ALEX FRIESS, director of the University of Maine’s new Brunswick engineering program, speaks Tuesday to parents and prospective students during the first public tour of the Maine Advanced Technology and Engineering Center on Southern Maine Community College’s Mid-coast campus at Brunswick Landing on Tuesday.
On Tuesday, staff from SMCC’s new Mid-coast campus and the University of Maine system led the first public tour of the Maine Advanced Technology and Engineering Center, a new facility that will house a network of engineering programs aimed at increasing the number of engineers in the state.
That number, according to Dana Humphrey, dean of the University of Maine’s college of engineering, is abysmal in comparison to other states.
In a presentation to prospective students and parents Tuesday, Humphrey said Maine ranks 49th in the country for production of bachelor’s of science degrees in engineering.
And it’s not just a matter of population. The statistics, Humphrey said, measure the number of degrees per million people, making a comparison between Maine and larger states not just a function of size.
The collaborative effort between the University of Maine system and SMMC to boost that number — as well Maine’s similarly low numbers of master’s and Ph.D engineering graduates — is critical to the future of Maine’s economy, Humphrey said.
“We can’t just be a service economy,” Humphrey said.
In his presentation Tuesday, Humphrey said that Maine exports depend mostly on jobs in engineering and manufacturing — jobs he also said ultimately contribute more to the economy than service-sector jobs such as food service and health care.
In hopes of boosting those numbers of graduates in engineering, professors and administrators in the new programs will use an integrated curriculum, in which math and science classroom instruction support hands-on engineering work.
Humphrey said Tuesday that students who complete the integrated training program in Brunswick could gain an advantage in the job market.
“I think you’ll be better off than students at USM and UMO because you will retain more and better understand the material,” Humphrey said to the classroom of parents and students in Brunswick.
Alex Friess, director of the University of Maine’s new program in Brunswick, agreed. But making that approach work requires the right conditions.
“The concept of an integrated environment has been out there for a while, but it requires small classes and a hands-on approach,” Friess said.
The Brunswick campus could also provide room for expansion, according to Jim Whitten, who oversees operations for SMCC at the Mid-coast campus. Whitten said he’s hopeful that discussions about creating an aeronautics curriculum integrated with the Brunswick Executive Airport will continue to develop.
“We’re looking at things like that,” Whitten said.
The engineering program will educate students on the new campus in Brunswick for two years. They would then transfer to either USM or UMO to complete the final two years of their degree.
And for students who don’t have the math background in calculus to leap right into the four-year engineering program, a new two-year program through SMCC will offer pre-engineering courses designed to prepare students for direct entry into the four-year program starting in Brunswick.
Olivia Fowler, who will be a junior at Freeport High School this fall, attended Tuesday’s open house. Interested in aeronautical engineering, she said the new program is “exciting.”
“Having it all together” — math, science and engineering coursework — “is going to make it a lot easier,” Fowler said.
Her father, who has a degree in physics, agreed.
“I like how that’s integrated,” David Fowler said.
Both said their only concern would be making a transition from the Brunswick campus to UMO or USM.
“How that translates will be interesting to see,” David Fowler said. “I didn’t see any other programs like this.”
Heading into next fall, Sharon Oliver, director of admissions for UMO, said the program now includes 10 enrolled students, with a cap set at 15 students.
For those entering the field, Humphrey offered encouraging words Tuesday.
“Some of the world’s biggest problems require engineers to solve them,” Humphrey said. “You have some incredible opportunities to help our state move forward.”
dfishell@timesrecord.com
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