The University of Maine System Board of Trustees voted Monday, Sept. 28, to remove former Sen. George Mitchell's name from university programs, honors, and institutional naming following a review prompted by newly public material from the U.S. Department of Justice.

The changes include renaming the Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions as the University of Maine Center for Sustainability Solutions and changing the George J. Mitchell Peace Scholarship to the University of Maine Peace Scholarship. The center focuses on issues including coastal communities, energy costs, PFAS contamination, food waste and sustainable agriculture, while the scholarship supports student exchanges between Maine's public universities and Ireland.

University of Maine System Chancellor Dannel Malloy and University of Maine President Joan Ferrini-Mundy established a task force in February to examine whether Mitchell's name should remain attached to university institutions and honors. The group included faculty, staff and students and also considered feedback from the public.

According to the university, nearly three-quarters of those who responded to the public comment process favored removing Mitchell's name because of the negative associations surrounding the newly released material. The task force acknowledged Mitchell's lengthy public service record but concluded that keeping his name would compromise public trust and potentially harm the university's reputation.

The documents made public by the Justice Department show that Mitchell's name appeared more than 300 times in records related to Epstein. The records include emails and calendar entries indicating Epstein sought meetings with Mitchell between 2010 and 2013, years after Epstein's 2008 conviction.

Mitchell, now 92, has denied wrongdoing and said through a spokesperson that he learned about Epstein's criminal activity through media coverage of the Florida prosecution. His spokesperson also said Mitchell declined or deflected invitations from Epstein's office in the years that followed. There has been no finding that Mitchell participated in Epstein's sexual abuse or trafficking crimes.

The University of Maine System specifically noted that its task force did not evaluate individual allegations against Mitchell. Instead, it was charged with determining whether continuing to use his name could damage the university and its reputation. The system said the review therefore focused on the institution's naming policies and the newly public information rather than making a finding of misconduct.

The name changes took effect immediately, although the university said replacing websites, printed materials and physical signage will take several months. The Board of Trustees formally approved the sustainability center's renaming during its Sept. 28 meeting.

The University of Maine is not the only institution to distance itself from Mitchell following the release of the Epstein-related material. Earlier this year, the Waterville Board of Education removed his name from a local elementary school, while Queen's University Belfast removed his name from an institute in Northern Ireland. His portrait was also removed from the Maine State House.