From molecular biology and backcountry evacuations to hosting a medieval faire and performing a Greek tragedy, students at the University of Maine at Presque Isle will be showcasing their academic research, scholarly work and community service on Wednesday, April 14 during the 9th Annual University Day. The theme of this year’s event is Winds of Change: Propelling Progress and Sustainability.

University Day is an event that heightens students’ awareness of the work being done by peers in all of the disciplines represented on campus. The event allows students to better understand how disciplines interrelate and how the academic work they do applies to the local and global community.

Students from the University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Native Voices group will host a day-long event meant to develop strong connections between higher education and the Native American/First Nations culture and traditions of the area’s indigenous populations.

The group will host the Third annual Native Appreciation Day from 8:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Tuesday, April 13 in Wieden Hall. All interested students, faculty, staff, and members of the general public are welcome to attend and participate in this free event, which is being supported by Project Compass.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle welcomes New York Times best-selling author Frank Schaeffer as its final distinguished lecturer of the Spring 2010 semester.

Frank Schaeffer, the author of Patience with God: Faith for People Who Don’t Like Religion (Or Atheism), will speak at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, April 14 in the Campus Center. His talk, Social Action and Religion: Hopeful Uncertainty in a Fundamentalist World, is part of the University’s Distinguished Lecturer Series and is being held in conjunction with University Day. Schaeffer will discuss his evangelical past and the lessons he has learned over the years about social action. His talk is free and open to the public.

Local kids will unknowingly be getting exercise while taking part in fun activities during the 11th semi-annual Fit and Fun Day, to be held from 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturday, April 10 in Gentile Hall and sponsored by the University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Physical Education Majors Club.

For the past several years, the Club has organized the free play day for area children in grades 1 through 5 to teach them about health and fitness in a fun environment. Activities will include rhythm activities, parachute games, juggling, and ball handling games, as well as improving motor skill techniques through activities such as throwing with rubber chickens, frogs, and turtles.

Professors with the University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Math Program will be exposing local high school students to some new mathematical concepts during the Second Annual Imagine Math Day, to be held Friday, April 2, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Campus Center.

According to Dr. Shawn Robinson, Assistant Professor of Mathematics, approximately 50 students and their teachers from Aroostook County high schools will be visiting campus to take part in the math event. The group will take a guided exploration of mathematical models in population ecology, led by Dr. David Hiebeler, an Associate Professor with the University of Maine’s Mathematics and Statistics department. Dr. Hiebeler is an active researcher in this field, and the activities will make use of computer simulations that he has developed.

During the entire month of April, the work of University of Maine at Presque Isle ceramics students will be on display in downtown Presque Isle in the Project Compass Ceramics Show. The 450 Main Street location, near the Northeastland Hotel, will showcase completed works made possible through a Project Compass mini-grant.

The students whose works are on display include: Joanna Dumond, Whitney Graham, Shelly Hanson, Judith Jeffery, Arelis Jimenez, Rebecca Kelley, Jenna Larochelle, Erick Martinez, Paige McEachern, Carleena Newman, Melody Sanborn, Erica Smith, Krista Stevens, Brittany Taylor, and Amanda Turmenne.

Officials from the University of Maine at Presque Isle and area tribal elders gathered at the Houlton Higher Education Center on March 17 for the dedication of the Houlton Native Education Center, a new student center designed specifically for Native American students in the southern Aroostook County area.

“We are so pleased to be joining with tribal elders throughout the region in dedicating the Houlton Native Education Center and creating a comfortable space for our Native American students as they take their university classes,” President Don Zillman said. “This center will help our students continue their educational success and allow us to continue the good work that is being done through our Project Compass efforts.”

Students from the University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Medieval History class will be joining with middle school students in Presque Isle Middle School’s History Club and members of the Society for Creative Anachronism to host a Medieval Faire for area middle schoolers on Tuesday, March 23 in Wieden Gymnasium.

More than 400 middle school students from across central Aroostook County have been invited to take part in this one-of-a-kind learning opportunity during morning and afternoon sessions. In preparation for their visit, organizers are transforming Wieden gym into a medieval village, complete with a castle, monastery, peasant home, and workshops. They have been helped in their efforts by the University’s Physical Plant staff, Dr. Michael Amey’s Medieval Literature Class, and other staffers from across campus.

Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day, Robbie O’Connell will be making an appearance in the University’s of Maine at Presque Isle’s Wieden Auditorium on Sunday, March 14 at 2 p.m.

Ireland’s top music magazine, Hot Press, has called O’Connell “a national treasure” and “a man blessed with an enviable turn of phrase and a gift for melody bestowed on only the few.” O’Connell’s performance at UMPI will include traditional Irish songs and stories.

A University of Maine at Presque Isle program that serves local residents over 50 and believes in “learning for life” will host its spring kick-off with a luncheon event at 11 a.m. on Thursday, March 18 in the Campus Center.

Seniors Achieving Greater Education [SAGE] has worked for more than a decade to bring short courses in arts, sciences, and specialty areas to the region’s senior community. SAGE is one of 16 senior colleges in the Maine Senior College Network, and the only one north of Orono.

At the March 18 luncheon, participants will have the opportunity to socialize with SAGE members. Following lunch, they will learn all about upcoming SAGE classes. This spring, SAGE officials are offering a dozen courses and learning excursions – on topics ranging from Buddhism to Journalism Ethics. Learning excursions include trips to the WAGM-TV station in Presque Isle and the Aroostook National Wildlife Refuge in Limestone.