Oct. 6, the University of Maine hosted the first of a series of webinars focusing on collaborative research efforts in the lobster industry between Maine Sea Grant, the Maine Department of Marine Resources and the University of Maine’s Lobster Institute. The Maine Sea Grant website explains that the series focuses on collaboration when it comes to learning about the various factors that are affected by climate change in the lobster industry.

Presenters Kathleen Reardon, Matt Davos and Joe Locurto Jr. spoke about the Maine DMR lobster sampling programs, emphasizing the importance of maintaining research collaborations with the Maine lobster industry. 

“It’s important to check in with the guys out on the water everyday. Having that feedback and going back and forth, and getting push back is really important,” said Reardon, a senior lobster fishery biologist at the DMR. 

Collaboration between scientists and lobstermen is vital in order to sustain the lobster industry. This includes watching for trends across all stages in the life cycle of the lobster. In the DMR Lobster Monitor Program, scientists look at the lobsters from the stages of larvae, young of year, sublegals, adults and reproduction. In the larval stage, scientists have been performing the Boothbay Harbor Larval Survey. The Maine DMR’s objectives focus on the larvae stages of lobsters and the seasonal changes they undergo.

Part of the Settlement Survey for the young of year stage of lobster allows for researchers to board the ships of lobstermen to track where the lobsters are for the future sustainability of this resource. 

“We’re collecting so much data through these surveys … We stratify our locations based on depth and location … And so you want to make sure when you’re talking to these captains, you want to make sure that that site does not move between months, you want it in the same spot because you want to compare how that location looks across time,” said Davos, the sea sampling and VTS coordinator at the Maine DMR. “Taking the time to explain why is it we do what we do is such an important part of our job. I still am learning new things all the time and so I think just as important as teaching others has been making sure to listen. A lot. Especially to industry members because they are the ones who are on the water just about every day.”

The sustainability and upkeep of the lobster industry is extremely important, as it affects the lives of the fishermen and their families who depend on this resource. By thinking of the future and the long-term preservation of the Gulf of Maine ecosystem, this will help the community and lobster industry thrive for years to come.

The U.S. News and World Report recently released their 2022 College Rankings, which recognizes top performing university programs. The University of Maine was awarded multiple recognitions: National Universities – universities that offer different undergraduate majors, master’s, and doctoral programs, as well as performing research; Top Performers on Social Mobility – universities that enroll and graduate large groups of disadvantaged students who are awarded with Pell Grants and Top Public Schools.

UMaine was ranked in the U.S. News & World Report’s Best Undergraduate Computer Science Programs (#154), Best Undergraduate Business Programs (#166) and Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs (#147). UMaine has been widely acclaimed for their engineering degree program, and this recognition only further acknowledges the world-class professors and research conducted at the institution.

In 2022, UMaine and its regional campus, the University of Maine at Machias, will be among the best in the country. UMaine prides itself on having nearly 100 academic programs for students to choose from, as well as various minors and academic programs with nearly 110,000 alumni worldwide.

“It’s certainly well deserved,” says Sean Tyrell, a fourth-year civil engineering student at UMaine.“Many of the engineering professors are some of the brightest and most experienced professionals in the surrounding area. To see them as well as the school, who is currently investing a large sum of money into a new engineering building, receive that recognition makes me proud to know that I’ve been educated to a high degree and that many students after I leave will be educated to an even higher one.”

With 11 ABET accredited engineering and engineering technology degree programs, UMaine’s College of Engineering has been innovating engineering excellence since 1865. By preparing students for the workforce, the College of Engineering contributes to economic development in Maine and elsewhere. 

“Maine is one of the only states in the country that continues to train and educate land surveyors. It serves the industry significantly in training land surveyors because many universities do not. This is important because there are a dwindling number of land surveyors due to the education requirements that many universities no longer provide,” says Paul Tyrell, NCEES treasurer and former vice president and the current vice president of STV inc.

Alongside the College of Engineering, the UMaine School of Nursing has also been widely acclaimed. The U.S. News published a ranking of more than 690 schools that offered Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing degree programs for the first time. Here, UMaine’s School of Nursing was ranked #76 in the Best Undergraduate Nursing Programs.

“As a nursing student at UMaine I am proud that the nursing program is being nationally recognized. The program is notably selective and I feel proud when telling my family and friends that I am a part of it,” says Brenna Milliken, a third-year nursing major. “I think one of the best parts is our class. With it being so selective, our nursing class is like a little family and we are all very supportive of one another. We are given clinical experience and lab experience pretty early on in our second year of school. All in all it is something I am proud to be a part of and I feel as though we wholeheartedly earned recognition nationally. Through all the hard work it is nice to be recognized for our program and efforts.”

UMaine’s nursing program was established in 1939, and was also the first baccalaureate program for nurses in Maine, before the nursing program became a School of Nursing in 1958.

“UMaine School of Nursing faculty, staff and students are committed to evidence-based, compassionate and inclusive care of patients, families and communities,” says Kelley Strout, the director and professor of the UMaine School of Nursing to the Bangor Daily News. “Our students engage in active, didactic classroom learning with accompanied 740 hours of experiential learning in direct-patient care. We are honored that our team’s commitment to excellence is demonstrated in the national Baccalaureate of Science in nursing program rankings.”

Over the years, UMaine has also been recognized nationally for various achievements. Besides being one of the nation’s top 50 ranked green colleges by The Princeton Review, it was also classified as a High Research Activity Institution by the Carnegie Foundation in 2015. The institution has also been featured in multiple 2021 national guides to best colleges, including The Princeton Review and Fiske Guide to Colleges. Ranked among the top public universities for research by the National Science Foundation, the University of Maine is amongst the top third of public institutions in research.