New England Board of Higher Education » Maine Center for Economic Policy

With Elections Looming, NE Events Focus on Politics

John O. Harney — Tue, 04 Sep 2012 13:00:29 +0000

Beyond the deluge of campaign ads and Super PAC propaganda, the upcoming months promise some more thoughtful political events in New England. Consider ...

Northeastern University's Open Classroom Series will feature “Campaign 2012: Policy Advice to the President.” to be held every Wednesday evening from Sept. 5 through Dec. 12, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., in the university's West Village F. Moderators will include: Barry Bluestone, founding dean of Northeastern's School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs; Massachusetts state Sen. Sonia Chang-Diaz; Massachusetts House Speaker Robert DeLeo; former Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis, the Democratic nominee for president in 1988 and a professor of Political Science at Northeastern; and Newton, Mass. Mayor Setti Warren. (Admission is free.)

The New England Council's Congressional Roundtables will feature a breakfast discussion with U.S. Rep. John Tierney (D-Mass.) on Monday, Sept. 10, from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m., at Boston's Hampshire House. Future roundtables convened by the regional business group will include: U.S. Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.) on Wednesday, Sept. 19, from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. at the Providence Biltmore Hotel in Providence, R.I.; U.S. Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) on Monday, Sept. 24, from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. at the Burlington Hilton in Burlington, Vt.; and U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) on Tuesday, Sept. 25, from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. at PretiFlaherty, One City Center, in Portland, Maine. (Free to New England Council members.)

The Nelson A. Rockefeller Center at Dartmouth College will host a variety of speakers through the academic year, starting with former U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) on Monday, Sept. 17, at 4:30 p.m. in Dartmouth's Silsby Hall. Other speakers in the series will include Alice Rivlin of the Brookings Institution on Thursday, Oct. 18. The series will culminate in a panel discussion on Thursday, Nov. 8, exploring "What Now? Post-Election Opportunities & Challenges." (Admission is free.)

Charles Gibson, former "ABC World News" anchor, will deliver the lecture, "The (Im)Balance of Power in Washington: How Things Went Off the Rails and How They Can Be Fixed," on Thursday, Sept. 20, at 7 p.m. at the Burt Kahn Court on Quinnipiac University's Mount Carmel Campus. (Admission is free.)

Author and political commentator Michael Barone will deliver the keynote address, "Election 2012 and the American Experiment," at Pioneer Institute's 2012 Better Government Competition Awards ceremony on Monday, Sept. 24 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Boston. Barone is senior political analyst at The Washington Examiner, a Fox News contributor, and co-author of The Almanac of American Politics, which is published biennially by National Journal. (Tickets begin at $150.)

Harvard University government and sociology professor Theda Skocpol will deliver the Maine Center for Economic Policy's next Shepard Lee Lecture on "The Tea Party and the Future of American Politics," at the Sebasco Harbor Resort, in Phippsburg, Maine, on Thursday, Oct. 4, from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. (Admission is free but seating is limited and advance registration is advised.)

Walzer of Dissent Magazine to Speak at MECEP Lecture

John O. Harney — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 17:01:02 +0000

Michael Walzer, professor emeritus in the School of Social Science at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, N.J., and co-editor of Dissent magazine, will deliver a Maine Center for Economic Policy (MECEP) lecture on "Why Do We Fight for Social Justice?" on Tuesday, Oct. 11, at the University of Southern Maine's Wishcamper Center. The event will begin with a reception at 5 p.m.

New Chiefs of NH Community Colleges, Connecticut Regents, COA, Maine Think Tank

John O. Harney — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 14:44:16 +0000

J. Bonnie Newman, the former interim president of the University of New Hampshire, was named interim chancellor of the New Hampshire Community College System, succeeding Richard Gustafson, who is retiring as chancellor of the seven-campus system. Newman was executive dean of Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government, an assistant to President George H.W. Bush, president of the Business and Industry Association and the New England Council. When U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg of New Hampshire accepted President Obama's offer to be his secretary of commerce in 2009, Newman was expected to fill Gregg's seat, until the senator changed his mind.

****

Robert Kennedy, who served for 11 years as president of the University of Maine, was named interim president of the Connecticut Board of Regents of Higher Education, a new system, which includes the four state universities, as well as the community college system and Charter Oak State College. Michael P. Meotti, the current interim president, will become executive vice president.

****

College of the Atlantic named Darron Collins as its next president. Currently director of creative assets at the World Wildlife Fund, Collins will become the first COA alumnus to head the college in Bar Harbor, Maine.

****

The Maine Center for Economic Policy (MECEP) selected Garrett Martin, MECEP's current associate director, as the organization's new executive director, to succeed Christopher St. John, who was the think tank's founding executive director. Before joining the MECEP staff in February 2009, Martin was director of Program Strategy at the Maine Community Foundation and associate director at the Genesis Community Loan Fund.

Among Comings & Goings, Moore to Leave Lyndon State, Staples to Head NEASC

John O. Harney — Sat, 07 May 2011 19:37:49 +0000

Lyndon State College President Carol A. Moore announced her retirement from the college, effective July 1, after 13 yeas in charge of the Lyndonville, Vt. college. A NEBHE delegate since 2002, Moore recently wrote for NEJHE about college retention.

****

Former Connecticut state Rep. Cameron Staples, who was House chair of the Education Committee and a longtime NEBHE delegate, was chosen as the next CEO of the New England Association of Schools and College. He will succeed Jacob Ludes III, who is retiring after more than 12 years in charge of the the Bedford, Mass.-based accrediting agency for more than 2,000 New England public and private institutions from pre-kindergarten through college.

****

Maine Center for Economic Policy Executive Director and Founder Christopher “Kit” St. John will leave his position at the end of 2011. St. John was in a group of advocates who founded the organization in 1994 to ensure that the interests of low- and moderate-income families would be represented in budget debates.

****

Nichols College trustees named Susan West Engelkemeyer as the Dudley, Mass. college's seventh president, beginning in August. She became dean of the Charlton College of Business at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth in 2009.

****

Regis College trustees announced that Antoinette M. Hays, dean of the Regis School of Nursing, Science and Health Professions, will become the 10th president of the college, effective July 1, succeeding Mary Jane England, MD, who is stepping down at the end of June after a decade of service.

****

Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin appointed Vermont College of Fine Arts President Thomas Christopher Greene to serve on NEBHE. A native of Worcester, Mass., he is the author of three novels and was director of public affairs at Norwich University. VCFA is the only U.S. graduate school devoted exclusively to fine arts education.

Events: MECEP Lecture on America’s Midlife Crisis

Shoshana Akins — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 18:01:01 +0000

Author and community organizer Michael Gecan of the Industrial Areas Foundation will deliver the Maine Center for Economic Policy (MECEP) Shepard Lee Lecture on "Building Community Power After America's Midlife Crisis" on Wednesday, May 4, at 5 p.m., at the University of Southern Maine's Wishcamper Center in Portland.

Gecan's most recent book, After America's Midlife Crisis (MIT Press 2009) outlines a way to reverse the 50-year decline in social mobility and economic progress.

MECEP has invited three panelists to react and respond: Donna Yellin, advocacy director of Preble Street and organizer of Homeless Voices for Justice; Chris Quint, executive director of the Maine State Employees Association/Service Employees International Local 1989 and Steering Committee chair of Engage Maine; and Jesse Graham, executive director of the Maine People's Alliance.

Maine Policy Group to Hold Tax and Budget Conference in Augusta

John O. Harney — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 19:21:26 +0000

The Maine Center for Economic Policy (MCEP) will hold its 10th State Tax & Budget Conference on Monday, Feb. 14 at the Augusta Civic Center

Featured speakers will include Sawin Millett, commissioner of the Maine Department of Administrative and Financial Services. Millett will make a presentation on the proposed biennial budget, which is scheduled for release in early February.

Other scheduled speakers include Jeffrey Thompson, assistant research professor, at the Politicial Economy Research Institute at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Thompson is the author of Prioritizing Approaches to Economic Development in New England: Skills, Infrastructure and Tax Incentives.