March 2017

Bob Michaud, member of our Facilities crew, went to a taping of The Price is Right in January and actually got asked to “Come On Down” as one of the contestants! Not only that, he made it up on stage after having the closest guess for some coffee makers and then won a four-wheeler, some purses and some shoes, but didn’t make it to the Showcase Showdown. Congratulations on your big win, Bob!

Congratulations to February Student of the Month Kaitlyn Mae Belanger, from Woodland, a senior majoring in Biology-Pre-Med and minoring in Chemistry and Physical Science. Belanger is the President and founder of the Veterans Club, the President of the Partners for World Health Club, and the Secretary of both the Red Cross Club and the Biomedical Club. She is also a member of the U.S. Army Reserves. Belanger contributes to community service thru blood drives sponsored by the Student Red Cross Club and she aspires to become a doctor. Congratulations again, Kaitlyn!

The University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Athletics program hosted a very successful marrow registry drive for those ages 18 to 44 on Wednesday, March 8, from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. in Wieden Hall, with more than 40 people registering. For thousands with blood cancers like leukemia or other diseases like sickle cell anemia, a marrow transplant is their only hope for life. The Athletics Program held the event after learning about Ally Little’s story. Little, a 20-year-old Stoneham native and University of Southern Maine student and member of the University’s Woman’s Soccer Team, was recently diagnosed with Severe Aplastic Anemia. SAA is a rare disease in which bone marrow stops producing healthy blood cells. A bone marrow transplant is currently the only cure for this disease. The UMPI Athletics Program is hoping to help find a match for Little and give hope to all patients in need of a bone marrow transplant.

Gentile Hall will be offering Zen and the Art of Rock Climbing on Monday, March 13 at 6:30 p.m., with a focus on mindfulness, and on Monday, March 20 at 6:30 p.m., with a focus on strength and stretching. Find out how these tools support you in rock climbing and many other sports. Both events take place from 6:30-7:30 p.m. and will meet at the Rock Wall. This is free for Gentile Hall members and is a $7 day pass for non-members. FMI, contact Amanda Baker at 768-9401 or email amanda.g.baker@maine.edu.

Dr. Jason Johnston, his wife Krista, and their daughters Kathleen and Marie welcomed Elise Serena Johnston on February 9. Baby Elise and family are all doing well. Welcome to Elise and congratulations to the Johnston family!

The University hosted the 11^th Annual Junior Achievement of Maine Titan Challenge in the Campus Center on March 1. The event brought area high school students to campus to compete against their peers across the state on business finance and marketing simulations. All Maine high schools were invited to participate in this day-long competition, free of charge. More than 150 teams from Maine high schools were registered. Eighteen of these teams competed here at UMPI. The top state-wide Titan Challenge award went to Van Buren, and a Caribou High School team took the regional award for this site. This event was sponsored on campus by the faculty of the Business Administration program.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle was recently featured on MPBN, during Maine Things Considered. Reporter Robbie Feinberg visited campus about three weeks ago and recorded hours of interviews—highlighted in the 5-minute report are Dr. Scott Dobrin, Vanessa Pearson (our Interim Dean of Students), and junior Allison Lopez. You can both read and listen to the report here: http://mainepublic.org/#stream/0.

Dr. Ray Rice, UMPI President and Provost, recently announced the Dean’s List for the Fall 2016 semester, with more than 300 students receiving honors. Congratulations to all of these UMPI Owls! To see the full list, go to http://www.umpi.edu/articles/umpi-releases-deans-list-for-fall-2016/

UMPI’s Relay for Life Team hosted its 6^th Annual Think Pink Basketball Games on Feb. 12. The event was a huge success, with the team taking in $580. Chris Standefer won a Valentine’s Basket and Ann Osgood won the 50/50 raffle and donated it back to the team. The Baseball team sold hot dogs/chili dogs and did a ball toss game, donating a total of $100 to the team. Other food items were also donated and sold at the event.

The team also held a Stew Night on March 3 at the Presque Isle Snowmobile Club. The cost was $6 for a combo meal of stew (or soup/chili), bread, drink and dessert. They also sold hot dogs/chili dogs and had to-go containers for those who couldn’t stay. In total, they raised $800, with all proceeds going toward the American Cancer Society.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Cross Country team will host its 37th Annual Spring Runoff 5K Road Race on Saturday, April 8, at Wieden Gymnasium. This race is the second race in the County Challenge Series. Race day registration will begin at 8 a.m. The event will be open to walkers and runners, with walkers starting at 9:30 a.m. and runners and relay (3-person) starting at 10 a.m. T-shirts will be given out to the first 60 entrants, courtesy of Aroostook Beverage. This event is also sponsored by Big Cheese Pizza and Pepsi Bottling Group, who will supply pizza and Pepsi beverages in Wieden Gymnasium shortly after the completion of the race, around 10:45 a.m. This event is open to the public and the cost is $15 U.S. or $20 Canadian for 5K runners/walkers and $25 U.S or $30 Canadian for 3-person relay teams. This event is a fund-raiser for the UMPI Cross Country team. FMI, contact Chris Smith at 768-9472 or christopher.smith@maine.edu.

Seniors Achieving Greater Education (SAGE), a program that welcomes intellectually curious adults, age 50 and older, who have a desire to learn in the company of people with both shared and different perspectives, will host its spring kick-off event at 10 a.m. on Friday, March 17 in the Campus Center. Membership in SAGE is $17 per semester or $32 for the year. There are additional fees for field trips and some hands-on courses. Coffee will be served starting at 9:30 a.m. Some of the courses offered are: Candy Making, English Handbell Ringing, Dealing with “Compassion Fatigue,” Introduction to Watercolor Painting, Introduction to Conversational French and The Golden Age of Radio. There are also a number of one-day classes. There will be also be a tour of SABIAN Cymbals in Meductic, New Brunswick, a Maple Syrup Sugar House tour, a narrated city-wide historic tour aboard Molly the Trolley and a guided walking tour of historic Fairmount Cemetery with the Presque Isle Historical Society. Registration for classes will follow the presentations.  FMI, contact Lydia Kieffer-Till at 768-9502 or email lydia.kiefer@maine.edu.

The UMPI Owl Relay for Life Team will be holding a Spring Fundraiser,  a Travel Package Raffle. The winner will get 2 round trip tickets from Presque Isle to Boston on PenAir, carry luggage, a back pack, a Kindle Fire, gift certificates and other goodies. The package is valued over $900. The drawing for this raffle will be on June 16. Tickets are 1 for $1 and 7 for $5. You can purchase tickets in the Student Financial Services Office or at any upcoming events they may have. FMI, contact Laurie Boucher at laurie.boucher@maine.edu or Lisa Leduc at lisa.leduc@maine.edu.