RUMFORD — The University of Maine at Augusta will wind down its presence at Rumford Center following the spring semester, according to Director Jim Bradley.

A fixture in the area since 1989, starting on Brown Street in Mexico, UMA Rumford has been operating at the former Continental Bag Mill at 60 Lowell St. since Aug. 1, 2016.

“This isn’t just unique for UMA. The entire University of Maine system is revaluating all of our spaces,” Bradley said Jan. 8. “Since COVID, there’s just been a huge shift to students taking classes online. That’s across higher education.”

He said it’s not just the centers — the Augusta campus has seen a significant drop in in-person students as they trend toward online classes.

“What we’re trying to do is invest in technology so that we’re giving those online students the best learning experience that they can have,” Bradley said.

As leases come up for review, as UMA Rumford is now, Bradley said “we’re just looking very closely to determine ‘Do we really still need the space? Can we get away with less space?’ This discussion has taken place over the last couple of years.”

He added that they did have some conversations with the landlord about some leasing possibilities, but there wasn’t anything that could really be worked out.

Bradley said they’re definitely here for the spring semester, which concludes in May. The lease expires in July but the goal is to close by June 30.

“Right now, UMA Rumford has about 300 students,” he said, adding that they service essentially all of Oxford and Franklin counties for the University of Maine at Augusta.

Bradley said that before COVID-19, roughly half of the students would be fully online, and the other half would be taking classes in person.

“But now, when COVID came on and Zoom expanded, students figured out that they liked being online. Now, we’re probably about 90 percent fully online. So it’s a huge shift,” he said.

About 60 students still come to the center in person for support services.

“But even for support services, 80 percent of our students are doing that online, too,” Bradley said. “It’s a tough call for all of us to figure out how you justify space cost for the university. This isn’t about saving money at all. It’s about reallocating resources. No one is losing their job. No one is being laid off.”

Bradley’s new title will be executive director for UMA centers. He is also director of the Lewiston and Saco centers.

Brandon Roberts, the administrative assistant, will be transferred to the Lewiston center.

Roz Hodge, the student services coordinator, will be transferring to the Augusta Advising Office, but will work fully online.

Bradley said he has been with the university for 28 years, and Hodge has been there about the same amount of time.

Tina Howard, the administrative support supervisor, will be given the option of another position from home as well. Howard joined the staff in 2007 after being a UMA student.

Bradley said that at one time, UMA had 11 centers. As of two years ago there were nine, but then the Houlton center was closed followed by the center in South Paris. When the Rumford center closes, the UMA network will be down to six centers.

“Even though we’re local, 80 percent of our students are not coming in at all. For the 20 percent that do, it’s going to make it more challenging. There’s no question about it,” Bradley said. “Those folks will have the option of receiving in-person services at our Lewiston center,” he said.

Bradley emphasized UMA is still committed to this area, as well as statewide.

“It’s just for this area, it’s going to be online virtual, which is going to be the bulk of it,” he said.

UMA will be looking for partners in the area to continue to offer supervised exams so that those could be done locally. Many of the supervised exams are for nursing and laboratory technician classes.

When the South Paris center was closed, UMA made arrangements with Oxford Hills Adult Education to take over supervised exams.

Dave Murphy, director of Region 9 Adult Education in Mexico, indicated Jan. 14 a willingness for his facility to supervise the exams locally.

Bradley estimated that between 800 and 1,000 people have received a degree or certificate from the UMA Rumford during their tenure.

“This decision represents a profound loss for the River Valley community,” Nghia Gawtry of Mexico, a UMA Rumford graduate, said. “UMA’s presence in Rumford has provided access to higher education for residents who might not otherwise have had the opportunity.

“Personally, I would not have been able to complete my degrees without the availability of local programming, and I know many others have benefited in the same way,” she said. “UMA has played a vital role in strengthening our region through education, opportunity and community support, and its absence will be deeply felt.”

Bradley reiterated that the closure of the center is a reflection of changing student habits, not enrollment or programming.

“It’s not unique to Rumford, it’s not unique to UMA,” he said. “It’s across higher education across the country. Students want flexibility. They want to be able to attend classes where they are.

“Realistically, closing this center will impact UMA’s new admission enrollments in this region because we’re not physically here in the community for recruitment,” he added. “A lot of prospective students have come in the door to chat with us, and we provide services that way. We’re not going to be here to do that anymore.”