FAME 2006 News Archive

The Finance Authority of Maine (FAME) announced the receipt of a $50,000 grant from Lumina Foundation for Education to continue support of the 2007-2009 College Goal Sunday program in Maine. The grant will help pay for administrative expenses such as site fees, printing, postage, and supplies. Click here for more information.

The Finance Authority of Maine is displaying the works of three Maine artists, Corrine Bongiovanni, Marcia Baker and Joy Barnes.
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The Finance Authority of Maine (FAME) announced a number of awards for excellence in education and business at their first annual “Showcase Maine” event on Thursday in Portland.
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The 2006 Financial Aid Presentation is now available to Financial Aid Counselors and Advisors.
Click here to view the presentation.

The Financial Aid Tool Kit was mailed to students and high schools October 10, 2006.
Click here to order a copy of the Tool Kit.

Click Here to view the College Savings Month Press Release

Cathy Kimball has been appointed to the State of Maine Junior Achievement Board of Directors. Junior Achievement (JA) is the longest-established, largest, and fastest growing non-profit economic education organization in the world, reaching 4.3 million elementary, middle and high school students in the U.S. and 125 countries. JA’s purpose is to educate and inspire young people to value free enterprise, business and economics in order to improve the quality of their lives. For more information on Junior Achievement in Maine, go to: maine.ja.org.

Governor John Baldacci recently appointed two new members to the Finance Authority of Maine Board of Directors. Kevin Mattson of Winthrop is the President of Harper’s Development, LLC. Kevin has replaced Joy Bishop Blood from Cape Elizabeth who served on the Board for 7 years, recently as Chair. Kevin’s expertise in real estate development will be a welcomed addition to the FAME Board. Glenn Lamarr of Fort Kent is Vice President of Commercial Lending at TD Banknorth, N.A. Glenn has replaced Reynold Raymond of Eagle Lake who served on the FAME Board for 4 years. Glenn’s experience as a commercial lender will be beneficial in considering requests of commercial loan insurance for businesses in Maine.

According to John Witherspoon, FAME CEO, “The FAME Board and staff look forward to working with both Kevin and Glenn. The mission of the Finance Authority of Maine is to provide innovative financial solutions to help Maine citizens pursue business and educational opportunities - we believe that Kevin and Glenn will add expertise and creativity to their new role.”

Governor John Baldacci today presented MaKayla Rose Farrell of Jefferson the first annual $1000 NextGen Scholarship as part of the $50 First Step grant available to each child born or adopted in Maine in 2006 to help open their first college savings account. Every Maine family who has a child this year will be mailed a packet that explains how to get that free $50 into a NextGen College Investment Plan Account for their newborn. Governor Baldacci stated, “An educated workforce is absolutely imperative for Maine's economic future and I have been working with FAME and the State Treasurer to encourage Maine families to begin saving for college. Every dollar that a family is able to save for college costs is a dollar they might not have to borrow. Opening a NextGen College Investing Plan Account is a great place to start.” FAME CEO John Witherspoon noted, “We hope the $50 First Step Grant will encourage families to begin thinking early about meeting the growing costs of higher education. And if a family’s income is below $54,500, NextGen will also put an additional $200 directly into that first account.” MaKayla parents, Rebecca and Richard were grateful for the head start on their daughter’s college fund and were enjoying the event while MaKayla seemed oblivious to the festivities. The Finance Authority of Maine is an independent state agency that provides targeted financial tools and information that help Maine citizens pursue business and educational opportunities. FAME administers the NextGen program, the State Treasurer oversees investments and monitors performance and Merrill Lynch serves as Program Manager, providing investment, administrative, record keeping and marketing services for the program.