The University of Maine at Presque Isle will host its annual spring semester American Red Cross Blood Drive on Wednesday, Feb. 1. This blood drive is sponsored by the UMPI Residence Life Office, the Brothers of Kappa Delta Phi and the Sisters of Kappa Delta Phi NAS.

The blood drive is scheduled from 12 p.m. until 5 p.m. in the Campus Center’s Multi-Purpose Room. If donors wish to reserve a time to make their donation, they should call 1-800-RED-CROSS or 768-9585 between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Walk-ins are welcome, or you can sign up at the new online appointment scheduler at www.redcrossblood.org.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle will host Ed Webster – mountain climber, author, photo-journalist, and veteran of seven Himalayan expeditions – as the next speaker in its 2011-2012 University Distinguished Lecturer Series.

Webster has achieved and survived the impossible – in 1988, he and three partners ascended a new, never-before-attempted route up Mt. Everest’s most dangerous, isolated side in Tibet with no sherpas, no radios and no oxygen. Webster will share his riveting tale of human endurance and remarkable teamwork, and provide a breathtaking slide show to accompany his story, during his presentation Everest the Hard Way on Wednesday, Feb. 8 at 7 p.m. in the Campus Center. The public is invited to attend a reception and book-signing event to be held in the Alumni Room immediately following his lecture.

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.