University of Maine System Research and Development Plan Update
Dear university communities,
At the end of the spring semester, the University of Maine System Research and Development Plan was received by the Board of Trustees and is now available online.
I was charged by the Board and former Chancellor Page to lead this initiative. It was developed with input from faculty, staff, students and administrators at all System campuses, as well as stakeholders statewide. I want to thank all who provided creative ideas and critiques, offered solutions and strategies for implementation, and shared observations of R&D strengths, weaknesses and opportunities in the University of Maine System. Special thanks to all who served on the Steering Committee.
The plan proposes that the University of Maine System advance three R&D goals for the state of Maine over the next 10 years:
- Make Maine the best state in the nation in which to live, work, and learn by 2030.
- Establish an innovation-driven Maine economy for the 21st century.
- Prepare the knowledge-and-innovation workforce for Maine.
Jason Charland, UMaine Director of Research Development in the Office of the Vice President for Research and Dean of the Graduate School (OVPRGS), played a key role in writing the R&D plan. I am pleased that he has agreed to continue to work on it, now as R&D Plan Implementation Director, joining the UMaine President’s Office staff in a half-time capacity while maintaining his role directing the Office of Research Development for the other half of his time.
Jason joined UMaine in 2012 as the Grants Management Coordinator for the College of Education and Human Development. He currently serves as the Program Manager for the University of Maine System’s Research Reinvestment Fund (RRF), and has been a senior staff member of the OVPRGS since 2014.
Saul Allen has been named Assistant Director of Research Development to ensure seamless service to the research community as Jason takes on these new responsibilities. Saul has worked in a variety of roles in university settings, and has written and received federal grants for both nonprofits and private-sector enterprises.
I encourage you to read and review the plan in anticipation of implementation activities advancing rapidly early in the fall semester. Please contact Jason at 581.2461; jason.charland@maine.edu, with your ideas and questions.
Sincerely,
Joan Ferrini-Mundy
President, University of Maine and its regional campus, University of Maine at Machias