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Supporting Research Learning Experiences 

Part of the UMS TRANSFORMS Student Success and Retention Initiative

 

Case for Support

RLE Ocean Study
RLE

Education changes your life by changing your perspective

The University of Maine System is on a mission to TRANSFORM the university experience by actively engaging students from the first day they step on campus: engaging them in research, in creativity, in our communities, and in building a mindset that will help them solve problems for life.  This fall, UMaine and the University of Maine at Machias (UMaine Machias) are piloting 34 experiential Research Learning Experience (RLE) courses for first- and second-year students to help them go beyond the classroom and into a transformative experience that is relevant to them and helps them craft their own life experiences at UMaine and UMaine Machias. Students will have the opportunity to become producers of knowledge and not solely consumers.

Each course starts with an intensive week of creation, exploration, and problem-solving, and continues throughout the fall semester. Students will have the opportunity to find the RLE that matters to them: in the sciences, humanities, engineering, social sciences, business, or the arts. They will take control of their own education, understand why engagement makes a difference, and experience the exhilaration of pursuing what matters to them.

 We want students to take the challenge, get involved, try something new, and let the process transform them.

 Help our students define tomorrow by getting engaged today

Learn More About RLE Courses
Read the University of Maine System News Release

Examples of what your gift could provide:

  1. Cover the summer fees for a student ($390)
  2. Cover the course costs for a student ($698 for Maine residents; $1391 out-of-state)
  3. Sponsor an entire RLE course:
  • On-campus course ($3000)
  • Travel course ($10,000)
  • International travel course ($28,000)

 There may also be an opportunity to explore ways to partner with one of our instructors to design a course that wrestles with a modern challenge where your organization is already involved (Cost varies)

Give Now

Your support is important to the program and will count in our efforts to meet the challenge to raise the required $170 million in additional external funding and private philanthropy to support the four focus areas in the Harold Alfond Foundation’s $240 million grant to UMS TRANSFORMS.