FARMINGTON — More than 500 new students were welcomed to the University of Maine at Farmington on Saturday afternoon during a matriculation ceremony.

Of the 518 students, 430 are first-year students and 88 are transfer students, said Jamie Marcus, director of admissions. Eighty-eight percent of the incoming class is from Maine, representing 15 of its 16 counties, while the rest are from Arizona, California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Texas and Vermont. One student is from Africa.

“On behalf of the Admissions Office, I can say that I am wicked excited to officially welcome you to the University of Maine at Farmington, your new home for the next four years,” Marcus said.

He said most of the first-year students come from Cumberland County, while most of the transfer students come from Franklin County. Half of the transfer students are coming in from four-year colleges.

He said the Class of 2018 is very talented academically, coming in with a grade-point average of 3.0. Sixty new students will enter the UMF Honors program and 11 are Mitchell Scholars, which Marcus described as “a huge and prestigious honor” for UMF.

Half of the incoming class participated in athletics, 43 percent worked while in school, 40 percent volunteered while in school, 31 percent participated in some form of art, theater or music, and 8 percent were involved in school publications.

Marcus said that after sharing that profile of the incoming students, they should “feel confident going forward” on their journey at UMF.

A marathoner who will run the Chicago Marathon on Oct. 12 and finish one of his lifelong goals, Marcus urged the students to “stick with it” while pursuing their future.

“You have a four-year marathon ahead of you that begins today,” he said. “Again, stick with it. When you cross your finish line four years from now, I promise I will be there to celebrate it with you.”

Farmington Town Manager Richard Davis welcomed the students “to our lively and beautiful town.”

Davis told them they will succeed if they commit themselves to being the leaders they have the potential to be by serving the university and the community.

“If you become involved in the community, you will discover a wealth of new ideas and new ways of looking at the world, and new and exciting academic and life experiences,” he said.

He said he hoped the students become so attached to Farmington that they want to stay after graduating.

“Our local schools need quality educators and the business community needs entrepreneurs,” Davis said.

Darrian Church of Franklin, the Student Senate president, offered the class advice from a fellow student on how to survive the first year of college. She is a double major in creative writing and English.

“No. 1, you don’t need to make 500 new Facebook friends right off the bat,” Church said. “Connecting with your peers is a must, but so much of college is redefining yourself.”

She urged them to join clubs on campus to make connections and gain friends and to open new pathways in their academic careers. Her second and third tips were to roll with changes and learn from them, and to accept advice from elders.

“Advice is more than a fair warning,” she said. “It’s given out of love. Never stop asking questions while striving to make your UMF experience unforgettable.”

Additionally, she told them not to be afraid to march to their own beat.

Political science professor Jim Melcher, a Wisconsin native, offered advice with his convocation speech.

“You will eventually run into some faculty or staff at this university,” he said. “You can’t do all your classes online. Sooner or later, you have to meet some actual humans, odd as we may look to you.”

Melcher told them to ask faculty and staff how long they’ve been in Farmington and at the university.

“We have a place here that people love, that people stay in, year after year after year,” he said. “… five years, 10 years, 15, 20; those are just some of my students who keep failing American Government,” he joked, adding, “No, no, no.”

University President Kathryn Foster thanked parents, siblings and grandparents of the new students for loaning them to UMF for the next four years. She thanked some parents for telling her when she wore her Orientation T-shirt earlier that she looked just like a student.

“This was already a great day,” she said to laughter. “But speaking as a 56-year-old woman, you just made it better.”

After Marcus presented the Class of 2018 to Foster, she officially registered them en masse into the university, telling them to stand and take their matriculation cords off the back of their chairs and keep them for commencement.

“Thank you, Mr. Marcus,” Foster said. “I am honored to receive this class — so smart and talented —  from nearby and far.”

Afterward, Foster and bagpiper Bob Underwood led the students and their entourages to a canopy on Mantor Green for a reception.

tkarkos@sunjournal.com

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