PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — Students from across the University of Maine System gathered in Aroostook County earlier this year for a week full of hands-on learning experiences connected with tourism, recreation and surviving outdoors in the winter, thanks to the University of Maine at Presque Isle’s participation in a statewide program focused on growing Maine’s tourism industry.
The THOR Institute (Tourism, Hospitality and Outdoor Recreation) is a collaboration across the University of Maine System designed to strengthen education and training pathways that bolster these areas, which comprise one of Maine’s largest industries. The Institute allows students from all System campuses to take courses on tourism, hospitality and outdoor recreation, even if they are not offered on their home campuses. These hands-on experiences include Vacationland Courses, short-term classes that introduce students to a particular region of the state, its various recreational opportunities and challenges facing the local tourism industry.
“We were thrilled to offer the opportunity for students from across the University of Maine System to come together in Presque Isle to participate in such a hands-on, experiential learning experience,” Emily Zider, THOR Institute program manager, said. “Many students shared that the course helped deepen their understanding of how the THOR industries interact in different parts of Maine, which is so valuable in understanding these economies in our state.”
During the winter break in January, UMPI was the host campus for the fourth-ever weeklong Vacationland course REC/BUS 386: Special Topics in Business: Winter. Fourteen students from campuses in Presque Isle, Farmington, Orono, Machias and Portland learned how to ride snowmobiles, ice fish, start a campfire, cross country ski, ice skate and snowshoe, and met with local businesses to learn about the impact of winter tourism on northern Maine.
Taught by Chuck Ainsworth, UMPI adjunct instructor for Outdoor Recreation, Business and Criminal Justice, the course covered topics such as snowmobile safety and trail maintenance, cold weather first aid, ice safety and GPS navigation both on campus and at various outdoor locations.
Though the lack of sufficient snowfall cancelled downhill ski lessons, Ainsworth and students took the opportunity to learn advanced first aid instead and were glad to still participate in many other outdoor adventures. During one outing in Fort Fairfield, students met with folks from the Maine Warden Service, who taught them how to determine ice thickness while ice fishing and how to operate a snowmobile.
The students and Ainsworth also visited several area businesses, including Ride North Harley-Davidson, a snowmobile dealership in Caribou and Best Western Caribou Inn & Convention Center, to see firsthand how winter recreation positively impacts the region’s economy. They capped off the week with a visit to Aroostook National Wildlife Refuge in Limestone and a climb up Haystack Mountain in Castle Hill.
“It was an excellent opportunity for students from across the University of Maine System to share knowledge, learn skills, and develop relationships that will last a lifetime,” Ainsworth said. “In partnership with local businesses, residents, and area professionals, the students were able to glean knowledge that could not be replicated in any other learning environment.”
Three UMPI students — Cassie Morrell, Ashton Henry and Joshua Bowers — were part of this Vacationland cohort. A senior business administration major, Morrell said that the activities both on and outside of campus taught her skills crucial for surviving in Maine’s often harsh winter climate.
For example, in the pool at UMPI’s Gentile Hall, Morrell and classmates made flotation devices out of jeans to simulate how to try staying afloat if they found themselves submerged in icy water. Using yoga mats laid across the pool, they practiced pulling themselves out of the water and onto the makeshift “ice.”
“This was different from any other class I’ve taken,” Morrell said. “We practiced hands-on activities, travelled to different locations, and acted out real-life scenarios.”
Students who were not as familiar with Aroostook County also found that the course broadened their views of outdoor recreation in northern Maine. University of Maine first-year forestry student Analise Jacknewitz, who is also pursuing a minor in THOR, said that participating in the Vacationland course gave her the confidence to survive in the outdoors and in her future career path, “This class was the opportunity I needed to learn survival skills, including fire building and ice safety. Through our hands-on experience, I have gained confidence and preparedness in the wilderness.”
For more information on the THOR Institute and its Vacationland courses, please visit https://www.maine.edu/thor/vacationland-courses/.
