Dear Maine Campus Readers,
We are so happy to welcome you back as we begin another year as the University of Maine’s official and fully student-led newspaper since 1875.
Whether you are new here or returning, first and foremost, I want you to know that your voice matters to our team. We take seriously our role in the free flow of discourse on campus and our duty to inform the public. We are also actively working to implement systems that strengthen our ability to serve as a tenacious, reliable and ethical source of truth for our community.
In 2024, the Maine Campus returned as a monthly print publication after nearly five years of operating digitally, expanding to weekly print last year. That return to print showed us that there is still community and historical value in producing something physical. At the same time, it is important we continue to adapt to best serve the needs of our viewership.
That is why we are embracing a hybrid model this year, which means continuing to produce a physical newspaper while also expanding our digital presence and the ways in which our community can connect with us.
There are several ways to keep up with the Maine Campus this year:
- In print: We are excited to be partnering with Lincoln County Publishing Company, which operates one of only two remaining printing facilities producing newspapers on traditional newsprint in Maine. We look forward to releasing a higher-quality print product across campus on a biweekly basis, with our first edition distributed locally on Sept. 16. You can grab a copy from the newsstand outside our newsroom, which is in Room 143 of the Memorial Union.
- In your inbox: We are launching the Weekly Maine Campus newsletter to ensure our reporting directly reaches our community. We encourage you to subscribe here and stay updated on all things campus news, with a curated newsletter featuring content from across our sections delivered to your inbox at 9 a.m. every Monday.
- Online: We will still be publishing articles, videos, illustrations and more digitally every Monday morning on our website.
- Through our tipline: We recently launched our Maine Campus tipline in an effort to connect with our community, which is fully confidential and only reviewed by core members of our editorial team. All self-identification fields are optional. The tipline is managed by our news editor, Izzi Stubbs, who can also be contacted directly with tips at news@mainecampus.com.
- In our newsroom: On every second Friday of the month from 1 to 2 p.m., beginning on Oct. 9, our editorial board will host a Newsroom Coffee Chat. You can grab a cup of coffee, tour our newsroom, meet our staff, provide constructive feedback and offer suggestions firsthand.
Our appreciation for the history of our physical newspaper also extends to the work of the student journalists who came before us. That is why we are actively developing and plan to launch an Archives section on our website.
Our new archives editor, Charlotte Clines, is currently digging through over 150 years of writing and photographs to assemble special collections that will be easy to access in the coming months. You can receive updates on this project and more by following us on Instagram (@mainecampus).
Efforts I’ve described to strengthen and promote the work of student journalists extend beyond our own newsroom. This year, the Maine Campus is formalizing its collaboration with the University of Southern Maine’s student newspaper, The Free Press, through the establishment of a UMS Exchange section on our website. This section features articles relevant to our readership across University of Maine System campuses.
The Farmington Flyer at UMaine Farmington has also joined our exchange. At a time when student newsrooms must navigate an increasingly difficult media landscape, we believe collaboration and communication between Maine’s student journalists and newsrooms is more important than ever.
To get involved, you can also respond to content you have seen on our website or in print, or offer your perspective through a guest article or op-ed by visiting the Submit Your Work tab of our website or by emailing eic@mainecampus.com directly. Letters to the editor can be up to 300 words and guest articles/op-eds can be up to 600. We can’t wait to hear from you.
Sincerely,
Elora Griswold
Editor-in-Chief
