Six former USM employees say they lost their jobs because of age discrimination during the recent consolidation of student services.
Author: USM
Students call for overhaul of UMS funding formula
A campaign to change the allocation of funding between schools of the University of Maine System may be gaining traction after the Faculty Senate voted unanimously on Friday to support the student-led resolution.
Forum draws vocal crowd
Students concerned with the effects of a mass restructuring of USM and the University System voiced their concerns last Thursday in a forum organized by the We Vote Coalition.
Workers stage protest at East End eatery
Roughly fifteen people protested outside The Front Room restaurant on Congress Street in Portland last Friday night, after owner Harding Lee Smith refused to meet with employees and workers’ advocates who say he violated Maine and federal labor laws.
Letter from the Editor
This newspaper has done more in defining my college experience than anything else I have been involved in.
Guest Column
These days we can get a lot done from the comfort of our computer chair. We can pay our bills, get a degree, find a job, find our soul mate or simply buy another computer chair.
Modern society has chosen to do these activities online in the name of convenience.
Letter from the Incoming Editor
We have a running joke-albeit a dark one-that The Free Press is one devoted person away from not coming out each week. It would be funny if it weren’t true.
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Portland artist reissues caveman comic
Portland resident Ben Bishop is living out every 12-year-old boy’s dream – drawing comic books, designing action figures and making his living doing it.
Bishop celebrated the reissue of his first graphic novel, “Nathan the Caveman,” at Coast City Comics during last week’s First Friday Art Walk.
Concert Review: MMW at Port City Music Hall
Medeski, Martin & Wood, a jazz-fusion trio from Brooklyn, brought some hot funk jams to the Port City Music Hall on the first snowy evening of the year, last Saturday, Dec. 5. The band played without an opener, grooving almost nonstop for three hours with only a twenty minute break in between their two sets.
Movie Review: 2012
Memo to humanity: the world is not going to end.? Do not be alarmed by the hype that has surrounded the new action-pack from Roland Emmerich, the man that brought us such explosive blockbusters as “Independence Day” and “The Day After Tomorrow.”? Please calmly remain seated and remember, this is not a documentary.
Exhibit Review: Capturing two centuries of affection for the Maine woods
The majestic pine trees and graceful waterways of the forests of Maine have inspired and captivated American writers and artists for centuries. The exhibit currently on display in the Woodbury Campus Center in Portland traces that captivation back through the last two centuries, bringing together work from four different moments throughout the last 145 years.
SCOPE THE SLOPE
Located in the Rangeley Lakes region, Maine’s third largest ski area is a little more out of the way at 2.5 hours from Portland. For those willing to make the trek, it’s a hidden gem of the western mountains that, since coming under new ownership in 2004, Saddleback has installed two new lifts, cut six new trails, debuted an overhauled base lodge, and just recently finished the 44 acre Casablanca glades, the biggest in the East.
USM sports video broadcasted live online
When USM Athletic Director Al Bean and his staff got together for their annual summer meeting, they decided something needed to be implemented to showcase the university’s athletic teams better. That’s when they made a group decision that USM sports need to be broadcasted live in online streaming video.
Husky Highlights
USM senior wrestling captain Mike Morin (Fryeburg) earned his 100th career win as he stormed through the 165-pound bracket, helping lead the Huskies to a fourth place finish at the Ted Reese Invitational on Saturday at the Costello Sports Complex in Gorham.
USM loses to Bowdoin in closing seconds
USM’s improbable second half comeback fell short with three seconds remaining when Bowdoin’s sophomore guard Will Hanley (New Canaan, CT) laid in the ball for the 68-66 win in Gorham last Tuesday.
The Bowdoin Polar Bears saw their 41-23 halftime lead vanish at the hands of the Huskies, led by junior forward Cortez Isaac (Washington, DC), who lead all scorers with 34 points.
Women’s B-ball falls to undefeated Bowdoin
Bowdoin College’s women’s basketball team held the lead over the USM Huskies the entire game on their way to a 60-47 win last Tuesday night at Hill Gymnasium in Gorham.
Bowdoin’s forwards dominated the Huskies on both sides of the court all game. Senior forward Caitlin Hynes (Rockland) scored a game high 20 points and had nine rebounds, while senior forward Leah Rubega (Norwich, CT) put up 12 points and had a game-high 13 rebounds for Bowdoin.
Man arrested after on-foot chase with campus cops
Police arrested a man who was on the Criminal Trespass list on Wednesday, Nov. 25 at 7:30 p.m. Police responded to a call that a man wearing a hooded sweatshirt was loitering in the area of the Health Services trailer.
When police responded, Cainan took off on foot. The officer chased Cainan and caught him at the Science Building. Lt. Kevin Conger of the USM Police said he didn’t know why Canain was on the trespassing list, which bars individuals from setting foot on USM property for varying lengths of time.
Police to increase patrols of library
Before he was homeless, Tom was a Psychology major at USM.
“I remember being in English class. I was so nervous, I ran out of there and never came back,” Tom said of his days at USM in the 1980’s. Last Tuesday, Tom sat on a bench in the hallway outside of the Glickman Library on the Portland Campus, nervously thumbing through a copy of the New Testament, reciting phrases from memory, and debating whether or not he should start drinking again.
Faculty union and System office clash on new contract
After nearly eight months of negotiations, the University of Maine System and its faculty union continue to lock horns over issues of compensation and academic freedom on a new two-year contract.
The Associated Faculties of the University of Maine, which has around 1250 members, has tried to maintain faculty positions in exchange for keeping wages and benefits flat, but UMS has said they can’t promise professors won’t lose their jobs, according to union leaders.
Forum solicits student input in USM restructuring
Student body president Maggie Guzman has a warning for students about the impending restructuring of USM: “They should be scared,” she said.
The We Vote coalition – headed by Guzman – will host an open forum to solicit input from students on USM’s impending implementation of the Plan on Dec. 3, which could leave the school with a very different look come next fall.
“Students may come back [from winter break] and find their major is on the chopping block,” Guzman at a meeting of the coalition before Thanksgiving break.
Web site lets students compare professors
Picking a class schedule can be particularly stressful time for students. Students have to meet all their requirements, make sure classes don’t have a time conflict or fill up before they can get a spot and for many, one of the most important considerations in choosing a class is the professor.
No one wants a professor who is notoriously difficult, inconsistent, or boring. So how does one know? Certainly you can ask around or just pick arbitrarily and hope. Or you can do what more and more students are choosing to do and turn to the internet.
RateMyProfessors.com is a web site that was founded in 1999 by a Californian software engineer. The site has since been purchased by MTVu and subsequently expanded, now containing more than ten million ratings for countless professors at collegiate level institutions across the nation.
Letter From the Student Body President
I hope you all enjoyed the Thanksgiving holiday and have come out of your turkey comas ready to tackle the last few weeks of the semester.
So far this year, you’ve witnessed some distinct changes at USM; such as the combination of Advising Services, Office of Early Student Success and Career services into the Student Success Centers- which are located on all three campuses.
As you may have heard, this is the first of many changes that USM will be undergoing over the next few years. These changes are in part due to budget cuts. Our administrators are working tirelessly to make very difficult decisions on our behalf, with the intention of obtaining the best possible outcome for USM past, present and perspective students.
Where to shop in Portland for: CLOTHES
If the over-crowded, Christmas song infused Mall scene is too much for you this season, but you still want some trendy clothing to compliment your winter wardrobe, there is still hope. Here are three shops in downtown Portland that can meet your vintage style clothing needs without making you take out another loan.
Review: John Mayer “Battle Studies”
Everybody knows John Mayer’s 2001 bubblegum sex-pop ditty, “Your Body is a Wonderland” and its endearing combination of quiet guitar strumming and sweetly graphic lyrics.
Somewhat less well-known is that Mayer may be one of the best guitarists alive today. He’s won every major music award (including 13 Grammys) and jammed with blues and jazz giants like Eric Clapton, Buddy Guy, Herbie Hancock, B.B. King and John Scofield. He was even named one of the “New Guitar Gods” by Rolling Stone in 2007, placing him alongside Derek Trucks of the Allman Brothers and John Frusciante of the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
His fourth solo album “Battle Studies,” which came out two weeks ago, isn’t as good as some of his earlier work, but it still delivers 45 great minutes of music. Personally, I hadn’t been so excited to pick up a record since Dave Matthews Band released Big Whiskey & The GrooGrux King this past summer. After practically running out of Bull Moose with “Battle Studies” in my hand, I immediately threw it in my car’s CD player and began my listen.