University of Maine

The university's Strategic Enrollment and Retention Action Plan states that it "must broaden our enrollment management strategies with an emphasis on growing and diversifying our population of learners and commit to an environment that supports all learners to succeed and graduate."

UMaine's June 2024 Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Master Document stated the school will "[r]eview admissions and enrollment goals to reflect institutional goals around diversity, equity, and inclusion."

The university's Hutchinson Center will provide a professional development program titled "Racial Equity, Implicit Bias, and Diversity Training".

The Office for Diversity and Inclusion provides training sessions titled "Intro to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion," "Transforming Self for Racial Equity," and "Response Language as a Professional Competency."

The Office of the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs & Provost provides many "Implicit/Unconscious Bias Training" resources. The resources include an Implicit Bias Course by the NIH, an Unconscious Bias Course, an Implicit Bias Module Series by Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity, an Implicit Bias Video Series by UCLA's DEI Office, and the "Tool for Identifying Implicit Bias: Awareness of Common Shortcuts" from the University of Oregon’s Division of Equity and Inclusion.

In 2023, in order to support the School of Forest Resources (SFR) Strategic Plan, SFR "conducted a series of DEI-focused Faculty/Staff training sessions, led by Anila Karunakar," the Director of the Multicultural Center. The trainings included "Intro to DEI and Salience," "Implicit Bias and Microaggressions," and "Microaggressions and Response Language" among others.

The Department of Anthropology at UM lists all of the courses that satisfy its "cultural diversity requirements."

The 2024-2025 UMaine General Education requirements include a "Cultural Diversity and International Perspectives" category. It also requires an "Ethics" category which includes classes such as "Diversity of Cultures," Investigating Equity," and "Introduction to Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies" (which examines "the categories of gender and sexuality, as they intersect with race, ethnicity, class, nationality, disability and other sites of social inequality") among other courses.

In January 2020 & January 2021, the University completed a general education assessment for "Cultural Diversity and International Perspectives." The document outlines the requirements for classes that fulfill the category. It also lays out the learning outcomes for students, stating they must "describe the diversity of American culture and reflect on their personal roles within that diversity." The school annually reviews various parts of its curriculum. The latest review was in 2024.

The university outlines its bias incident reporting protocols and states that a "bias incident is an intentional or unintentional conduct that discriminates, stereotypes, excludes, harasses, or harms anyone in our community based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, including transgender status and gender expression, national origin, citizenship status, age, disability, or veteran status." 

In 2023 during a Search Committee Briefing, members were trained on "Implicit Bias, Diversity, and Inclusive Hiring Practices." The PowerPoint that accompanied the training covered "Implicit & Status Quo Bias," "Combatting Bias," and "Why Diversity is Important" among other topics.

The Black Lives Matter flag will be raised in front of Folger Library.

The school held an event for "George Floyd, Anti-Black Racism and #BlackLivesMatter" in 2020.

The university's library hosts the "Racial Justice Challenge" which is comprised of five-day action steps in order to encourage anti-racism education at the university. The library states, "This week is intended to provide a supportive space to learn, share information, and take action toward racial justice."

The Multicultural Center at the University of Maine is a "resource and an advocate for traditionally underrepresented populations" and provides "Educational, Cultural and Social Programs." Additionally, the center "explores critical issues on campus about race, class, ethnicity, nationality, culture, gender, and how to best support the success of students from marginalized communities and cultures."

The UMPD issued a Diversity and Inclusion Statement which reads in part as follows: "We thoroughly review our policies and procedures, and apply best practices in all that we do. We pledge to maintain strict standards for hiring and training. The University deserves professional police officers who understand and appreciate the diverse nature of our community. We commit to remaining transparent and eliminating police cultures that condone any social injustices." 

The university has organized a series of Black History month events and challenges centering around "anti-racism" and "social change".

The school implemented a First Year Student Success Initiative, a 2019 program that involves "establishing a Living, Learning Community working group to increase the number of CSJ/DEI themed housing units on campus."

In 2019, the school set a goal to "hire a Director of Diversity and Inclusion to organize, manage, and expand diversity and inclusion initiatives."

In 2019, the school set a goal to create the Provost's Advisory Committee on Equity.

The school set a goal in 2020 to assemble a "President's Advisory Roundtable on Race" in addition to a "President's Task Force on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.

In 2020, the school created the Student Roundtable on Race, which involved objectives of hiring minorities.

The College of Education and Human Development has a "Diversity and Difference Standing Committee" which "enhances communication, scholarship collaboration, coordination of professional developments and sharing of resources among those engaged in learning about diversity and difference." One of the goals of the committee is to educate students and faculty in order to "[c]omprehend the impacts of privilege and difference in his/her own life and educational experience."

In January 2023, the University of Maine System's Office of Equal Opportunity published a document titled "Search Committee Briefing: Implicit Bias, Diversity, and Inclusive Hiring Practices," which "[discusses] best practices for maximizing inclusion and minimizing bias."

The Office of the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs & Provost provides resources on "Recruiting and Retaining a Diverse Faculty, including those from Historically Underrepresented or Minoritized Groups."

On March 12, 2025, Legal Insurrection published an article titled "U. Maine Renames DEI Office as ‘Office of Community Connections’" which reported that UM is the "latest college to close its diversity, equity, and inclusion office following President Donald Trump’s executive order banning DEI programs funded by the federal government." According to LI, the Interim Dean of Students Andrea Gifford told its college newspaper that the "'office, and the staff and the students that are dedicated to working there, their day-to-day work has not changed'."

The university's Department of Anthropology released the following statement on racism: "Raising our Voices on Race and Racism is the result of a collaborative grassroots effort among faculty, students and community members at the University of Maine. Outraged by deeply rooted, systemic and recently resurgent forms of racism and racialized violence, we felt compelled to raise our voices on race and racism. While we recognize that we all have a lot more work to do, we hope that this series of publicly available mini lectures and community discussions might help to move the needle towards active anti-racist practice and pedagogy on campus and beyond."

In December 2024, UMaine's Student Paper published an article titled "UMaine needs to become a DEI leader" by UMaine faculty Billy Obenauer. He stated, "When it comes to DEI, we are reactionary at best" and criticized the lack of DEI in the curriculum.

The School of Forest Resources has a "Diversity Statement" which states it "is committed to pursuing and supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion across our student, staff, and faculty body." The statement continues, "We recognize a history of and continued racial, ethnic, and gender exclusion in and outside of our community and we accept that it is our responsibility to challenge the inequities resulting from this exclusion."

UMaine's School of Forest Resources has a strategic plan "to promote equity, inclusion, and growth of a diverse and socially responsive academic unit." The plan includes the goals to "Develop cultural competence within students, faculty, and staff," "Improve pathways for student participation, academic achievement, and professional growth" to "support students from a greater diversity of backgrounds," and "Establish and support education, research, and service programs that promote equity, inclusion, and diversity."

The University has a "Land Acknowledgment" that states it "recognizes that it is located on Marsh Island in the homeland of the Penobscot Nation, where issues of water and territorial rights, and encroachment upon sacred sites, are ongoing." UMaine also states that it "recognizes that the Penobscot Nation and the other Wabanaki Tribal Nations are distinct, sovereign, legal and political entities with their own powers of self-governance and self-determination."