Recent News

September 17, 2021

Catch Up on Alumni News in the Latest Magazine

The summer edition of the MAINE Alumni Magazine is now available online.  This expanded, special issue features profiles of Alumni Award honorees Judge George Singal ’67, Dr. Paul Plourde ’73, ’74G, and Ernie Scheyder ’06 as well as other stories and class notes.  It also examines the college experiences of alumni of color and their…

September 17, 2021

UMaine Enrollment on the Rise

Despite the challenges of the pandemic, enrollment at the University of Maine remains strong.  The University of Maine welcomed approximately 2,260 first-year students at the beginning of the fall semester, and experienced growth in both in and out-of-state enrollment over last year. Total enrollment is approximately 11,500 students, with the official headcount to be announced in mid-October.…

September 17, 2021

Namesake of UMaine’s Buchanan Alumni House Dies at 99

Dr. Robert D. Buchanan, above center, for whom the University of Maine’s Buchanan Alumni House is named, passed away on August 11, 2021, in Pueblo, Colorado, his home for the past 16 years. He was 99 years of age.  Born on May 8, 1922, Buchanan grew up in Caribou, where he graduated from high school…

UMAA Logo
September 17, 2021

Third-Generation Black Bear Moves Into Balentine Hall

Aidan Lally ’24, a sophomore majoring in civil engineering, recently moved into Balentine Hall for the fall semester—the same dorm his grandmother and great grandmother lived in. The third-generation Black Bear’s legacy at UMaine started in 1921 when his great-grandmother, Frances Perkins Lincoln, joined the UMaine campus and was one of the first students to…

September 17, 2021

Wildes ’12 Innovates the Beer Scene, Maine, and Beyond

Black Bear alumni, faculty, staff, and students are among Maine’s most productive innovators and entrepreneurs. In this month’s column, Nate Wildes ‘12, executive director of Live + Work in Maine and co-founder of Flight Deck Brewing in Brunswick (three times recognized by Down East magazine as the state’s best taproom/tasting room), reflects on his time…

September 17, 2021

Nominations Sought for Alumni Achievement Awards

Do you know a UMaine graduate whose professional achievements, community service, or volunteer activity on behalf of UMaine deserves recognition?  The Alumni Association is seeking nominations for the 2023 Alumni Achievement Awards. There are eight categories of awards, the purposes, criteria, and the nomination process for which can be found here. Nominations are due on…

September 17, 2021

Homecoming Festivities Set for October

Come back to UMaine for the Homecoming fun and festivities on October 15-16.  See what’s new and what’s familiar at the college of our hearts always!  Outdoor activities are planned for Friday and Saturday, including a football game against the College of William and Mary, beginning at noon.   For more information and to register, visit…

September 17, 2021

Series to Promote Equality and Diversity to Debut Next Month

The UMaine Alumni Association, in conjunction with the Greater Bangor Area Branch NAACP, will present the inaugural Robert Talbot Civil Rights Speaker Series with Amy Banks and Isaac Knapper on October 21. Banks and Knapper are the authors of “Fighting Time,” a new book about Knapper’s wrongful conviction for the 1979 murder of Banks’s father,…

September 17, 2021

Meet This Year’s Distinguished Maine Professor

The UMaine Alumni Association was proud to honor Dr. Hemant Pendse with the highest faculty honor, the Distinguished Maine Professor Award. This video tribute, originally released in May as part of the Alumni Achievement Awards ceremony, now includes Pendse’s acceptance remarks, which were recorded after the tribute video’s debut. Along with being an acclaimed teacher, Dr. Pendse…

September 10, 2021

First Persons: The Wabanaki Peoples of Maine Webinar

As has been the case for Native Americans most everywhere, for centuries Maine’s original inhabitants have maintained their Tribal Nations as well as resisted and struggled against powerful political and social forces for the rights, opportunities, and protections legally retained by them as indigenous people and promised to them in treaties. While minor progress has…

Three members of the graduating class holding up their University of Maine diplomas.
August 17, 2021

UMaine Holds 218th Commencement

The University of Maine’s 218th Commencement honored the achievements of the more than 2,000 UMaine students receiving undergraduate and graduate degrees in 2021. In place of a traditional face-to-face commencement, the university created a virtual commencement presentation, which included video of students’ in-person stage walks, congratulatory remarks by valedictorian Bailey West, and a keynote by…

Ben Barr holding up a #5 jersey that reads "BARR" over the number
August 17, 2021

Ben Barr Named Men’s Ice Hockey Coach

Ben Barr becomes the fifth head coach in the modern era of Maine Hockey.  Ben Barr was named UMaine’s head coach for men’s ice hockey in May. Barr comes to UMaine from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he was associate head coach and recruiting coordinator for the past five years. “We are thrilled to…