Officials announce $200,000 Davis Educational Foundation grant and new vision to help establish groundbreaking learning approach

The University of Maine at Presque Isle was joined by several top Maine education officials during a Feb. 13 press conference in Bangor to announce its transition to proficiency-based education, a move that makes UMPI the first university in Maine and one of the first in the nation to deliver this type of interactive learning. Proficiency-based education encourages deeper learning and greater engagement by providing more hands-on activities, giving students choices in selecting assignments, and having them demonstrate proficiency in a subject area before moving along to the next concept.

Officials with the University of Maine at Presque Isle and the City of Presque Isle are working to ensure a smooth transition for community members when the city’s aquatics program begins offering its lessons at the Gentile Hall pool starting in March.

In an effort to familiarize community members with UMPI’s pool, officials will be hosting two open house events—on Friday, Feb. 14 from 12:30-1:30 p.m. and on Saturday, March 1 from 4-5 p.m.—providing tours of the building, a brief orientation on how the city’s aquatics programming will be offered at the UMPI facility, and an opportunity to get a wide variety of questions answered. The public is invited and encouraged to attend these free events.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle is welcoming two new employees and announcing one new appointment at the start of the Spring 2014 semester.

Two hundred and ninety-nine students at the University of Maine at Presque Isle have been named to the Dean’s List for the fall semester, according to Dr. Michael Sonntag, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.

The University of Maine at Fort Kent and the University of Maine at Presque Isle today unveiled a new tuition structure for out-of-state and international students that offers competitive pricing in those markets and also acts as a catalyst for economic development in Aroostook County.

Starting with the Fall 2014 semester, UMPI and UMFK will be simplifying their tuition structure by offering out-of-state students the same tuition rate extended to students who participate in the New England Board of Higher Education Tuition Break Program.