BRENDAN WALSH ’00 has long held a reputation as an enforcer. Two decades ago, he patrolled the ice of Alfond Arena as a tough-as-nails member of UMaine men’s ice hockey team, the 1999 NCAA national champions. Today, Walsh polices a different territory as a detective with the Boston Police Department. The 46-year-old Massachusetts native is…
FOLLOWING HIS UMAINE graduation, Erik Gundersen ’05 moved to Arizona to pursue a career as a golf pro. When that didn’t pan out, he moved back to Maine, where he has become a major player of a different kind. Gundersen, 37, directs Maine’s Office of Marijuana Policy (OMP), the arm of state government responsible for…
The current Maine State Legislature has a strong representation of Black Bear alumni among its members: eight senators and 17 representatives, including House Majority Leader Michelle Dunphy `88, `96. All legislators may be reached via the following email format: firstname.lastname@legislature.maine.gov < Back to Winter 2021 MAINE Alumni Magazine
A total of twenty-five UMaine alumni were elected or re-elected to the Maine House of Representatives and Maine Senate on election day. Eight state senators and seventeen state representatives will be part of the next legislative session when it convenes on December 2. We congratulate them and wish them success as they work on behalf…
Photo Thalassa Raasch/Maine Community Foundation IN THE HALF CENTURY since George Smith ’70 graduated from the University of Maine with a degree in business administration, his life and career have experienced more surprise turns than any of the state’s rivers and streams that have come to frame his legacy. Seemingly destined for a career at…
Washington Monthly magazine has placed the University of Maine on its “honor roll” of colleges and universities that do the most to encourage students to exercise their right to vote. The magazine selected UMaine and 138 other schools from among more than 5,300 public and private U.S institutions. The selection was based on uniform metrics…
RICHARD J. POWELL, a member of the University of Maine’s political science faculty for nearly two decades, has been selected as the 2020 Distinguished Maine Professor, the university’s most prestigious faculty award. Powell was chosen from among six finalists by a review panel representing alumni, current and retired faculty, and the UMaine student body. He…
WHEN HE FIRST ARRIVED in Orono in 2000 to start his college career, Matt Rodrigue ’04 understandably had no idea that in less than 15 years he would become a leading figure in resolving one of the United States’ biggest public financial crises. But that’s exactly what happened, as the Farmington native became a prominent…
On Friday, January 24th, Black Bear alumni will receive an email with the subject line “UM Alumni Impact Survey” inviting them to participate in an online survey. Please participate! The survey is a key part of a study commissioned by the Alumni Association to document the educational, economic, cultural, civic, and community roles and influences of its 109,000 members.…
Shanna Cox ’15 is working to grow the Lewiston Auburn Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce. Hired as the organization’s CEO last fall, she is building a model that encourages more businesses to join, participate, and benefit from chamber membership. Read more about her efforts here.
Retired Army Col. William “Bill” Smullen ’62 has a new position as CEO of advancement and strategy at Clear Path for Veterans, a nonprofit organization near Syracuse, NY, that serves veterans and their families. Clear Path for Veterans addresses the occupational, emotional, physical, and intellectual needs of area veterans through a variety of programs and…
UMaine alumnus Thröstur Eysteinsson ’90G, ’92 Ph.D. grew up exploring Iceland’s scenic landscape. As he learned about the history of forestry in Iceland he decided to quit his job as a teacher and come to the University of Maine to study forestry. In an interview with the College of Natural Sciences, Forestry, and Agriculture Eysteinsson…