Community Learning for Maine website launch event announced
The nonprofit Rural Aspirations Project will host a virtual launch for its new website, Community Learning for Maine (CL4ME) on Thursday, May 14 from 4–5 p.m. on Zoom.
The University of Maine College of Education and Human Development helped develop the site, with associate professor of educational leadership Catharine Biddle serving in an advisory role and other faculty members providing content.
CL4ME is a Maine-based resource that aims to support schools, organizations and communities during remote learning due to the coronavirus pandemic and beyond. Working together to build long-term school-community collaborations and vitality, the site unifies Maine’s unique organizational assets to support a wide variety of instructional methods and programs that connect what is being taught in schools to surrounding communities.
“Through CL4ME, Maine educators, community leaders and families are invited to join together to build strong, mutually beneficial connections between schools and communities,” says Korah Soll, founding director of the Rural Aspirations Project. “These connections demonstrate our collective investment in supporting youth as future leaders, problem solvers and innovators able to navigate transitions, contribute to, and thrive in a changing local and global world.”
Biddle has coordinated the College of Education and Human Development’s contributions to the site. Several faculty members have provided content, including webinars hosted by members of the special education faculty, and the site’s Parent/Guardian Resources page, which was compiled by UMaine’s Parenting Relationships Research Lab, founded by assistant professor of family studies Daniel Puhlman.
“Healthy communities and healthy schools are intertwined in so many ways,” says Biddle. “Although this website launched during the COVID-19 crisis, the hope is that it will continue to be a resource for families and teachers in Maine for many years to come.”
In addition to the college, other partners in the site include the Maine Department of Education, the Island Institute, Island Readers & Writers, the Maine Environmental Education Association and the Schoodic Institute at Acadia National Park.
Members from each organization will be at the Zoom launch for CL4ME, which will include a virtual tour of the site and a Q&A session. The link to register is online.
Contact: Casey Kelly, casey.kelly@maine.edu