Riley covers education for the Press Herald. Before moving to Portland, she spent two years in Kenai, Alaska, reporting on local government, schools and natural resources for the public radio station KDLL as part of the Report for America program. Riley originally hails from Sarasota, Florida, and is a graduate of Middlebury College in Vermont, where she served as the editor-in-chief of the college’s student newspaper, The Campus. She has interned at the Burlington Free Press, and at the Smithsonian Institution’s Folklife Magazine in Washington, D.C. Outside of work, Riley is passionate about roller skating, cooking and her cat, Edgar.
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PublishedDecember 23, 2024
UMaine System board says it won’t consider divesting from Israel
The board of trustees decided not to take up 6 student demands that included divesting from Israeli companies and cutting academic ties with the country.
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PublishedDecember 20, 2024
USM’s older students find a new home
More than a quarter of University of Southern Maine undergraduates are older than 24, and a new center is catering to their social and academic needs.
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PublishedDecember 18, 2024
Senate advances Social Security Fairness Act
The bill co-sponsored by Sen. Susan Collins of Maine would eliminate limits on Social Security benefits for public sector employees, including teachers and firefighters.
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PublishedDecember 11, 2024
Maine’s Child Development Services is struggling to pay its contractors on time
After significant turnover in the finance office, Maine’s Department of Education says CDS has experienced ‘widespread’ issues with paying some of its 345 contracted providers on time.
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PublishedDecember 5, 2024
To improve teacher workforce, report says Maine needs better pathways
A new report from Educate Maine offers recommendations to improve educator recruitment and retention. The report is based on interviews with about 250 teachers statewide.
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PublishedDecember 3, 2024
Husson University offers free tuition for some Penobscot County students
The Bangor university is offering free tuition for those with a 3.0 GPA and family income $80,000 or under.
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PublishedDecember 2, 2024
Amid lawsuit and protest, UMaine System moves ahead with sale of Hutchinson Center to nonprofit
The system plans to progress with the sale of the building to Waldo Community Action Partners despite a lawsuit by Calvary Chapel Belfast alleging religious discrimination in the sale process for the Belfast building.
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PublishedNovember 27, 2024
Devyn Santora, Phippsburg: Food pantry manager wants people to choose what they eat
She led an overhaul of the Brunswick pantry to make it more accessible.
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PublishedNovember 20, 2024
How will Maine education be impacted by a second Trump presidency?
Donald Trump’s vows to dissolve the U.S. Department of Education could put school funding sources in jeopardy, and his policy positions could impact programs like Maine’s free breakfast and lunch, and student vaccine mandates.
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PublishedNovember 19, 2024
Belfast church suing University of Maine System over rescinded bid to purchase Hutchinson Center
The University of Maine had chosen to sell its former Belfast campus to Calvary Chapel Belfast in August, but rescinded the offer after complaints from the community about the bidding process.