PORTLAND (AP) – University of Maine officials are considering a reorganization plan that would merge some of the school’s campuses with the University of Southern Maine and create a decentralized, multi-campus University of Northern Maine.

Drafted by University Chancellor Joseph Westphal and the Board of Trustees, some of the state’s smaller university campuses would be consolidated into a single multi-campus university under the plan.

“We are positioning ourselves for the long-term future,” Westphal told Maine Public Radio Thursday. “We feel that if we don’t take care of a plan now, we are going to confront some serious problems in the future without any tools to deal with them.”

Under the proposed plan, the University of Southern Maine would expand to include the campuses in Portland, Goreham, Lewiston-Auburn, and Augusta. The Muskie School of Public Service would be headquartered in Augusta.

A University of Northern Maine would be created and would include campuses in Fort Kent, Machias, and Presque Isle. Farmington would maintain an independent status as a liberal arts college, Westphal said.

A committee has been working since September on the broad strategic initiative, which would cede offering associate degrees to the state’s community college system.

University of Maine at Augusta President Charles Lyons said Thursday he supports the proposed affiliation with the University of Southern Maine.

“I think there will be those who, when they first hear about this will say, ‘We don’t want to be swallowed up by a giant,”‘ he told the Kennebec Journal.

Westphal predicted the plan could save up to $15 million annually. Such savings would become essential if student enrollment tapers off during the next decade, he said.

University officials discuss the proposed plan with some lawmakers and university system staff on Thursday during an unpublicized meeting with the joint committee on education and cultural affairs.

Some, including State Senator John Martin, D-Eagle Lake, said the nature of the plan makes it unlikely to succeed.

“It was done in secret and in private, and I think it’s an illustration of what a public institution should not be doing,” he said.

A full report was scheduled to be released Friday on the university’s Web site, and Westphal added there will be full public review before a draft is finalized. University officials said it could take five years to complete.

Senator Neria Douglass, D-Androscoggin, echoed Martin’s criticisms of how the draft plan was developed, although she said it appeared to make sense.

“What I like about it is the idea that we’re merging administrations,” Douglass said.

Westphal said he does not expect any immediate layoffs of faculty or staff.