University of Maine at Farmington

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The University of Maine at Farmington, established in 1864 as Maine’s first public institution of higher education, is a public liberal arts college, and a member of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges offering programs in teacher education, human services and arts and sciences as a part of the University of Maine System. The school is also at times referred to as UMaine Farmington or UMF for short.

[edit] History

In March 1863, a Normal School Act passed into law, and that fall, Farmington was chosen from a list of possible locations for the first normal school, making the University of Maine Farmington the first public institution of higher education in the State of Maine.

Many early graduates attended the school for its liberal arts offerings alone. Among these were the Stanley brothers, famous for building the Stanley Steamer automobile; and John Frank Stevens, engineer of the Panama Canal. Interest in the liberal arts continued unabated until the college offered its first degree programs in the liberal arts in 1971. By the 1974-75 school year, nearly 300 students were enrolled in liberal arts majors.

Another famous graduate from the university is Bob Marley (comedian), who graduated with a degree in community health.

UMF is the site where the story described in Pierce Parker's book, "The Queen Bees of New England," [Athena Press, London] takes place in the late 1980's. The UMF officials fabricated reports to suspend first, and then to expel him, based on lies fed from three white female students. He was accused of "harassing" the white students because he refused to yield seats for them at the UMF cafeteria. Later, he filed a racial discrimination complaint against UMF with the Boston office of the US Department's Office of Civil Rights, but due to the lack of care given to the case, it was eventually quashed.

[edit] Academics

The University of Maine at Farmington has been ranked among the top schools in the liberal arts and comprehensive college categories by U.S.News & World Report in its College and university rankings for 11 consecutive years (1998-2008). The University's enrollment cap of just 2,000 students enables UMF to offer a 15:1 student/faculty ratio and an average class size of 19.

UMF offers majors in Art, Arts Administration, Biology, Business Economics, Community Health Education, Community Heath Education - school health education concentration, Computer Science, Creative Writing, Early Childhood Education, Early Childhood Special Education, Elementary Education, English, Environmental Planning and Policy, Environmental Science, Geology, Geology/Chemistry, Geology/Geography, Geography, History, International Studies, Mathematics, Music/Arts, Philosophy/Religion, Political Science/Social Science, Psychology, Rehabilitation, Rehabilitation Administration, Secondary Education (with concentrations in Biology, English, Language Arts, Mathematics, Mathematics/Computer Science, Physical Science, Science, Social Science), Sociology/Anthropology, Special Education (with concentrations in Emotional Disturbance, Learning Disabilities, Mental Retardation), Theater, and Women's & Gender Studies. With the approval of the Arts and Sciences Committee, students may choose to design their own academic program through Interdisciplinary Studies or an Individualized Major. It also offers a unique Certificate Program in Ski Industries (available to students in any major).

The University of Maine at Farmington's programs in education are nationally accredited by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE).

[edit] Athletics

The UMaine Farmington Beavers compete in the NCAA Division III North Atlantic Conference, which also includes Bay Path, Becker, Castleton State, Elms, Johnson State, Lasell, Lesley, Mount Ida, and Maine rivals Husson, Maine Maritime, and Thomas. The school's official colors are maroon and white.

UMaine Farmington has eleven varsity teams, including men's teams in baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, and soccer, and women's teams in basketball, cross country, field hockey, soccer, softball, and volleyball. Lacrosse was added as a team sport in 2008. There are also club teams in cheerleading, ice hockey, men's rugby, women's rugby, and men's and women's ultimate[1]. Recent NAC champions include men's cross country (2003-2005), women's basketball (2004, 2006, 2007), women's cross country (2004-2005), women's field hockey (2003-2004, 2006, 2007), women's soccer (2003), and women's softball (2005); recent NCAA tournament appearances include women's basketball (2006), women's field hockey (2004, 2006, 2007), women's soccer (2003), and women's softball (2005).

In addition to the outdoor athletic fields and Dearborn Gymnasium, UMF has a Fitness and Recreation Center that houses has a cardio fitness area with machines; a fully-equipped and supervised weight room with free weights and weight machines; four multipurpose courts; a 1/8 mile walking/jogging track; and a 25-yard swimming pool for the use of UMF students and members of the area community.

[edit] Students for Sensible Drug Policy

Originally the Cannabis Reform Coalition, the UMF chapter of Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) was founded in the fall of 2004 by two freshmen students, in response to the campus' Draconian drug measures that had zero tolerance for cannabis, but not for other drugs like alcohol and tobacco. The club seeks to reduce the harms associated with both drug abuse and drug policies. It is one of the largest and most active recognized clubs on the campus. In 2006, 4 members of the UMF SSDP chapter traveled to Washington, D.C. for SSDP's international conference and were awarded the Campus Change Award of 2006. 10 chapter members also traveled to a Canadian SSDP conference in Montreal, Quebec, at McGill University in 2007, and to the Northeast Conference in Providence, Rhode Island at Brown University. The chapter recently returned from their second international conference in New Orleans, Louisiana.^[1]

The club has large support on campus, and puts on events such as Green Beaver Fest^[2], A Drug Policy Forum, and works in conjunction with Marijuana Policy Project's Maine Chapter, Maine Marijuana Policy Initiative towards marijuana reprioritization and medical marijuana dispensaries. The club also played a role in changing campus drug policy from zero tolerance with cannabis offenses, to equalizing it to that of alcohol, which is a three-strike policy.

Their blog website is; http://umfssdp.blogspot.com

[edit] References

1. ^ http://www.drugpolicy.org/news/121807conf.cfm 2007's International Drug Reform Conference in New Orleans
2. ^ http://www.dailybulldog.com/stories/woody5.html Green Beaver Fest Response

[edit] External links

• University of Maine at Farmington
• Mantor Library
• WUMF 100.1 FM - UMF's student radio station
• UMaine Farmington Athletics
• Farmington First - the University of Maine at Farmington magazine
• Princeton Review