University of Southern Maine

The University of Southern Maine (USM) is a public university with campuses in Portland, Gorham and Lewiston in the U.S. state of Maine. It is part of the University of Maine System. It was founded as two separate state universities, Gorham Normal School and University of Maine at Portland. The two universities were combined in 1970 to help streamline the public university system in Maine and eventually expanded by adding the Lewiston campus in 1988.

University of Southern Maine
Former names
University of Maine at Portland
Gorham State College
University of Maine at Portland-Gorham
MottoThe University of Everyone
TypePublic
Established1878
PresidentGlenn Cummings
Students7,855[1]
Undergraduates6,189
Location
Gorham, Portland
,
Maine
,
United States

43°39′45″N 70°16′34″W
CampusUrban, Suburban
ColorsRoyal Blue and Gold[2]
         
NicknameHuskies
AffiliationsNCAA Division III
MascotChamp the Husky
Websiteusm.maine.edu

The Portland Campus is home to the Edmund Muskie School of Public Service, the Bio Sciences Research Institute, the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute and the Osher Map Library, and the USM School of Business. The Gorham campus, much more residential, is home to the School of Education and Human Development and the School of Music.[3] As of 2019, USM had 6,700 undergraduate students and 1,500 graduate students, with a student-faculty ratio of 13:1.[4][5]

History

Evolving from Gorham Academy into an institution of higher education, USM originated in 1878 as Gorham Normal School, later called Gorham State Teachers College and then Gorham State College. In 1970 that institution merged with the University of Maine at Portland (previously Portland Junior College) and became the University of Maine at Portland-Gorham (UMPG).[6] The name was changed to University of Southern Maine in 1978. The Lewiston-Auburn campus was founded in 1988.

2014 financial problems and subsequent developments

At the beginning of 2014, administrators at USM announced that the university had found itself in dire financial straits, and would be announcing program closures and faculty layoffs, including long-term just cause faculty and tenured faculty.[7] President Theodora Kalikow and Provost Michael Stevenson announced that four departments would be closed: the Recreation and Leisure Studies Department, the GeoSciences Department, the Arts and Humanities program at Lewiston-Auburn College, and the graduate program American and New England Studies (the Recreation and Leisure Studies closure was later rescinded[8]). A week later, twelve individual faculty members in various departments were informed that they would be laid off effective May 31. As a result of protests led by USM students,[9] the layoffs were rescinded by Kalikow.[10] Later that year, Chancellor Page asked Kalikow for her resignation as USM president.[11][12][13]

This process was restarted in October 2014, when Interim President David T. Flanagan (former CEO of a power company) and Provost Joseph McDonnell announced that the three programs targeted for elimination in March would indeed be eliminated, and two more: French and Applied Medical Sciences.[14] In addition, USM faculty were notified that twenty-five departments would have to shed fifty full-time faculty members, whether through retirement or layoffs.[15] In the end, 36 faculty members retired, but since some of them were not in targeted departments, 25 faculty members were fired.

Local business leaders claimed the cuts would impair Maine's economy[16][17] and many faculty, students, staff, and community members disputed administration claims about financial insolvency.[18][19][20] Critics claimed that the layoffs were arbitrary and capricious,[21] an attempt to eliminate outspoken faculty critical of administration policies and actions, and in violation of the Faculty Senate governance document and the faculty union's Collective Bargaining Agreement.[22][23] All of the faculty layoffs were immediately challenged through grievances filed by the union against the University of Maine System.[22] Following an investigation, the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) voted in 2015 to censure the university.[24][25]

The university announced in March 2015 that Harvey Kesselman, Provost and Acting President[26] of Stockton University, would become the USM President effective July 1, 2015.[27][28] Kesselman backed out of the USM presidency when he was asked to remain at Stockton in the wake of that institution's troubled attempts to open an "island campus" in Atlantic City, New Jersey.[29] USM then announced that Glenn Cummings, former speaker of the Maine House, would serve as the next president.[30] Since in the wake of the controversy swirling around the university Zito Sartarelli had already withdrawn his name from consideration in February,[31] Glenn Cummings remained the only finalist willing to accept the job. He currently serves as the fourth president of USM since 2011.[32]

Campuses
Wishcamper Center, east side of campus.
See also: List of University of Southern Maine buildings

Portland Campus

The main part of the campus consists entirely of non-residential buildings. Many department offices are located around the perimeter of the campus center in converted multi-story homes as well as in the major buildings. The primary academic areas at the Portland campus are business, nursing, history, political science, economics, sociology, biology, physics, chemistry, math, English, psychology, media studies, modern and classical languages and literatures, American and New England studies.[33] The Albert Brenner Glickman Family Library is the main library on the Portland Campus.

Gorham Campus
Luther Bonney, Masterton Hall, and the Science building at USM's Portland Campus

43°40′54″N 70°26′54″W

Robie Andrews Hall is one of the original Gorham State College buildings. It is now primarily a residence hall with some mixed academic usage on the first floor. Taken from a 1907 postcard.

Gorham is home to most of the university's dormitories and competitive athletic facilities. The primary academic areas residing in Gorham are industrial technologies, engineering, art, music, theater, counseling and education, anthropology, geography, environmental sciences, and geosciences.[33] McLellan House, built in 1773, was acquired by Gorham State College in 1966. It was converted into dormitories and later into office space.[34] The Academy Building was built in 1803 and purchased by the university in 1878.

Residence Halls located on the Gorham campus include:

  • Woodward Hall
  • Dickey and Wood Towers: Dickey and Wood Towers were opened in 1970 and formerly inaugurated in 1973. They are named after Edna Dickey, who taught history at the university from 1945–1972 as well as serving as Dean of Women from 1945–69 and Esther Wood, who taught social sciences from 1930–1973.[34] USM has proposed mothballing the two towers, which currently have several vacant floors, to save $400,000 in 2014.[35]
  • Upton Hall and Hastings Hall: Upton Hall and the adjacent Hastings Hall are named after Ethelyn Upton and Mary Hastings, both of whom were prominent faculty. Upton Hall, home of the university healthcenter and Residential Life Office, was opened in 1960. Hastings Hall opened in 1968. Together, the complex can house up to 300 students.[34]
  • Anderson Hall
  • Robie Andrews Hall: Robie Hall is named after former Maine Governor Frederick Robie, who served from 1883 to 1887. It was built in 1897 to replace a female-only dormitory which had burnt down in 1894.[34]
  • Phillipi Hall: Opened in 2001. Philippi hall also houses USM's new Pioneer Program.[34]
  • Upperclass Hall (completed fall of 2007)

Lewiston-Auburn Campus

44°4′35″N 70°10′20″W

USM's Lewiston-Auburn campus, Front entrance. This campus was established in 1988

The Lewiston-Auburn campus of the University of Southern Maine is the newest of the three campuses. The college on this campus is known as Lewiston-Auburn College (USM LAC). USM LAC is committed to being a national leader in interdisciplinary education, serving as a resource for the community, and providing degree programs that are responsive to changing cultural and workplace demands available to a non-traditional and diverse student body.[36]

Baccalaureate degree programs available at USM LAC are: Arts and Humanities, Leadership and Organizational Studies, Natural and Applied Sciences, Social and Behavioral Sciences. Master of Arts in Leadership and Master of Occupational Therapy degrees are offered exclusively at Lewiston-Auburn College. The USM Nursing program (BS & RN to BS) from USM's College of Nursing and Health Professions are also offered at the Lewiston-Auburn campus.[36]

Academics

USM offers baccalaureate and master's degree programs as well as doctoral programs in Public Policy and School Psychology.[3] Undergraduate study is available in roughly 115 areas, and degrees conferred include the B.S, B.A, B.M., and B.F.A.[37] Graduate study is available at the Masters and Doctoral level through the School of Business, School of Education and Human Development, Muskie School of Public Service, School of Social Work, School of Music, School of Engineering and Physical Sciences, School of Nursing, and the School of Environmental, Health, and Life Sciences.

The Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) in School Psychology is accredited by both the American Psychological Association (APA) and the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP).

The Stonecoast MFA Program in Creative Writing is a graduate program in creative writing which enrolls approximately 100 students in four major genres: creative nonfiction, fiction, poetry, and popular fiction.

The USM School of Business is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) an unrecognized accreditor.

Continuing education is available through the Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes.

The University of Southern Maine is one of two schools in the state of Maine that offers an ABET accredited Computer Science degree program.[38]

Athletics

The University of Southern Maine teams are the Huskies. The university sponsors the 23 sports at the NCAA Division III level. The majority of sports compete in the Little East Conference; wrestling competes as an independent Division III team, men's and women's ice hockey compete in the ECAC East.[39]

People

Administration
See also: List of Presidents of the University of Southern Maine

Glenn Cummings was appointed President of the university on May 20, 2015 after Dr. Harvey Kesselman, who had accepted an appointment as President of the university to commence on July 1, 2015, agreed to remain as Acting President of Stockton University by request of the Stockton University Board of Trustees.

Notable alumni
Name Class Notability Reference
Spencer Albee ex-1997 American musician
Richard A. Bennett 2000 Chairman of the Maine Republican Party [40]
Joseph Brannigan ?? Maine state legislator
Michael F. Brennan ?? Maine state legislator
Joseph Bruno (Maine politician) 1989 Minority Leader of the Maine House of Representatives, 2000–2004 [41]
Alan Casavant 2004 Mayor of Biddeford, Maine, 2012–present [42]
Vinton Cassidy ?? Maine State Senator, 1992–1998
Glenn Chadbourne ?? American Artist [43]
Kate Chappell 1983 Founder of Tom's of Maine [44]
Kathleen Chase 1991 Maine State Representative from the 147th district [45]
John Cleveland (politician) 1982 State Senator from Maine's 15th District [46]
Robert Crowley (Survivor contestant) ?? Winner of the American television show Survivor: Gabon [47]
John Currier 1975 28th Vice Commandant of the United States Coast Guard [48]
Gerald Davis (politician) ?? Maine State Senator from the 11th District, 2008–2010 [49]
William Diamond 1972 Maine Secretary of State, 1989–1997 [50]
Mark Dion (politician) ?? Maine State Representative, 2010–present
Don Dodge ?? Developer advocate for Google
Benjamin F. Dudley 1999 Maine House of Representatives, 1998–2006 [51]
Eleanor Espling 1994 Maine House of Representatives, 2010–present [52]
Ellen F. Golden 1994 Director, Women's Business Center, Coastal Enterprises, Inc., Wiscasset, Maine
Anne Haskell ?? Maine state legislator
Simon M. Hamlin ?? U.S. Congressman
Hannah Holmes 1988 Journalist [53]
Wilbur R. Ingalls, Jr. ?? Architect
Kevan Jones ?? British Member of Parliament
Brian Langley ?? Maine state legislator
Lois Lowry 1972 Novelist
David A. Marshall ?? Artist and Portland city councilor
Jean Ginn Marvin ?? Maine State Legislator
Chellie Pingree ?? U.S. Congresswoman
Luke Robinson (wrestler) 2008 Professional wrestler
Diane Russell ?? Maine state legislator
Tony Shalhoub 1977 Actor
Raymond C. Stevens 1986 Research Scientist
Kevin St.Jarre 2010 Writer
Nancy Sullivan (politician) ?? Maine State Legislator
Cleon Turner ?? Massachusetts State Legislator
John Bruce Wallace ?? Philosopher and artist
Bonnie Titcomb Lewis ?? State legislator
gollark: It's a bizarre system.
gollark: Yep!
gollark: I don't like trains much either so I'll ignore it all I suppose.
gollark: 718 messages! Did anything important happen here, or can I utterly ignore it?
gollark: The difficult part is actually making things self sustaining given the horribly complex supply chains.

References
  1. Archived 2016-03-17 at the Wayback Machine
  2. "Brand Guidelines | Office of Marketing and Brand Management | University of Southern Maine". Retrieved August 8, 2019.
  3. USM's Lewiston-Auburn College provides undergraduate and graduate degrees through its unique interdisciplinary curriculum. "USM History and Mission". University of Southern Maine. Archived from the original on April 17, 2009. Retrieved May 11, 2009.
  4. "Enrollment Summaries 2019". University of Southern Maine. Retrieved July 14, 2020.
  5. "University of Southern Maine". U.S. News and World Report. Retrieved July 14, 2020.
  6. "USM Timeline". Special Collections. USM Libraries. Retrieved June 14, 2009.
  7. Gallagher, Noel. "USM president proposes deep, "painful and disruptive" cuts". Pressherald.com. Portland Press Herald. Retrieved February 24, 2015.
  8. Gluckman, Nell. "USM will save recreation and leisure studies due to its high enrollment, revenue". Bangordailynews.com. Bangor Daily News. Retrieved February 24, 2015.
  9. Hall, Jessica. "USM lays off a dozen amid protests". Centralmaine.com. Portland Press Herald. Retrieved February 24, 2015.
  10. Hosler, Aimee. "University of Southern Maine Backs off Plans to Lay Off a Dozen Faculty Amid Student Protests". Citytowninfo.com. Retrieved February 24, 2015.
  11. Anderson, J. Craig. "USM president to step down, take systemwide position". Pressherald.com. Portland Press Herald. Retrieved February 24, 2015.
  12. Krugman, Paul. "Layoffs in Maine". krugman.blogs.nytimes.com. Retrieved February 24, 2015.
  13. Potter (Tenured Radical), Claire. "Not An April Fool's Joke: Massive Cuts at USM". Chronicle.com. Retrieved February 24, 2015.
  14. Rivard, Ry. "After Reprieve, Sudden Cuts". Insidehighered.com. Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved February 24, 2015.
  15. Wight, Patty. "USM to Cut 50 Faculty, 2 Programs". news.mpbn.net. MPBN News Radio. Retrieved February 24, 2015.
  16. Fletcher, Gail. "Maine's economy, students, teachers lose from elimination of USM's applied medical sciences". Bangordailynews.com. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  17. Bozsik, Bryan. "Greater Portland's economy needs the graduate-level science program USM eliminated". Bangordailynews.com. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  18. Bowen, Roger. "Culture Clash". Ellsworthamerican.com. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  19. Feiner, Susan. "Crisis-worthy deficit or operating surplus? Getting the numbers right at USM". Bangordailynews.com. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  20. Levy, Anita. "Letter to David T. Flanagan" (PDF). Mediad.publicbroadcasting.net. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  21. Gluckman, Nell. "USM students in programs that have been cut worry about how they will complete their degrees". Bangordailynews.com. Retrieved December 26, 2014.
  22. Koenig, Seth. "What's at the root of the dispute between USM faculty and administration?". Bangordailynews.com. Bangor Daily News. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  23. James, Emma. "'We are on the verge of being censured.': Faculty senate worried about possible AAUP sanction". Usmfreepress.org. USM Free Press. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  24. "AAUP Censures Four Administrations, Removes Another from Censure". AAUP. Retrieved June 13, 2015.
  25. McCrea, Nick (May 13, 2015). "National Faculty Group Issues Report Critical of USM". Bangor Daily News. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  26. "Stockton's interim head strikes hopeful notes". Philly.com. Retrieved July 13, 2018.
  27. writer, DIANE D'AMICO Education. "Stockton provost Harvey Kesselman leaving". Pressofatlanticcity.com. Retrieved July 13, 2018.
  29. "Amid turmoil, Stockton's acting president drops plan to leave". Philly.com. Retrieved July 13, 2018.
  30. "A sudden switch in USM's presidency as Glenn Cummings takes the job". Pressherald.com. May 20, 2015. Retrieved July 13, 2018.
  31. "Finalist for USM President Withdraws Bid; 2 Remain". Wmtw.com. Associated Press. February 20, 2015. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  32. Gallagher, Noel (May 20, 2015). "A Sudden Switch in USM's Presidency as Glenn Cummings Takes the Job". Portland Press Herald. Retrieved May 22, 2015.
  33. "Academic Programs". University of Southern Maine. Archived from the original on May 2, 2009. Retrieved May 11, 2009.
  34. Campus Descriptions: Gorham Campus Library, University of Southern Maine
  35. Jason Horowitz (March 11, 2014). "USM ready to lay out deep cuts, rebuild bridge to its future". Portland Press Herald. Retrieved March 13, 2014.
  36. "USM Lewiston-Auburn College General Info". University of Southern Maine. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  37. "Academics | University of Southern Maine". Usm.maine.edu. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
  38. "Accredited Computer Science Degrees in Maine". ABET. Retrieved August 24, 2012.
  39. Costello, Tim. (February 27, 2009) This Week in the ECAC East and NESCAC :: USCHO.com :: U.S. College Hockey Online. USCHO.com. Retrieved on 2013-10-05.
  40. Cousins, Christopher (July 22, 2013). "Rick Bennett, new GOP chairman, seen as unifying force for fractured Maine party — Politics — Bangor Daily News — BDN Maine". Bangordailynews.com. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
  41. "Joseph Bruno's Biography - Project Vote Smart". Votesmart.org. November 26, 1955. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
  42. "Alan Casavant's Biography - Project Vote Smart". Votesmart.org. July 26, 1952. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
  43. "Artist Focus: Glenn Chadbourne". Psartbooks.com. September 13, 2011. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
  44. "Kate Cheney Chappell :: About Kate". Katechappellartspace.com. May 25, 2008. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
  45. "Kathleen D. Chase, Maine State Representative". Kathleendchase.com. Archived from the original on March 22, 2012. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
  46. "John Cleveland's Biography - Project Vote Smart". Votesmart.org. January 30, 1950. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
  47. Amanda Hamilton. "Yes! Portland, Maine, physics teacher wins 'Survivor: Gabon'". SeacoastOnline.com. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
  48. "Vice Adm. John P. Currier to become 28th Coast Guard Vice Commandant on Friday". Coast Guard News. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
  49. "Gerald Davis' Biography - Project Vote Smart". Votesmart.org. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
  50. "Senator Bill Diamond | Maine Senate Democrats". Mainesenate.org. November 21, 2013. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
  51. "Benjamin Dudley's Biography - Project Vote Smart". Votesmart.org. October 19, 1969. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
  52. "Eleanor Espling's Biography - Project Vote Smart". Votesmart.org. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
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Further reading
  • Bibber, Joyce K (2001). University of Southern Maine. Arcadia Publishing. OCLC 47164632.
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