Press Releases

A film about the University of Maine at Presque Isle’s efforts to install a wind turbine on its campus will take center stage on the Maine Public Broadcasting Network this weekend when the public television station hosts the statewide TV premiere of “Wind 101: The University of Maine at Presque Isle Builds a Wind Turbine.” The 30-minute film airs on MPBN this Saturday, May 8 at 11 a.m.

“Wind 101,” directed by local videographer and filmmaker Frank Grant and narrated by long-time theater professor Joseph Zubrick, follows the step-by-step process it took for the University to complete its major renewable energy project – from the very first energy survey to the very last installation detail – and the bumps encountered along the way. This film also shows the work the University has done to turn its project into an educational opportunity for its students and the greater community.

During a President’s Reception held on May 5, 18 students at the University of Maine at Presque Isle received grant aid awards through the Student Support Services (SSS) program. SSS awarded each full-time student approximately $2,200, and the funds will assist the students by reducing their loans.

A University of Maine at Presque Isle professor has received a top honor for those in the Social Work field in the State of Maine.

Shirley Rush, Associate Professor of Social Work at UMPI, was named the 2009 Social Worker of the Year by the Maine chapter of the National Association of Social Workers during the organization’s spring conference held at the Samoset Resort in Rockland in April. This is the second time Rush has received the award. She previously was given the award in 2000.

Dr. Stuart R. Gelder, Emeritus Professor of Biology at the University of Maine at Presque Isle and Ms Bronwyn W. Williams, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Canada, were just informed that they have been awarded $4,940 from the “Discover Life in America” fund to partially support the first survey of crayfish worms in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park (GSMNP).

According to Gelder, the Appalachian region has the highest concentration of branchiobdellidan species in the world. The study will involve collection and identification of crayfish worms from crayfishes sampled at selected sites across the park. From this information, a species and distribution list will be constructed for the park.

University of Maine at Presque Isle Professor Anderson Giles has announced an opportunity to visit the Northern Mariana Islands and Palau this August as part of a tour that will mark the 65th anniversary of the Atomic Missions to Japan.

Giles will be leading this tour, which will participate in unique commemoration events on Tinian Island associated with the deployment of the atomic strike missions against Nagasaki and Hiroshima and the end of World War II. The tour will also visit numerous historic, cultural, and scenic sites on the islands of Guam, Saipan, Rota and Palau, Anguar and Pelelieu.

Eighty-seven middle school, high school, and college science educators from all over the United States pre-registered for a four-hour Short Course presented at the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) National Conference in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania by Dr. Bonnie Wood, University of Maine at Presque Isle Professor of Biology.