SACO — Thornton Academy welcomed U.S. Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, to campus Wednesday for the announcement of a new partnership with the University of New England that would allow some Thornton graduates to enter UNE as a sophomore.
Qualifying Thornton Academy students will complete 30 credit hours, choosing from 22 Advanced Placement classes taught by Thornton faculty, and meet agreed-upon benchmarks. Upon graduation, they would be eligible for sophomore status in the UNE College of Arts and Sciences.
Initially, only a few students will be eligible for the program, but as the school counsels students in the eighth grade about the opportunity, more participation in the program is expected, said Thornton Director of Academics Marsha Snyder, in a written statement.
“Thornton Academy and the University of New England are natural partners,” said Thornton Academy Headmaster Rene Menard at a press conference Wednesday at the school’s library. Both schools have experienced extensive growth and campus expansion, and both understand graduating students will enter a world that has grown in ways not imagined a couple of decades ago.
Menard said Wednesday’s announcement was part of a series of initiatives representing the school’s commitment to a liberal arts education.
UNE President Danielle Ripich said the program will save qualifying students tens of thousands of dollars, allowing students to enter UNE as a sophomore in a humanities or social science program and complete a bachelor’s degree in three years.
“I think this is going to be a wonderful partnership,” said Ripich.
King said there are young people today who graduate from college with debt that amounts to a mortgage, but with no house.
“President Ripich is, in effect, offering students a 25 percent discount on an education at UNE,” said King.
Last year, Thornton began a partnership with the University of Maine that would allow qualifying graduates to enter the school as sophomores in the college of engineering.
King was also on hand at Wednesday’s press conference to announce that the U.S. Department of Commerce had awarded an Export Achievement Certificate to Thornton Academy in recognition of its work in attracting international students and providing economic development to Maine.
— Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 325 or [email protected].
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