3/15/2020 – Message from President Rice to campus

Dear UMPI Community,

As part of our response to the evolving COVID-19 situation and to best protect the health and well-being of our campus and the community, the University of Maine at Presque Isle is implementing a policy that limits the use of all public spaces on campus. As of Monday, March 16, all public spaces at UMPI–including the Campus Center, Gentile Hall, the Center for Innovative Learning, and the Houlton Higher Education Center–will be open to only students, faculty, and staff (and tenants at the Houlton Center).

We will continue to allow students, whether in the residence halls or travelling from the local community, to make use of these facilities. Our goal in limiting access is to strengthen our social distancing strategy and reduce demands on facilities and public safety staff implementing university responses to the coronavirus public health emergency.

As we’ve said all too frequently in the last week, we do understand that this creates disruption for many individuals, but we strongly believe that it is the necessary and right thing to do given the global and national situation we currently are facing, let alone the safety of our Aroostook County communities. Thanks again to you all for your patience and support.

Ray