A new program is granting over 60,000 students and faculty free one-year subscriptions to multiple Maine news publications.
Bangor Savings Bank is sponsoring the initiative, which seeks to encourage college students’ civic engagement. According to David Daigler, the president of the Maine Community College System, “Maine’s community college students tend to come from – and ultimately stay and work in – their local communities, so having free access to the local news is a real gift.”
Under the plan, students and faculty will receive access to multiple publications that are a part of the Maine Trust for Local News. The trust is a nonprofit that operates under the National Trust for Local News, and includes newspapers such as the Portland Press Herald and the Morning Sentinel. It was formed during a 2023 deal where the National Trust for Local News purchased over 20 Maine newspapers from their former corporate owner, Masthead Maine.
The Maine Trust has previously provided flexible paid subscription options for its readers. Acknowledging the need to reach both casual and committed readers, the trust allowed subscribers the option of paying an hourly, daily, or weekly rate earlier this year, in addition to its full subscription option.
As for the current free one-year offering, all of Maine’s public universities, as well as the Maine Community College System, Husson University, and Thomas College, will have access to the plan.
