Jacobson serves Maine

Through his 25-year distinguished teaching and research career at the University of Maine, George Jacobson has demonstrated his commitment to serving the people of Maine. Jacobson would like to take this talent and commitment to Augusta to continue to create better education and economic development opportunities for all Maine people.

He is no stranger to Augusta: in the mid-1990s he spearheaded the “Faculty Five” group who worked with Democrats and Republicans to create the Maine Economic Improvement Fund (MEIF). This $10 million fund invests in Maine research and development, and has returned more than five-fold its value every year since its inception.

As a result, UMaine labs such as the Advanced Engineered Wood Composites (AEWC) Center were able to develop and reach world leadership, bringing millions of research and development dollars every year back to Maine, providing high-tech jobs for 125 staff and students every year. Today, the AEWC laboratory obtains 94 percent of its funding from outside Maine by competing for high-tech research and development contracts, while the MEIF provides only 6 percent of the lab’s budget.

Because of such successes, Jacobson would like to double the state MEIF investment, so that more labs like AEWC can be established in Maine, leading to more hi-tech engineering, science, accounting, and other jobs for Maine people. Jacobson brings more than research and development and economic development experience to Augusta. As a internationally recognized scientist in the area of forest ecology, and a former Staff Scientist to the US Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, he believes in a strong balance between protecting the environment and growing our economy.

As an educator, he will fight for world-class post-secondary education for Maine children. He is an advocate for a fair tax system and affordable health care. I urge you to vote for Jacobson for State Senate.

Habib Dagher

Director of the AEWC Laboratory

University of Maine