Chenette at a polling site on Election night, Photo credit: Natalie Ben-Ami

Justin Chenette 21’, was elected County Commissioner for the Saco area during the recent Midterm Election. In doing so, Chenette made history becoming the 1st Millennial and only openly LGBTQ+ individual elected to serve on the York County Commission.

“I will be successful in this role because of my time at UMA,” says Chenette. “I went back to school because I wanted to combine my various experiences with a classroom education around best governing practices like public budgeting and HR management.”

Commissioners are elected to 4-year terms and are responsible for oversight of county operations including the jail, Sheriff’s office, emergency management, District Attorney’s office, Registry of Deeds, and more.

Chenette previously served as a State Senator and Representative for 8 years and graduated from UMA with a post-baccalaureate in Public Administration in May of 2021.

The UMA 2022-2023 Scholarship application is open now with a deadline of March 31, 2022.

Applicants will be evaluated on academic achievement, leadership, and community and/or campus service.

Steps to Apply

1. Submit the online form available on the Scholarships webpage.
2. Attach resume and cover letter containing a personal statement as to why the applicant feels they should be considered for a scholarship.

Details

• Scholarships based on financial eligibility require the student to submit their by UMA’s preferred filing deadline of March 1, 2022.
• All Scholarships require a minimum academic cumulative grade point average of 2.0.
• Scholarship awardees will be notified no later than May 1, 2022.
• Students graduating in Summer 2022 or Fall 2022 are NOT eligible for these scholarships.

Questions?

Contact UMA Student Financial Services at umafa@maine.edu.

State Senator and UMA Student Justin Chenette
Photo Credit: Eduard Chenette

State Senator Justin Chenette has published a full-length children’s book about state government. Chenette is a UMA Student in the Postbaccalaureate Public Administration program.

The title of the book is “The Great Whoopie Pie Debate: A Kids’ Guide to the Maine Legislature”. It chronicles the steps of the legislative process when legislators actually debated whether whoopie pies should be the state dessert.

Chenette plans to donate a copy to area schools with an ultimate goal of sending a book to every elementary school in the state.

Keisha Beal of Rockland has been recognized by UMA with the James H. Woodworth Memorial Award which recognizes both academic and extracurricular achievement. Beal has worked to empower those who experience food insecurity and recently completed the “Building Advocates Leadership Program” funded by the JT Gorman Foundation. She is a 2020 graduate of UMA’s Bachelor of Science in Mental Health and Human Services degree.

Kendra Robinson of Rockland is the recipient of the Jeffrey Klivans Scholarship which is awarded by UMA to a deserving student in the BS in Business Administration program. This scholarship was established in 2007 with gifts from the Klivans family. Jeffrey Klivans of Camden was a well-respected member of UMA’s faculty and a pioneer in distance education technology and teaching.

Chelsea Summers of Owls Head has been recognized with the John Nickerson Scholarship which is awarded to students in the Public Administration program who demonstrate scholarship of the highest order with the potential to serve the public unselfishly. Summers is already putting her UMA education to best use in her multi-dimensional position as Assistant Town Administrator, Clerk, Tax Collector, and Deputy Registrar of Voters for the Town of South Thomaston.

Sara Wandell of Rockport has been awarded the Richard and Mary Elisabeth Randall Scholarship, a gift that was established at UMA in 2008 to honor UMA’s past President Richard Randall and his wife. The scholarship is awarded to a student who is demonstrating academic excellence, maintaining a very high GPA, and contributing to high standards at UMA.

Congratulations are extended to these four local scholars on their exceptional achievements!