Strategic Re-Envisioning Update — June 6

Dear University of Maine and University of Maine at Machias colleagues,

I am pleased to share the feedback from the over 280 participants who engaged with our interactive activities during our Strategic Re-Envisioning (SRE) town hall on May 21. The significant discussions held during this event support our initial reflection and re-envisioning phase and will help guide our work over the next nine months. 

The offices of the provost and the vice president for finance and administration have worked on a summary of the group discussions as well as a summary of key themes pulled from those discussions. Key themes included organizational efficiency and infrastructure, faculty and staff support, student experience and success, strategic growth and development, financial sustainability, community engagement and outreach, innovation and adaptation, sustainability and environmental impact, and specific action points. 

As we have shared before, this effort, with the support of members across our universities, will ensure that we strategically align our resources with university priorities and ultimately reach a balanced budget, are well-positioned for a competitive enrollment environment, and are prepared to embrace the upcoming challenges and opportunities of a shifting higher education landscape as Maine’s public research university. 

To review the summary of key themes and group discussions summary, please visit the SRE website and navigate to the bottom of the page to the “Town Hall” section. 

Review of applications is underway for the Provost Fellows and Project Director positions. Thank you to all who have applied and are interested in getting involved in this process. 

Sincerely,

Joan Ferrini-Mundy
President