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BIDDEFORD, Maine

University of New England receives Maine State Merit Award for innovation and excellence

The University of New England was honored with the New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) Maine State Merit Award at a ceremony held at the Boston Marriot Long Wharf Hotel on Friday, March 13, 2015.

The State Merit Award is presented each year to recognize excellence in innovation displayed by organizations, institutions, or individuals in each New England state.

UNE was selected for this award based on its continued expansion, community involvement and value. Over the past decade, UNE has experienced significant increases in enrollment and opened northern New England’s only college of dental medicine, a college of pharmacy and a campus in Tangier, Morocco, where undergraduates study for the same price as spending a semester on campus in Maine.

Today, UNE is the leading provider of healthcare professionals for the state of Maine. The University’s comprehensive health education mission positions it among a select few private universities in the U.S. that offer programs in osteopathic medicine, pharmacy, dental medicine, nursing and an array of allied-health professions.

UNE’s students and faculty also volunteer more than 10,000 hours of community service annually to 150 local organizations and schools. In addition, UNE students provide approximately $21 million in clinical care to Maine patients. UNE’s annual economic impact on the state totals nearly three-quarters of a billion dollars.

“At UNE, we often say, ‘we’re a private university with a very public mission,’” says UNE President Danielle Ripich. “We believe we have a responsibility to lead wherever we can – in our community, on our campuses, in our labs and in the fields in which we specialize. This award provides further validation that our approach is working.”

About the University of New England

The University of New England is Maine’s largest independent university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of flexible, accredited online degrees. In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to make a positive impact in a world full of challenges. The state’s top provider of health professionals, we are home to Maine’s only medical college, Maine’s only dental college, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care degree programs, as well as nationally recognized programs for marine science degrees, natural and social sciences degrees, arts and humanities degrees, and business degrees.