Chancellor candidates visit UMFK

FORT KENT - University of Maine Board of Trustees chose the University of Maine at Fort Kent campus as one of only three campuses system-wide to host the candidates for chancellor during the position search. The other two campuses were in Orono and Portland.

DISCUSSING THE FUTURE - Dr. Wilson Hess speaks to chancellor candidate James Page during his recent visit to the university. - Contributed image

University of Maine System decision makers may have chosen UMFK over other campuses partially as a result of long-standing efforts by UMFK to position the university as a rural academic leader within the university system and recent efforts by the school to expand and refine that mission.

President Wilson G. Hess said, "I think it's not unfair to say that perhaps our selection as a representative of rural university campuses is an indication...that the message is being appreciated and understood at the level of the Board of Trustees and the system."

FLYING OUT - Chancellor candidate Meredith Hay, center, prepares for her flight out of the Northern Maine Regional Airport in Frenchville. - Contributed image

UMFK's pioneering efforts, in combination with the Board of Trustees' stated requirement that the current chancellor search find a candidate who can envision and implement change within the system, may herald new life for this small campus. In a list of ten characteristics and experiential qualifications the Board is seeking in the ideal Chancellor candidate, the ability to envision and implement change is mentioned five times.

"That is a priority for this search," said Hess.

Hess is hopeful that system recognition for UMFK's successes will eventually lead to increased financial support for Fort Kent's university campus.

CHANCELLOR CANDIDATE REBECCA WYKE

"Maybe when they hand the money out, it will make a difference," said Hess. "This is a time when resources are thin everywhere."

Since the 1960s, a specific "funding formula" within the UMS has resulted in periodic crises in which concerns arise over whether UMFK will lose funding or even face closure.

Interviews conducted with two of the three Chancellor candidates indicated that intentions are for UMFK's doors to remain open.

When asked if he would close UMFK, candidate James Page said, "Let me give you a straight, unambiguous answer: No."

Candidate Meredith Hay said, "The real answer is 'How does a new chancellor work with [President Hess] to ensure that this is the most successful university in northern Maine?'"

There are several areas in which UMFK administration and faculty have striven to develop innovative and responsive approaches to the challenges of educating students in the 21st century.

The new HIRE Education program, under the direction of Scott Voisine, Dean of Community Education, brings together adult learners, community education, K-12 programs, and university resources, including the expertise of university faculty and the flexibility of distance education programs. For many years, UMFK has distinguished itself from all the other UMS campuses in terms of online offerings. Now, the UMS is starting to embrace the possibilities in distance education for all campuses, said Hess.

The nursing program at UMFK, which is the largest program on campus in terms of enrollment, is a long-standing success story.

"UMFK is the lead in all public universities in the state of Maine in licensure rates for nursing graduates, in a field which is the largest single opportunity sector in Maine and in every New England state," said Hess. "We are second to none in what we do now. UMFK is a center of excellence for the state."

The Early College High School program distinguishes UMFK as well, as an initiative that Commissioner of Education and Governor LePage "talk about regularly as a model", said Hess. This is another arena in which UMFK has had pieces of the puzzle in place for years, and has been refining and expanding in more recent years under Hess's direction.

The university has also stepped up to the challenges facing higher education in the 21st century by leading with the "alternative energy piece."

"By the fall of 2014, or the spring of 2014, we'll have the capacity to heat over 95 percent of university properties with local materials," said the president.

Hess said he doesn't know of any other campus in New England that has the capacity to essentially fuel 100 percent of campus properties with local renewable energy sources.

"That's role model stuff," he said.

Professor of Computer Science Ray Albert is a member of the chancellor search committee, the only faculty member to be chosen by system administrators to serve on the system-wide committee. All other participants are Board of Trustee members.

Norman Fournier of Wallagrass serves as the University of Maine Chair of the Board of Trustees Finance/Facilities Committee and Samuel Collins of Caribou serves as vice-chair of the Board of Trustees.