Working Waterfront

North Haven library, community center host Elizabeth Bishop symposium

NORTH HAVEN — To commemorate the release of its publication Elizabeth Bishop: The North Haven Journal 1974-1979, the North Haven Library will host a symposium on the poet’s life and work at Waterman’s Community Center Aug. 14-15. The symposium offers the opportunity to learn more about Elizabeth Bishop: poet laureate, Pulitzer Prize winner,… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

Fishing community’s students put on a play

Ian Watkins is an Island Fellow, a participant in a two-year service program operated by AmeriCorps and the Island Institute, doing community development work on islands and remote coastal communities. Watkins works on Deer Isle and the Downeast coast with high school students. By Ian Watkins Just the other week,… SEE MORE

Some of the 2015 island students who received college scholarships through the Island Institute.

Working Waterfront

Island identity an important strand

Editor's note: Davis Boardman of Islesboro was the featured speaker at the Island Institute's annual Scholars Luncheon on May 30 at Point Lookout in Northport at which 68 students were awarded scholarships totaling $150,300 through the nonprofit's Island Education Fund. These are her remarks. I started at Barnard College feeling… SEE MORE

Vinalhaven school students and staff start to congregate outside around the trash collage and spend some time considering all the trash they collected.

Working Waterfront

Vinalhaven’s trash collage teaches lessons on litter

By Kris Osgood Small island schools often struggle to match what bigger mainland schools do: fielding sports teams, filling out bands, casting plays. But small island schools offer opportunities that might be out of the question for mainland schools. Last May, the Vinalhaven School participated in one such undertaking. "Why… SEE MORE

Lucas Milardo works with Frenchboro's two students.

Working Waterfront

Learning about island history from children

Luke Milardo is an Island Fellow, a participant in a two-year service program operated by AmeriCorps and the Island Institute, doing community development work on islands and remote coastal communities. He is serving on Frenchboro (Long Island) off Mount Desert Island. This fall, the Frenchboro School studied island history and… SEE MORE

Two young adults sit on the grass in front of Maine Maritime Academy's new ABS Center during the dedication ceremony.

Working Waterfront

New Maine Maritime Academy building reflects STEM focus

CASTINE — It's more than a building. That was the point speakers made at the May 1 dedication of Maine Maritime Academy's new ABS Center for Engineering, Science and Research. The center is the first new academic building constructed on campus in the last 30 years. It's attractive and well-integrated… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

From Castine to the world—again

Picture in your mind a cargo ship and an aircraft carrier, one 900-feet and the other 1,200-feet-long and both 20 stories tall, traveling through the ocean only 100 yards away from each other. Water shoots between them, causing suction and push forces that make the two vessels want to steer… SEE MORE

Working Waterfront

How to become an educated Midcoast seashore explorer

When I was in my 20s and 30s, free time was a rare commodity. When it was available and the weather cooperated, my wife and I loaded the kids in the van and explored the Maine coast. It never seemed to be a question that needed discussion; we just hit… SEE MORE

Donna Damon poses in front of a bulletin board in her classroom that reflects her life.

Working Waterfront

‘Public Servant One’ calling it quits

Let's clear this up at the outset—Donna Damon never proclaimed herself to be "Public Servant One." She does use that moniker in three different email addresses, and it might sound like she's tooting her own horn, like a politician running for office. The truth is her son, then in middle… SEE MORE

Firefighters squeeze into the galley to fight a simulated grease fire.

Working Waterfront

Fire in the galley!

Charles Salerno surveys the scene with a sharp eye. Several figures in bright yellow and orange jackets and pants crawl up to a doorway, their breathing masks and oxygen tanks making movement difficult. Their helmets bounce off of one another's visors, and their heavy gloves make handling the 2-inch hose… SEE MORE