ORONO, Maine — Many schools across the state are kicking off another year Monday, including those in the University of Maine System.
The University of Maine Black Bears are eager to get another semester underway. Many students, like senior Alexis Allard, said they feel an extra appreciation for normalcy this year.
"It's been really hard the past few years with COVID. We've had kind of a rough few years as in traditions and how everything like that is going," Allard said.
Gabe Labonte, a senior at UMaine, agreed it hasn't been easy.
"I didn't think I was going to get that full experience where I was going to class every day, walking around campus, and seeing faces," Labonte said.
This year, while COVID isn't gone for good, school is starting off on the right track with eased restrictions and optional masking.
UMaine President Joan Ferrini-Mundy said they're putting an extra emphasis on mental health support and services this year.
"We're well aware that students have had a pretty disrupted period for the last couple of years. The pandemic has been hard for everybody," Ferrini-Mundy said.
She said she's also excited about a new research facility on campus and the renovation of the softball field.
Among the challenges this year is enrollment being down 6%, despite having a higher number of applicants this year. Enrollment is mostly down for out-of-state students.
"We continue to renew our efforts to be sure that our programming and that our offerings are really supportive of the interests students have today," Ferrini-Mundy said.
With President Joe Biden's announcement last week of his plan to forgive at least $10,000 of student loan debt for millions of Americans, Ferrini-Mundy said she supports any effort to make college more affordable for students.
"We're very eager to be sure that our students have an affordable experience, that their debt following college remains low, and so we're really eager to be part of any kind of programmatic activity that helps us reduce costs for our students," Ferrini-Mundy said.
As for the first-year students excited for their next chapter, Allard and Labonte shared some advice.
"Time management is huge. You come into college ... you'll find out you have a lot of free time, and it's just finding out how to manage that," Labonte said.
"Definitely stepping out of your comfort zone is going to be what pushes you to be better in your academics, in your leadership life, in your social life," Allard added.