State lawmaker writes Seacoast Online commentary on UMaine visit, need for engineers
In a Seacoast Online commentary, Rep. Chris Babbidge of Kennebunk, wrote about his recent visit to the University of Maine College of Engineering with fellow state lawmakers. Though UMaine graduated 375 engineers last year — a record — Babbidge noted that state business, education and research institutions advertised for 1,450 engineering positions. “Dr. Dana Humphrey, the dean of the College of Engineering at UMaine, takes seriously his program’s responsibility to the state to do research relevant to Maine residents that moves Maine forward, and to provide the graduates needed to power Maine’s economy,” Babbidge wrote. “Students from all over the world come to the UMaine program, and 57 percent of his graduates stay in Maine. He says UMaine needs to double its number of graduates to begin to meet the needs of the state.”