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Assistant Professor of English Dylan Dryer has won the 2013 Richard Braddock Award from the Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC) for his article, “At a Mirror, Darkly: The Imagined Undergraduate Writers of Ten Novice Composition Instructors” published in the February 2012 issue of College Composition and Communication. CCCC is an association in the National Council of Teachers of English. The award is presented to the author of the outstanding article on writing or the teaching of writing in the CCCC journal, College Composition and Communication, during the year before CCCC’s annual convention. The award was created to honor the memory of Richard Braddock from the University of Iowa, an extraordinary person and teacher who touched the lives of many people. The Braddock Award was presented at the annual convention March 15 in Las Vegas.

The University of Maine Chamber Jazz Ensemble will present a program of jazz standards and contemporary works in an April 2 performance on campus. The 12-member student ensemble is directed by Associate Professor of Music Karel Lidral.

The concert begins at 7:30 p.m. in Minsky Recital Hall. Admission is $9; free with a student MaineCard. For tickets or to request disability accommodations, call 207.581.1755.

Other performances of the Jazz Ensemble include: 8:30 a.m., April 15, Sophomores and Juniors Preview Day, Collins Center for the Arts; 6:30 p.m., April 16, Bangor Public Library; and 11 a.m., April 22, “Jazz Corner,” Union Central, Memorial Union on campus.

University of Maine’s Reader’s Theatre will perform the play “Seven” on March 27 as part of the Women’s History Celebration on campus. The documentary play features seven monologues illuminating women’s inspiring journeys as leaders from around the world. The free public performance begins at 7:30 p.m. in Minsky Recital Hall as part of the Reader’s Theatre series, offered by the School of Performing Arts Theatre Division. For more information or to request disability accommodations, call 207.581.1781.

UMaine Professor of Theatre Tom Mikotowicz says he decided to produce this script because of its emphasis on women and diversity. He has been working with UMaine’s Women’s Studies and International programs to cast the production that will feature several international students.

“As a theatre piece, it explores the plight of significant women throughout the world and the global politics that affected their personal lives,” Mikotowicz says. “Our production will serve as a starting point for a discussion of the issues pertinent to women and international politics. Through involving many of our regular and international students, this work will be a collaboration among several programs, which makes it an interdisciplinary effort.

WABI (Channel 5), WLBZ (Channel 2) and the Portland Press Herald were among news organizations that carried an Associated Press report stating the University of Maine’s tuition is among the lowest in New England. According to a New England Board of Higher Education report, Maine’s public four-year universities have the second-lowest in-state tuition and fee rates in New England. The report says Maine’s schools charge an average of $8,725 a year for in-state tuition and fees. Only Connecticut’s in-state rates were lower.

WLBZ (Channel 2) spoke with University of Maine Engineering Professor Harlan Onsrud about Project>Login, an initiative that aims to attract students to computer technology-related majors and support them throughout their studies. Onsrud spoke about the importance of working with local businesses, such as Eastern Maine Health Systems and Cianbro, to offer internships and opportunities for students to stay and work in Maine after graduation.

The Portland Press Herald was among the news organizations that carried an Associated Press report about the University of Maine System Board of Trustees granting tenure to 25 faculty members during their meeting Monday. Six of the 25 faculty members are from the University of Maine in Orono. A Bangor Daily News blog lists the names of all the professors who were given tenure at the meeting. The trustees also approved the establishment of two assistant professorships at UMaine and the spending of an additional $1 million for a project at UMaine’s Memorial Gym and Field House Complex.

The newest entry in the Bangor Daily News blog “Education: Future Imperfect,” by UMaine Professor of History Howard Segal is online.

Mainebiz interviewed University of Maine faculty members Jim McConnon and Beth Calder for the March 18  article, “Belfast food hub creates new market forlocal vendors.” McConnon, a University of Maine Cooperative Extension business and economics specialist and professor of economics, explained why a food hub has taken root in Belfast. Calder, a UMaine Extension food science specialist and associate professor of food science, spoke about the sustainability needs of creating a “common kitchen.” Both weighed in on what makes for a “recipe for success.”

The Margaret Chase Smith Public Affairs Scholarship is now accepting applications from University of Maine undergraduate students of all majors. The 2013–14 scholarship of $3,500 ($1,750 fall/$1,750 spring) will support undergraduate independent research relevant to public policy. The scholarship will be awarded to a student who is a resident of Maine, currently enrolled in 12 credits or more, has a GPA of 3.0 or higher and will have completed 40-plus credit hours before the fall 2013 semester. Deadline to apply for the Margaret Chase Smith Public Affairs Scholarship is April 18. Applications are online. For more information, contact Peggy Mckee, margaret.mckee@maine.edu; 207.581.1644.

Selections from several of Christopher Durang’s finest one-act comedies will be featured in a University of Maine School of Performing Arts production of  “Beyond Therapy: An Evening with Christopher Durang,” March 27–29.

The performances by an 11-member student cast, directed by UMaine Professor of Theatre Sandra Hardy, begin at 7:30 p.m. in the Cyrus Pavilion Theatre on campus. Admission is $10; free with student MaineCard.

Tickets are available online at umaine.edu/spa or at the door unless sold out. For more information or to request disability accommodations, call 207.581.1781.

Works selected for the performance include “Funeral Parlor,” “’Dentity Crisis,” “Beyond Therapy,” “Gym Teacher” and “Kitty the Waitress.” Currently Durang’s “Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike,” with Sigourney Weaver and David Hyde Pierce, is running on Broadway.

Instructor of music Ginger Yang Hwalek was named a 2013 Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) Foundation Fellow at the national conference in Anaheim, Calif., March 11. Now in its 14th year, the MTNA Foundation Fund Fellow Program honors individuals who have made significant contributions to the music world and the music teaching profession. Hwalek, a 2006 MTNA Teacher of the Year, has taught applied piano, class piano and music history at the University of Maine for 18 years. She also teaches 12 students at her home studio. She is the former director of Maine Summer Youth Music program held on campus, and has served as MTNA’s Eastern Division president, a member of the board of directors and Senior Performance Competitions coordinator.

Children and their families are invited to join the Page Farm and Home Museum’s celebration of Maine Maple Sunday from 1–3 p.m., March 24 at the University of Maine. The event begins at the museum with a video, “The Maple Sugaring Story.” For youngsters in grades K–5, there will be activities, games and stories about syrup making — one of Maine’s oldest traditions and seasonal business enterprises.

UMaine’s sugar bush in the University Forest off College Avenue Extension, approximately 1.5 miles from the campus, will be open for tours. Visitors can see sap being made into syrup in the sugarhouse, sample syrup and take part in a “sugar-on-snow” party.

Preregistration is required. A $4 per person fee covers materials. Children must be chaperoned by an adult with transportation. For more information, to preregister or to request disability accommodations, call 207.581.4100.

Two documentary films being screened March 21 at the Collins Center for the Arts are also previews for the fall 2013 Camden International Film Festival (CIFF) course at the University of Maine.

“Downeast” and “Betting the Farm,” both set in rural Maine, will be on the big screen Thursday at 5:30 and 8 p.m., respectively. Question-and-answer sessions will be held after each film. Admission is $5 per film and open to the public. Tickets are available through the Collins Center for the Arts box office or online. For more information or to request a disability accommodation, call the box office, 207.581.1755/800.622.8499.

The films introduce the three-credit CIFF course offered by UMaine’s Continuing Education Division that meets four Saturdays during the fall 2013 semester: Sept. 14, Sept. 21, Nov. 9 and Dec. 7. Students enrolled in the course also gain admission to films, shorts, panels, workshops, special events and networking opportunities with filmmakers Sept. 26–29 at the Camden International Film Festival.

“Downeast,” by David Redmon and Ashley Sabin, follows Italian immigrant Antonio Bussone’s efforts, despite grumblings of some locals, to open a lobster-processing factory in a shuttered sardine cannery in Prospect Harbor. Many laid-off workers are women in their 60s. After the film, District 37 Rep. Ralph Chapman, a research scientist who serves on the Joint Standing Committee on Marine Resources, and Tony Brinkley, a UMaine professor of English who teaches film, will take part in a question-and-answer period.

“Betting the Farm,” by Cecily Pingree and Jason Mann, captures struggles and victories of dairy farmers who helped create MOO Milk (Maine’s Own Organic) after a national milk company didn’t renew their contracts. After the film, Mann, as well as Vaughn and Laura Chase of Chase’s Organic Dairy in Mapleton, Richard and Janet Lary of Windy Acres Farm in Clinton, and Aaron Bell and Carly DelSignore of Tide Mill Organic Farm in Edmunds will be available to answer questions.

More information about the two documentaries, including trailers, is on the Collins Center website.

More information about the Camden Film Festival is online at camdenfilmfest.org. For more information about the UMaine CIFF course, call Marlene Charron at 207.581.4095 or go online. To register for UMaine’s CIFF course, call 207.581.3143.

College-bound high school students interested in marine sciences are invited to apply to attend a free, three-day in-residence summer immersion program at the University of Maine’s Darling Marine Center, Walpole, Maine.

Dive In, Aug. 12–14, is open to students who will be high school juniors and seniors. Attendees will explore topics such as marine biology, oceanography, scientific diving and aquaculture. Participants’ parents are invited to attend seminars about career options on the afternoon of Aug. 14.

Dive In is a UMaine program offered by the Darling Marine Center, School of Marine Sciences and the College of Natural Sciences, Forestry, and Agriculture.

More information and application materials are available online and by calling 207.563.8220. Applications are due May 1.

The Bangor Daily News cited a 2012 study on use tax by University of Maine economics professor Todd Gabe in an analysis on Maine sales tax revenues. The study, which was commissioned by the Retail Association of Maine and the Maine State Chamber of Commerce, found the percentage of Mainers who pay the full use tax they owe could be in the single digits. Gabe’s study also suggests that requiring online retailers to collect sales taxes could increase business for local stores.

The Bangor Daily News interviewed Lenard Kaye, director of the University of Maine Center on Aging, for an article on Forbes’ ranking of Bangor as one of the best places to retire. Kaye said he was not surprised by the ranking, citing low crime rates, cleanliness, low cost of living and natural beauty as reasons to retire in Bangor. Kaye also called the UMaine Center on Aging a testament to the community’s focus, saying UMaine recognizes the process of aging as an issue that demands attention.

The Library Journal spoke with Deborah Rollins, the head of the collection services department at the University of Maine’s Fogler Library, about a print archiving project between eight of Maine’s largest libraries. The Maine Shared Collections Strategy includes the University of Maine, Colby College, Bates College, Bowdoin College, the University of Southern Maine, the Maine State Library, Bangor Public Library, Portland Public Library, and Maine InfoNet, the state’s consortium. Rollins spoke about the OCLC reclamation project that synchronizes the libraries’ holdings to those marked in the WorldCat which is needed to complete the major archiving project.

The Daily Caller published a report on President Barack Obama not being able to eat a lunch which included “University of Maine lobster salad” after a meeting because his taster was not present. Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins said the lunch included Gifford’s ice cream, blueberry pie and potato chips made in Aroostook County. Collins was also quoted saying the lunch included a “University of Maine recipe for healthy lobster salad — I pointed that out to the president in keeping with the first lady’s initiatives.” Collins said it was unfortunate that the president could not eat.

The Bangor Daily News spoke with University of Maine men’s hockey coach Tim Whitehead and UMaine Athletic Director Steve Abbott about a review of the men’s ice hockey program. The Black Bears, who went 11–19–8 this past season, were ousted by UMass Lowell last week in the Hockey East quarterfinal series. Abbott said he will look at what needs to be done to improve the program and make the team more competitive. Whitehead said he hopes to return as coach next season and build a stronger team.

The Morning Sentinel, San Francisco Chronicle, NECN, Channel 2 (WLBZ) and WABI (Channel 5) were among many news organizations that carried an Associated Press report advancing Monday’s meeting of the Board of Trustees of the University of Maine System. Faculty tenure will be a major item on the agenda, with 25 faculty members from across the state being considered for tenure. Also on the agenda are two assistant professorships at the University of Maine and $1 million in additional spending for a project at UMaine’s Memorial Gym and Field House Complex. The Bangor Daily News also published a report.