http://www.workingwaterfront.com Mon, 06 Sep 2010 20:54:18 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.2 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/images/ww_banner_bg.png http://www.workingwaterfront.com http://www.workingwaterfront.com/online-exclusives/Gubernatorial-candidates-discuss-island-issues/14025/ On Friday, August 13, gubernatorial candidates gathered at the Strand Theatre in Rockland for the first forum since the primaries. Candidates who attended include Senator Elizabeth (Libby) Mitchell (D), Eliot Cutler (I), Shawn Moody (I) and Kevin Scott (I). Mayor Paul LePage (R) was unable to attend due to a scheduling conflict. Don Carrigan of WCSH Channel 6 moderated the forum hosted by the Maine Islands Coalition and the Island Institute. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Staff Writer) Tue, 31 Aug 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/online-exclusives/Gubernatorial-candidates-discuss-island-issues/14025/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Luck-innovation-keeps-some-Washington-County-schools-thriving/13995/ Washington County officials can be forgiven for being nervous over the future of their schools. The population of school-age children continues to decline, resulting in the inevitable debate over the economic feasibility of keeping schools open. Recently, Lubec residents voted to shudder the town's high school. Last year, it was Columbia Falls' elementary school that closed. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Craig Idlebrook) Wed, 11 Aug 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Luck-innovation-keeps-some-Washington-County-schools-thriving/13995/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/online-exclusives/Essay-Matinicus-Elementary-School-How-things-really-work/13988/ Our new teacher arrives in mid-August, a young man from Minnesota with a wife and two small children. Family alongside, Mr. Duncan will climb out of the little airplane or hoist his gear up the ladder from the passenger boat or perhaps even subject his car to a wet, salty, two-hour ferry trip. He will be immediately inspected by a cluster of children ranging from kindergarten to middle school. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Eva Murray) Wed, 04 Aug 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/online-exclusives/Essay-Matinicus-Elementary-School-How-things-really-work/13988/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Essay-Matinicus-Elementary-School-How-things-really-work/13984/ Our new teacher arrives in mid-August, a young man from Minnesota with a wife and two small children. Family alongside, Mr. Duncan will climb out of the little airplane or hoist his gear up the ladder from the passenger boat or perhaps even subject his car to a wet, salty, two-hour ferry trip. He will be immediately inspected by a cluster of children ranging from kindergarten to middle school. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Eva Murray) Wed, 04 Aug 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Essay-Matinicus-Elementary-School-How-things-really-work/13984/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Islesboro-students-get-eye-opening-results-from-deer-study/13989/ A recent and startling increase in tick-borne Lyme disease among Islesboro residents gave nine students in Islesboro Central School’s ninth grade, and two of their teachers, science teacher Heather Sinclair and business and computer education teacher Vicki Conover, a unique and perfect opportunity to combine classroom and experiential learning. To examine the connection between the island’s deer population and the increase of Lyme disease, students in Ms. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Sandy Oliver) Wed, 04 Aug 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Islesboro-students-get-eye-opening-results-from-deer-study/13989/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Students-say-goodbye-to-CREST/13973/ After five years, thousands of students, and over 40 community-based projects, the Community for Rural Education Stewardship and Technology project, CREST, is winding down.  The $2 million National Science Foundation-funded Island Institute program, part of the Information Technology Experiences for Students & Teachers (ITEST) initiative, has spent the past five years linking classroom technology with community needs while improving the learning experience for both student and ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Cherie Galyean) Tue, 27 Jul 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Students-say-goodbye-to-CREST/13973/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/online-exclusives/Field-Notes-Island-and-remote-coastal-schools-a-national-model-for-rural-technology-education/13960/ I recall visiting a middle-school classroom on Swan's Island in 2003. The teacher sat behind her desk looking at a new Apple laptop, thanks to legislation passed in 2001 that would ensure one-to-one computing for Maine's 5th and 6th grade students. Sitting there, she wondered aloud about the best way to put the computer to work for her kids. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Rob Snyder) Wed, 21 Jul 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/online-exclusives/Field-Notes-Island-and-remote-coastal-schools-a-national-model-for-rural-technology-education/13960/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Lubec-plans-for-future-without-high-school/13953/ Peering through the windows into the Lubec High School, everything appears normal. The classrooms are tidy, with desks lined up in perfect rows. Teaching texts are stacked on shelves. The school seems poised for the students to return in the fall. But in June, Lubec residents voted 269 to 230 to shutter the high school. The vote came after years of fierce debate over the school's fate, as declining enrollment and a shrinking tax base made it difficult to keep the doors open. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Craig Idlebrook) Tue, 13 Jul 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Lubec-plans-for-future-without-high-school/13953/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/online-exclusives/Maine-Island-Scholarship-Program-celebrates-20-years/13928/ Ask any islander what the Island Institute provides and they might say "Don't they give kids college scholarships?" It's true. The Island Institute has been awarding college scholarships for 20 years. The program began in 1990, with a total of $2,000 in scholarship awards. This year the program awarded more than $90,000 in scholarships to 97 students attending two to four year colleges and universities around the country. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Ruth Kermish - Allen) Tue, 22 Jun 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/online-exclusives/Maine-Island-Scholarship-Program-celebrates-20-years/13928/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Maine-Island-Scholarship-Program-celebrates-20-years/13918/ Ask any islander what the Island Institute provides and they might say "Don't they give kids college scholarships?" It's true. The Island Institute has been awarding college scholarships for 20 years. The program began in 1990, with a total of $2,000 in scholarship awards. This year the program awarded more than $90,000 in scholarships to 97 students attending two to four year colleges and universities around the country. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Ruth Kermish - Allen) Fri, 18 Jun 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Maine-Island-Scholarship-Program-celebrates-20-years/13918/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Island-students-enthralled-by-Rossinis-classic-opera/13840/ Through the generosity of an anonymous donor, who began attending the opera with parents at a young age, the love of opera is being passed on to island children. For more than a dozen years, the Island Institute has coordinated the logistics involved in providing the opportunity for island students, teachers and parents to attend a children's opera at Westbrook High School, just west of Portland. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Sally Perkins) Tue, 01 Jun 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Island-students-enthralled-by-Rossinis-classic-opera/13840/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Peaks-summer-camps-launch-joint-marketing-campaign/13778/ Someone once told me that to truly belong to a community, you must help the community meet its needs while you reap the benefits and joys of belonging to it. This certainly applies to island communities. We know the joys: neighbors who support each other, children who thrive under the watchful eyes of all of the adults in "the village" and unparalleled opportunity to connect with our natural environment. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Patricia Erikson) Mon, 03 May 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Peaks-summer-camps-launch-joint-marketing-campaign/13778/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Students-fool-around-with-The-Cliff-School-Times/13777/ When the recent issue of The Cliff School Times hit a few inboxes at the Island Institute, staffers were excited to see that the one-room, five student school's publication had been recognized by the Los Angeles Times for being an outstanding student newspaper in the Northeast. Part of their prize was the opportunity to intern at the acclaimed paper. Two rooms at the downtown Los Angeles Hilton were booked and they needed sponsors. Or so we thought. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Laura Serino) Mon, 03 May 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Students-fool-around-with-The-Cliff-School-Times/13777/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Matinicus-students-show-climate-change-through-a-birds-eye-view/13807/ Forgive Matinicus schoolteacher Heather Wells for wanting to keep her students working with digital cameras. She finds them adorable when they snap photos. "The cutest thing in the world is watching a bunch of little kids with cameras because they look like paparazzi," Wells said. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Craig Idlebrook) Mon, 03 May 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Matinicus-students-show-climate-change-through-a-birds-eye-view/13807/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Internet-access-grant-seeks-to-help-fishermen-farmers-and-nurses/13779/ Coverage of Washington County is made possible by a grant from the Eaton Foundation. A coalition of schools and economic stakeholders in Washington County has applied for a grant that would integrate high-speed Internet technology into three of the county's biggest industries. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Craig Idlebrook) Mon, 03 May 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Internet-access-grant-seeks-to-help-fishermen-farmers-and-nurses/13779/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/From-Castine-to-Washington-and-back-again/13859/ William J. Brennan taught for the first time at the Maine Maritime Academy. He served as the Sawyer Professor of Ocean Studies at the academy, from 1999 to 2002. He enjoyed the experience, being "on the giving as opposed to the receiving end-I spent a lot of time in higher education receiving an education, but that was the first time I had taught," Brennan said. "I kept thinking, 'This is really cool stuff. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Sandra Dinsmore) Mon, 03 May 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/From-Castine-to-Washington-and-back-again/13859/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Looking-to-the-stars-on-North-Haven/13766/ In a K-12 school with fewer than 70 students, it's easier to respond to individual needs and requests. When some of our students at North Haven Community School indicated that they'd like to have an astronomer come to school, a little research on astronomer-plus-outreach brought up Southern Maine Astronomers, from Portland. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Lisa Shields) Wed, 14 Apr 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Looking-to-the-stars-on-North-Haven/13766/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Students-remember-school-food-director/13718/ On a normal weekday afternoon, the Chebeague Island School couldn't be busier. With classes over, the students twirl and skip down the single hallway, creating a ruckus. Over the din, backpacks and lunchboxes are gathered; coats and hats donned. Teachers Kristin Westra and Ruth White act like sheepdogs, herding the youngsters towards the bus that will take them home. Things were quite different on the afternoon of February 24. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Anna Maine) Thu, 01 Apr 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Students-remember-school-food-director/13718/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Distance-learning-brings-economic-promise-to-Washington-County/13731/ Coverage of Washington County is made possible by a grant from the Eaton Foundation. Sonja Mingo has lived in Washington County her whole life, but for years she thought the only way she could get a master's degree was to leave. "I was working full time and had two kids," she said. She had thought her only option for completing a master's degree in counseling was to commute two hours from Calais to Orono. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Craig Idlebrook) Thu, 01 Apr 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Distance-learning-brings-economic-promise-to-Washington-County/13731/ http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Vinalhaven-students-harness-the-wind/13732/ Got wind? It's a slogan you may have heard lately, or seen on a bumper sticker. For Vinalhaven School's science classes, the answer is "yes." Students in the 7th and 8th grades spent six weeks last fall studying wind power and building their own wind turbines, and the 11th and 12th grade physics class is currently working on the Maine Wind Blade Challenge to be held at the University of Maine at Orono in May. ... info@workingwaterfront.org (by Kris Osgood) Thu, 01 Apr 2010 04:00:00 +0100 http://www.workingwaterfront.com/articles/Vinalhaven-students-harness-the-wind/13732/