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University of Maine at Fort Kent

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Enrollment & Advancement Center • University of Maine at Fort Kent • 23 University Drive, Fort Kent, ME 04743

UMFK Announces Education Program Collaboration with UMPI

July 26, 2017

Note: this is an archived news release. As such, the information provided may no longer apply.

The University of Maine at Fort Kent announces changes to the Education Program model in order to best meet the needs of students working towards their Bachelor of Science in Education.

“The recent departure of beloved program coordinator, Dr. Doris Metz, created a condition where we have too few education faculty at UMFK to deliver needed courses,” said Dr. Steve Gammon, vice president of academic affairs. “We have students who need specific classes in order to graduate within their planned timeframe, but not enough education faculty to provide those classes.”

“In order to best serve our students, we had to act fast,” said UMFK President Dr. John Short. “We reached out to the University of Maine at Presque Isle to help us provide the necessary classes for our students to graduate and they stepped up to help quickly. We are very grateful for the collaborative relationship we have with them.”

“We are very pleased to be partnering with the University of Maine at Fort Kent in terms of providing both elementary and secondary education for Aroostook County,” said UMPI President Dr. Ray Rice. “Our faculty will be working closely with UMFK staff and faculty to ensure that students at UMFK are able to complete their degree in Education at Fort Kent. This is just one example of the important collaborations President Short and I are initiating between our two campuses to ensure that we meet the workforce and professional needs of Aroostook County, in particular, and the state of Maine more generally.”

Adjunct instructors will continue to teach at UMFK and faculty from UMPI will teach via technology as well as other methods. Academic leadership at UMFK will work with the University of Maine System Board of Trustees as well as State accreditation agencies to create a long-term plan for the Education Program.

“There are a number of factors we need to review as well as adhering to guidelines set up by accrediting agencies,” said President Short. “We will work closely with them in the long-term, but immediate decisions had to be made in order to support our students.”

For more information about academic programs at UMFK, please call 834-7500, or go to www.umfk.edu.