Mt. Abram Regional High School was recently awarded a $20,000 grant from the MELMAC Education Foundation. The “Boosting Readiness for College and Career” grant focuses on four areas: Exposure to businesses and colleges as part of a broad college and career awareness curriculum; Financial Literacy so that students leave high school empowered to make smart and informed decisions to improve their long-term financial well-being; Family Engagement so that students and their families understand the steps needed to prepare for college and career, and track their progress through a formal plan for life after high school; and, College and Career Culture so that all students are prepared for a full range of post-secondary options through structured, motivational, and experiential opportunities.

Waldo County middle schoolers participated in Waldo County Technical Center’s Amazing Race during the last two weeks of January. This annual event allowed seventh-graders from Troy Howard Middle School, Drinkwater School, Searsport Middle School, and Mount View Middle School to participate in challenges from each and every program at the tech center.

When it comes to selecting holiday decorations, the students at the Region Two School of Applied Technology have looked inward for inspiration. One simply has to stroll down the halls of the Houlton Career and Technical Education Center to see that handiwork first hand.

Educate Maine will host its 2022 Education Symposium on Friday, Dec. 9 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Holiday Inn by the Bay in Portland. After two years of virtual engagement, this year’s event is in-person, bringing together over 400 educators, business leaders, policymakers, students, and diverse citizens from across Maine to share knowledge, innovative ideas, best practices, and timely strategies for helping all Maine people reach their highest educational potential. This year’s event would not be possible without generous sponsors including the event Premier Sponsor, Unum, and our partners at the MELMAC Education Foundation.

In Wendy Ault’s opinion, no one cares about students the same way as longtime University of Maine at Farmington director of financial aid Ron Milliken. “He would look under every rock, helping a student and their family figure out ways to afford an education,” said Ault, the executive director of the MELMAC Education Foundation and former associate director of admissions at UMF.

Paula Callan becomes the first educator to win both the Maine Principal of the Year Award and the Maine Assistant Principal of the Year Award since the founding of the Maine Principals’ Association in 1992.

Boothbay Region High School’s Class of 2022 will soon venture out into a world most adults are struggling to understand. Sophomores when the pandemic began in 2020, the 40 seniors are navigating the widely uncharted territory of post-secondary education and training where colleges and universities are struggling more than ever to attract students equally as uncertain about their futures.

Twenty-six teams from across Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts gathered at Thomas College, in Waterville, to compete in the New England District Pine Tree Event robotics competition. This two-day qualifying event marked a return after a two-year absence due to the COVID 19 pandemic.

The Red Sox are happy to announce two upcoming STEM Education Days, presented by Moderna, at Fenway Park on May 5th featuring our friends from NASA, including Mass Native Astronaut Stephanie D. Wilson, and Sept 29th featuring various STEM related partners and industry leaders.

Educate Maine released its ninth annual “Education Indicators for Maine” report last week. The yearly report examines Maine’s education system in-depth, using indicators to measure access, participation, and performance of Maine students from early childhood through postsecondary education. The report provides data on what is working well and where investments in Maine’s education system are needed to ensure that every Maine person reaches their highest educational potential.

Regional School Unit 25 (RSU 25) Superintendent Jim Boothby announced Tuesday that the district was the recipient of a grant “just shy of a million dollars” aimed at inspiring pre-K-to-12 students to plan for careers and postsecondary education.

Amanda Peterson, the business leadership instructor at United Technologies Center (UTC) in Bangor has been named the 2020 Maine Career and Technical Education (CTE) Teacher of the Year by the Maine Administrators of Career and Technical Education (MACTE).

These are trying times. Maine people, employers, workers and students are facing many challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is promising that Maine is gradually reopening its economy. People are beginning to look ahead and move forward. We are hopeful that Maine will get back to work and move forward with our new normal soon while adhering to new health and safety standards, and that Maine’s economic recovery is swift and strong.

"I am not a scientist, so I won’t pretend to make predictions about the longevity of this virus, potential for a vaccine, or likelihood for a resurgence. Nor am I an economist, so I will not weigh in on whether this is a recession or a depression, and I will refrain from speculating on the long-term fiscal impact. However, I am an educator who has worked with students and families through the 9/11 tragedy and the 2008 recession. I have also seen the great disparity of educational resources, and the inherent inequities, that hold back many in this country. What I know to be true is that no matter when our country opens up, or how fast we bounce back, we need to think about how we stimulate our economy and workforce from the ground up. Guess where that starts? School counselors."

The New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) will honor Wendy L. Ault, executive director of the MELMAC Education Foundation, with a 2019 Excellence Award at a ceremony to be held in the Maine State House on Thursday, June 20 at 1 p.m.