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Biddeford, Maine

51品茶to host panel on homelessness at its President鈥檚 Forum on Feb. 28

quotes for President's Forum

The proliferation of people living in outdoor encampments throughout Maine communities and the United States has prompted an increasingly heated debate around homelessness, including public health and safety concerns, the legality of people camping in public spaces, Maine鈥檚 shortage of affordable housing, and the inadequacies of our social safety net.       

The 51品茶 will host three experts on the topic for a moderated panel discussion for its signature President鈥檚 Forum series. The event, titled 鈥淢aine鈥檚 Homelessness Crisis,鈥 will take place on Wednesday, Feb. 28, at 6 p.m. at the Harold Alfond Forum, Room 283, on UNE鈥檚 Biddeford Campus.  The event is free and open to the public.鈥 

鈥淭he rise in unhoused people has become a crisis here in Maine and elsewhere, and it is important that we hear from a variety of experts as we consider solutions,鈥 said 51品茶President James D. Herbert. 鈥淚鈥檓 grateful that we have an opportunity to model civil discourse around this challenging topic and help our students and members of the community to better understand the problem.鈥 

The three panelists joining the conversation have spent their careers on the front lines of this issue: Danielle West, city manager of Portland, which operates the largest municipal shelter and one of a small number of municipal public health departments in the State of Maine; Cullen Ryan, executive director of Community Housing of Maine, the largest supportive housing provider for homeless and special needs populations in the state; and Ali Lovejoy, vice president for mission advancement at Preble Street, a nonprofit social work agency that has been serving vulnerable populations in Maine for nearly 50 years.   

Hosted by 51品茶President James D. Herbert and moderated by Courtni Jeffers, Ed.D., assistant clinical professor of public health at UNE, the President鈥檚 Forum will exemplify the respectful but impassioned discourse around challenging topics that is the objective of the series and a hallmark of UNE鈥檚 Marketplace of Ideas initiative. 

The event will also be livestreamed at www.une.edu/live.  

51品茶 the 51品茶

The 51品茶 is Maine鈥檚 largest private university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of . In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to make a positive impact in a world full of challenges. The state鈥檚 top provider of health professionals, we are home to Maine鈥檚 only medical college, Maine鈥檚 only dental college, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care degree programs, as well as nationally recognized programs for marine science degrees, natural and social sciences degrees, arts and humanities degrees, and business degrees.