Events

One week before the Super Bowl and all the festivities surrounding it, the University of Maine at Presque Isle will host an annual party of its own for high school and college students – College Goal Sunday.

Staff members will be on hand at two locations on Sunday, Jan. 29, beginning at 2 p.m. – in Folsom 105 on the UMPI campus and also at the Houlton Higher Education Center – to assist students in completing and filing their FAFSA [Free Application for Federal Student Aid] forms. This free event is open to the entire community. High school seniors and parents are especially encouraged to attend, along with currently enrolled college students needing assistance.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Outdoor Adventure Program International [OAPI] is offering an adventure-packed spring full of adventures and activities for campus and community members to enjoy, including dog sledding, a ski resort getaway, a winter ascent of Mt. Katahdin, and a zip line adventure at the Grand Falls Gorge.

Middle school students from Van Buren to Houlton visited the University of Maine at Presque Isle recently for a day filled with learning about everything from drawing and clay to printmaking and sculpture. The event, Visual Arts Day, was organized by UMPI’s Art Education program for Aroostook Regional Gifted and Talented [ARGT].

The University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Reed Fine Art Gallery will present the exhibition Frank Sullivan’s Maine from January 17 through February 19, bringing to campus the oil paintings and pastel drawings of the artist, who hails from Massachusetts and now resides in Aroostook County. The public is invited to attend the exhibition’s reception with the artist, to be held on Friday, Feb. 3, from 5-7 p.m. The reception is being held in conjunction with the Presque Isle First Friday Art Walk.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee [SAAC] worked to make the holiday season a little brighter for many local children by hosting a Toys 4 Girls and Boys toy drive. The group was able to collect more than 150 toys for area youth.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle will welcome five respected basket-makers from Native tribes throughout the region when Project Compass hosts the panel presentation The Evolution of Basket-Making: From Function to Art on Wednesday, Nov. 30, at 6 p.m. in the Campus Center.

Fit and Fun Day returns for its 14th semi-annual event designed to promote physical activity and healthy lifestyles for local children. This fall’s Fit and Fun Day will be held from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 19 in Gentile Hall. Registration will begin at 9 a.m.; admission is free. UMPI Physical Education students will facilitate the activities and provide instruction throughout the day. The University’s Athletic Training staff and students will be on site as first aid responders.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle will welcome Bob Crowley – the South Portland native and retired high school physics teacher who won the 17th season of the hit reality show Survivor – as the next speaker in its 2011-2012 University Distinguished Lecturer Series.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle celebrated the completion of its $2.3 million renovation project at Pullen Hall – which included the installation of solar panels on the roof, a biomass boiler in the basement, and many updates and energy efficiencies in between – with an official Rededication Ceremony and Ribbon Cutting at Noon on Thursday, Oct. 27 in the Pullen Art Gallery.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Faculty Noon Seminar Series returns for the Fall 2011 semester with presentations on everything from climate change in Central Asia and the Chinese public education system to research on branchiobdellidans and slave hiring in Antebellum Virginia.

Seminars generally will be held on the final Thursday of every month from 12:30-1:30 p.m. in the Normal Hall Faculty Lounge, unless otherwise noted. Presentations will be 20-30 minutes in length with a discussion period to follow. Faculty, students, staff and community members attending are welcome to bring their lunches and join in the discussion.