Press Herald publishes President Danielle Ripich's column on efforts to provide more Maine students with higher education opportunities

The on Nov. 26, 2011 published a Maine Voices column by Â鶹´«Ã½President Danielle Ripich, Ph.D., who is chairwoman of the Maine Higher Education Council. President Ripich writes about the successful efforts of Maine's colleges and universities to attract quality students and to keep them in Maine to pursue their careers.

In the column she notes that "A new Census Bureau study, Education and Synthetic Work-Life Earnings Estimates, shows that education levels had more effect on earnings over a 40-year span in the work force than any other demographic factor, such as race or gender."

"Our colleges and universities continue to grow and respond to needs of the state," she writes. "UNE's College of Dental Medicine, which will open in the fall of 2013, is an example of that. The program is opening the door for Maine students to a challenging and fulfilling career, helping our state to be healthier, and providing a public service to communities that need dentists.... Our students need quality higher education - and they can get it without ever leaving Maine."

About the Â鶹´«Ã½

The Â鶹´«Ã½ 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 . 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.