these two vital and strongly linkedcomponents of the University of Maine’s landgrant mission. During FY15, a total of$51,134,092 was received from extramuralsponsors, comprising 370 awards. is closelymirrors FY14, when 363 awards and$51,169,551 were received. e FY15 proposalsuccess rate was 76 percent — up from 63

percent in FY14. UMaine is consistently rankedamong the top 125 public universities forresearch through the NSF Higher EducationResearch and Development (HERD) Survey.e most recent HERD survey reflects a steepincrease in research expenditures at UMaine,from $77.6 million in FY13 to $101.2 millionin FY14. UMaine’s Carnegie Classificationremains in the High Research Activity category.


• Faculty and staff were awarded $3.3 million inexternal funding out of a total of $12.4million submitted.

• Faculty members produced 101 scholarlypublications and 86 scholarly presentations.


• e college attracted about $8.1 millionthrough the Office of Research and SponsoredPrograms, and $1.1 million through theDepartment of Industrial Cooperation.

• e Advanced Manufacturing Center andProcess Development Center continued tobuild strong partnerships with Mainecompanies, including Ecoshel, Ashland,Maine; Blue Ox Malt House, Lisbon Falls,Maine; Blue Current Brewery, Kennebunk,Maine; and many others.

• is is the second year of the NSF-supportedSMART program to assist in theimplementation of STEM education in Mainehigh schools, as well as to attract students,emphasizing female and under-representedminorities, to UMaine STEM fields.

• Faculty produced 70 refereed journal articles,were awarded seven patents, wrote 10 books orbook chapters, presented 42 conferencepapers, attended 84 conferences, andsubmitted 23 abstracts or reports.

Honors College

• e INBRE consortium grant has beenrenewed for five years, with $105,035 inannual funding.

Research and Scholarship continued

• Honors and molecular and biomedical sciences(MBMS) were awarded $50,000 by HowardHughes Medical Institute to support the PhageGenomics program for the coming year.

• Sustainable Food Systems ResearchCollaborative created with SustainabilitySolutions Initiative (SSI/NSF) seed funding inearly 2014 received an additional $10,000 infunding from the Mitchell Center for spring2015.

• Twelve Honors students and nine facultymembers presented papers at the NationalCollegiate Honors Council Conference inDenver, November 2014.


• Fourteen books were published by faculty;118 professors published 200 book chaptersand journal articles.

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UMaine is consistently ranked among the top 125 public universities for research throughthe NSF Higher Education Research and Development (HERD) Survey.

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• Almost 60 percent of the 43 grant proposalssubmitted were funded.

• e Historical Atlas of Maine, edited bygeographer Stephen Hornsby and historianRichard Judd with cartographer MichaelHermann (University of Maine Press, 2015),sold out its first edition of 3,000 copies in justone week.

• Anthropologist Gregory Zaro and colleaguesat the University of Zadar established anarchaeology field school in Zadar, Croatia.

• UMaine was designated as an NGA/USGACenter of Academic Excellence in GeospatialSciences.

Maine Business School• Faculty published 28 journal articles and four

book chapters, and made 27 presentations atresearch conferences and five presentations atother venues.

• Associate Dean Stephanie Welcomer was aco-PI for the Sustainable Food SystemsResearch Collaborative.


• Faculty secured more than $29.4 million inexternal grants — or approximately 58 percentof the UMaine total. is included $4.5million in indirect cost, which accounted for57 percent of the UMaine total.

• Faculty, staff and students published 353refereed publications and 152 otherpublications, and gave over 800 professionalpresentations.

• Industrial support of $2 million was providedby 36 businesses and related organizations,financial institutions, manufacturers, industryassociations, laboratories and pharmaceuticalcompanies.

• e many significant grants awarded withNSFA faculty as investigators included the $20million NSF EPSCoR grant, Nexus of coastalmarine social-environmental systems;$4.8 million USDA grant, enhancing thesafety and quality of fresh produce and low

moisture foods; U.S. Department of Interiorgrant, Resilience of the tidal marsh birdcommunity to Hurricane Sandy; $3 millionEPSCoR Track II project (NEST).

• Michelle Smith (SBE) was co-author of apaper recognized by Science Insider as one ofthe top 10 most-read stories in science. Herwork was also featured on the NationalScience Foundation website.

Fogler Library

• Collections: 1.4 million print volumes,557,000 e-books, 1.6 million microformpieces (excluding government publications),2.39 million U.S. federal, Canadian andMaine state government publications; morethan 98,000 online periodicals accessible;more than 400 online licensed indexes anddatabases available.

Hudson Museum• A Northwest Coast mask from the William P.

Palmer III Collection inspired the logo for theSeattle Seahawks, resulting in national pressfor the Hudson Museum and the University ofMaine.

University of Maine Cooperative Extension• UMaine Extension faculty and staff worked to

support Maine’s world-famous wild blueberryindustry by addressing pollination issues andthe spotted wing drosophila infestation,among other areas. A successful educationaleffort was made in support of a state bond thatwill provide $8 million to finance the newUMaine Cooperative Extension Plant, Animaland Insect Laboratory.

• Grants were received in the amount of$2,719,681. Of special note was a four-yearChildren, Youth, and Families at Risk awardof $663,000, and a second four-yearAgriAbility award of $701,000, both fromUSDA/NIFA.

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Retention and Student SuccessInitiatives

Guided by the Provost’s Action Plan forRetention and Graduation, and with the supportof Academic Affairs, colleges have madesignificant progress in creating or strengtheningpractices, policies and resources leading toimproved retention and student success. Below isa sample of outcomes reflecting that progress.

Major Accomplishments

• Academic Affairs and Marketing andCommunications developed the ink 30initiative, an information campaignencouraging students to complete 30 creditsper academic year in order to graduate on timein four years. In partnership with EnrollmentManagement, ink 30 information will beshared with current and prospective studentsand their families, faculty and staffcampuswide through print, Web and otherchannels, and outcomes will be tracked andassessed by the Office of Institutional Research.UMaine’s new Winter Term, developed by theDivision of Lifelong Learning and aimed atgiving students an additional opportunity toearn 30 credits per year, is a central element ofthe ink 30 initiative.

• CLAS designed an innovative first-yearstudent success course, LAS 150. Intended to“foster the skill set every college student mustacquire to complete a bachelor’s degree,” LAS150 will be made available to every incomingCLAS student in 2015–16.

• In partnership the Division of LifelongLearning (DLL), CLAS launched a Bachelorof University Studies CLAS Pathway forsecond- and third-year students with 45 ormore credits who have not succeeded inentering another program, as well as a CLASUndeclared Pathway for first-year studentswith interests in one or more programs in thecollege.

• CLAS has merged two student support officesto create the Advising and Student ServicesCenter under the leadership of John Mascetta.is move will improve students’ access toinformation and advising/support services.

• Beginning in fall 2015, COEHD will offer anew student seminar, EHD 100, to all of itsfirst-year students. e course will involveregular contact with peers and with an adviser/instructor who will continue to meet with thestudents throughout the academic year.

• COE requires all second-year students to joindepartment-based LinkedIn groups to helpstudents and faculty track student progressand give students a means of developingprofessional networks in their fields.

• DLL established its Adult Learner AdvisingCenter, while also hiring the inauguralDirector of Innovation in Teaching andLearning. Advising Center staff will ensurethat each student is contacted a minimum ofeight times during the first academic year.

• e Hutchinson Center has created a neworientation program to ensure that all itsstudents have full access to technology,career/advising resources and library resourcesbefore the first day of class.

• Students from NSFA accounted for 43 percentof all participants in the 2015 Center forUnder-graduate Research Showcase, and 45percent of all participants were Honorsstudents.

• NSFA continues to offer multiple high-impactfirst-year seminars for students across thecollege.

• e Associate Provost for Academic Affairs ledthe new Provost’s Committee for Retentionand Student Success, a group of faculty andstaff who advise Academic Affairs on bestpractices and emerging opportunities forimproving outcomes for undergraduate andgraduate students campuswide.

IV. Student Engagement and Success

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Student Credit Hour Production

Undergraduate Graduate TotalEducation and Human Development 16,762 5,656 22,418Engineering 26,104 1,254 27,358Honors College 4,668 NA 4,668Liberal Arts and Sciences 117,241 4,051 121,292Maine Business School 14,768 553 15,321Natural Sciences, Forestry, and Agriculture 56,572 6,666 63,238Division of Lifelong Learning 1,500 24 1,524Other programs 4,447 211 4,658

========== ========= =========University of Maine totals: 242,062 18,415 260,477

UMaine has made significantprogress in creating orstrengthening practices,policies and resources leadingto improved retention andstudent success.

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Collaborations with EnrollmentManagement

• Every college, department and school thatcommunicated by letter, email or social mediawith prospective or accepted students in the2014–15 enrollment cycle shared thosecommunications with the Associate Provostfor Academic Affairs, Marketing andCommunications, and Admissions to ensureconsistency of messaging and branding.

• Over the past three years, nearly 70 percent ofpre-Business Explorations students havesuccessfully matriculated into MBS, COEHD,NSFA or CLAS.

• Academic Affairs has partnered withAdmissions and Recruitment to disseminateink 30 information at New StudentOrientation events, and these units willcontinue to share ink 30 materials aton-campus events throughout the2015–16 enrollment cycle.

Student Performance on NationalBoards and Exams

• COEHD students achieved a 100 percent passrate on PRAXIS II, the primary exam used

across its elementary and secondary educationprograms. More than half of these studentsexceeded the passing score by 20 points ormore, and another 20 percent passed by ascore at least 10 points above the cutoff. Inaddition, every graduate student in thecollege’s special education program earned apassing score on his or her relevant PRAXISexam. Graduate students in English, scienceand mathematics education also achieved a 100percent pass rate, while the rate for athletictraining students was 87.5 percent — 17percent higher than the national average.

• In NSFA, 97 percent of MSW graduatespassed the Licensed Master’s Social WorkExam; all 12 food science and humannutrition students passed the nationalregistration exam for dieticians; 100 percent ofSpeech-Language Pathology students passedthe PRAXIS II exam (compared to a nationalaverage pass rate of 86 percent); the first-attempt pass rate on the RN national licensureexam for BSN graduates was 92 percent; andMay 2014 graduates of the MSN family nursepractitioner program achieved a 100 percentfirst-attempt pass rate on the nationalcertification exam.

Degrees Granted (Excluding post-baccalaureate certificates)

Bachelor’s Master’s Doctoral TotalEducation and Human Development 187 117 * 4 308Engineering 299 23 13 335Honors College (86 Bachelor’s degrees with Honors)Liberal Arts and Sciences 484 72 18 574Maine Business School 208 9 217Natural Sciences, Forestry and Agriculture 463 133 34 630Division of Lifelong Learning 11 11(Bachelor of University Studies)Other programs 4 4

====== ====== ====== ======University of Maine totals: 1,652 358 69 2,079

*Includes 32 certificates of advanced studies


19

Athletics and Academics

• For the 11th consecutive year, over 50 percentof UMaine’s student-athletes were recognizedfor their success in the classroom. Animpressive 187 students achieved ormaintained a 3.0 GPA, and 81 first-yearstudents were named “Rising Stars” forearning a 3.0 or higher in their first semesterof study.

• Eight students were named inaugural“America East Presidential Scholar-Athletes”recognizing graduating student-athletes with acumulative GPA of 3.75 or higher.

• 77 percent of UMaine’s fall student-athleteswere named to the America East AcademicFall Honor Roll, the highest percentage in theconference, for achieving a GPA of 3.0 orhigher. UMaine has achieved the highestpercentage of fall student-athletes on the fallhonor roll in the conference for eight of thelast nine years.

• For the 12th consecutive year, UMaine’sAmerica East “All Sport” GPA exceeded a 3.0average, posting a cumulative student-athlete3.21 for the 2014–15 year. UMaine placedthird among conference schools, missing firstplace by just 0.02.

• In 2014–15, 76 student-athletes graduatedfrom UMaine.

Other Indicators of Student Success —Life After UMaine

• Almost two-thirds of 2013 UMainebaccalaureate degree earners who responded toInstitutional Research’s 2015 Life AfterUMaine survey and are working full time aredoing so in Maine. Another 15 percent ofthose respondents are working part-time. Ofthis respondent pool, 86 percent ofengineering graduates and 84 percent ofMaine Business School graduates areemployed full time.

• Of the respondents employed full time in ajob related to their UMaine degree, 93 percentbelieve their UMaine experience preparedthem “very well” or “moderately well” for theirjob, and only 7 percent report being“minimally prepared” or “uncertain” in thisregard.

While much was accomplished in 2014–15,there were significant challenges, none greaterthan the ongoing need to develop a balancedbudget. President Susan J. Hunter led thecampus through an open and iterative process todevelop the FY16 budget. Academic Affairs,which accounts for almost 75 percent ofUMaine’s overall budget, was assigned 33percent of the overall budget cut, for a netreduction of about $2 million. Working closelywith the deans and unit directors, we sought tominimize the impact of the budget reduction onour core mission, and at the same time takeadvantage of vacant positions so as to minimize

the impact of the cut on employees. Fifty-sevenfaculty members retired or left UMaine for otherreasons this past year and 50 new hires will jointhe faculty in fall 2015.

UMaine’s fiscal challenges are the products ofdecreased state appropriation and frozen tuitionrates in the face of rising operational costs. estate appropriation is managed by the Universityof Maine System and tuition rates are set by theBoard of Trustees. us, UMaine’s fiscal health isinextricably tied to the system’s fiscal health andstrategic directions. In January 2015, ChancellorJames Page announced the “One University forall of Maine” plan, which outlined his vision for

V. Challenges and Opportunities

20

creating a financially sustainable universitysystem that serves Maine. At the core of the OneUniversity vision is the idea that the sevensystem universities will align their missions,integrate operations and collaborate to functionas one — “Seven mission-differentiated,mutually dependent campuses operating as onefully integrated university singularly focused onstudent success and responsive service to thestate of Maine.” How this vision comes togetherwill have significant implications for the futureof UMaine. It is important, therefore, that theUMaine community engages in everyopportunity available to participate in theprocess of shaping One University. is pastyear, over 30 UMaine faculty, staff,administrators and students participated in theAcademic Portfolio Review and IntegrationProcess (APRIP). Most served on one of the ninearea teams: nursing, engineering, business,education, criminal justice, history, marinesciences, languages, and recreation and tourism.ese teams were asked to explore ways toimprove access to, and raise the quality of,academic programs in these areas throughcollaboration and sharing of resources. e nineteams delivered their reports at the end of Mayand the reports were reviewed over the summer.Plans are currently underway to exploreimplementation of some of therecommendations emanating from the reports.New area teams will be formed this fall and thework of aligning academic programs across theseven universities will continue.

In the coming academic year, we will continue tomove forward on key aspects of the UMainestrategic plan, including advancing Signatureand Emerging Areas, growing enrollment,implementing the retention and graduationplan, and creating new opportunities to engagewith the communities of Maine. ere are threeareas that will be priorities for the Provost’sOffice in the coming academic year:

Advancement of WomenFor the past five years, UMaine has benefitedfrom an NSF ADVANCE grant for recruiting,retaining and advancing women in the STEM,and social and behavioral sciences fields. eRising Tide Center was created with ADVANCEfunding and many positive steps have been takento support women in these disciplines. As theRising Tide name implies, the guidingassumption is that improvements in institutionalpolicies, procedures and practices that facilitateadvancement of women in the STEM disciplineswill support advancement of all faculty,regardless of their gender or discipline. NSF hasgranted a one-year no-cost extension that willfund the Rising Tide Center through 2015–16.In the coming year, the Provost’s Office willfinalize plans to sustain the center and continuethe work to transform the culture of ourinstitution so that women have everyopportunity to succeed.

Faculty Development Campuswide, there are a variety of resources atUMaine to support faculty in their work andprovide opportunities for professionaldevelopment. is fall, we will bring together agroup of faculty, staff and administrators toexplore the idea of a “one-stop” facultydevelopment center to facilitate access to theseresources and explore additional professionaldevelopment opportunities for the faculty.

InternshipsOver the past two years, a dedicated group offaculty and staff exploring best practices forstudent internships have developed a set ofrecommendation for UMaine to develop aFlagship Internship Program. e program willprovide guidance and support for developinghigh-quality internships that create meaningfullearning experiences for students and meet theneeds of employers. e program will belaunched in the fall semester with theexpectation that the first Flagship Internshipswill be designated in the spring 2016.


e University of Maine does not discriminate on the grounds of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, including transgender status and genderexpression, national origin, citizenship status, age, disability, genetic information or veteran status in employment, education, and all other programs andactivities. e following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding nondiscrimination policies: Director, Office of Equal Opportunity, 101North Stevens Hall, 581.1226, [email protected].

The College of Engineering’s enrollment hasgrown nearly 20 percent in the last five years.

For 150 years the University of Maine hasfulfilled the land grant mission — providingaffordable education to Maine citizens,advancing the state’s economy, and serving itscommunities. e activities andaccomplishments of the 2014–15 year illustrate

UMaine’s ongoing commitment to this mission.e 2015–16 year will undoubtedly presentchallenges and opportunities. I look forward toworking with UMaine’s outstanding faculty,staff, students and stakeholders to meet thechallenges and realize the opportunities.

University of Maine Office of the Executive

Vice President for Academic Affairs

and Provost5703 Alumni Hall

Orono, ME 04469-5703

umaine.edu

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