More than 400 students attended Saturday’s outdoor ceremony.

FARMINGTON – Students said goodbye to buying high-priced books, cheap microwave dinners and many late-night cram sessions at the 151st commencement ceremony Saturday at the University of Maine at Farmington.

Approximately 410 students, along with many of the UMF faculty, marched down High Street toward the graduation ceremony. Bagpipes led the way.

Faculty, family members and graduates filled the seats, while onlookers surrounded the parking lot.

The ceremony was held outdoors behind UMF’s Olsen Student Center,

University President Theo Kalikow welcomed all in attendance and even delivered some news to cheers. Kalikow announced that UMF will not be changing its name to the Liberal Arts College of Maine as had been suggested by a state official earlier this year. “There will be no renaming,” Kalikow said, “and when and if there is a name change, it will be selected by us as a university.”

Delivering the keynote address was author Rhea Cote Robbins, founder and director of the Franco-American Women’s Institute in Brewer. The institute promotes awareness about the contributions of the Franco-American women to the culture, their families and the communities they live in.

Robbins went on to congratulate the students on their quest for knowledge and their struggle to “learn how to learn.”

“This is the reason for our existence,” she said.

In her closing comments, Robbins welcomed the “cultural vitality” that many of the graduates would be bringing to many Maine communities in the future.

Robbins received an honorary degree as did Director of the Maine Humanities Council Dorothy Schwartz.

Delivering the student speech was senior Shannon Lee Staples, a resident of Farmington and a graduate of Mount Blue High School. Staples was an interdisciplinary major with concentrations in anthropology and sociology and a minor in art.

In her speech she said goodbye to the cold pizza and cereal of college years and welcomed the uncertainty of the future.

“Now is the time for new responsibilities and to begin that blank slate towards our future,” said Staples, who plans to . In the near future, Staples hopes to travel to the West Coast and Mexico and one day attend graduate school.

Also receiving recognition were graduates Jasper Walsh, Matt Thompson and Chris Irwin for their efforts within the community.

Along with some of their buddies, the three plan to bike cross country this summer to benefit the Helmets for Kids program through the Healthy Community Coalition.