FARMINGTON – University of Maine at Farmington President Theodora J. Kalikow has announced Gerald Cayer, Nancy Marshall, Charles Murray and Tanya Swain as the newest members of the UMF Board of Visitors.

The Board of Visitors, composed of up to 20 individuals, includes local business and civic leaders who are committed to UMF’s mission as the state’s public liberal arts college and the educational, economic and cultural well being of the region.

Cayer is executive vice president of Franklin Community Health Network, a comprehensive health care system serving areas of central and western Maine. A native of Lewiston, Cayer has served as chief operating officer of Franklin Memorial Hospital, since 2005.

Before starting at Franklin Memorial Hospital, Cayer served as the director of the Department of Health and Human Services for the city of Portland for eight years. Cayer received his bachelor’s degree in community health education from University of Maine at Farmington, and later earned his master’s from Boston University.

Marshall, named a “Star of PR” by PR News, a national industry trade publication, is the president and founder of Maine’s largest public relations agency, Nancy Marshall Communications.

Her agency, located in Augusta, specializes in media relations and marketing services and has won “Best of Show” in the Maine Public Relations Council Golden Arrow Awards competition for three consecutive years.

Marshall’s agency has been recognized with two national awards from the Society of American Travel Writers and was recognized in 2000 for its commitment to quality with a Margaret Chase Smith Quality Award.

A graduate of Colby College, with an MBA from Thomas College,

Marshall lives in Carrabassett Valley with her husband, Jay, and their two sons, Craig and Jamie.

Murray served as the CEO for shoe companies across the country, including Georgia Durango, of Texas, Endicott Johnson, of New York and G.H. Bass and Co. of Maine.

Since his retirement, he has become an active leader in the town of Farmington and is chairman of the board of selectmen, where he has been a member for 10 years. Through the years, Murray’s civic leadership has supported many community and university projects, including the “Expanding Our Access” campaign for renovations to the UMF Mantor Library and the Farmington Public Library, for which he served as co-chairman.

Originally from Oak Park, Ill., Murray is a graduate of Farmington High School and Dartmouth College in New Hampshire.

He resides in Farmington with his wife, Amanda, a UMF alumna.

Swain serves as executive director of the Western Mountains Alliance, a regional organization to strengthen community development and build capacity for change. Prior to her appointment, she served as regional coordinator for the Maine Community Foundation’s Western Maine Fund.

With a background in public relations and journalism, Swain served as the editor of the Kingfield Irregular and program administrator for the first Lead Western Maine program, a training and resource program designed to support emergent leaders who are working to improve their communities.

A native of Colorado, Swain has resided in Farmington since 1992.

She received her bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Washington in Seattle and is pursuing a master’s degree in public policy and management from the Muskie School at USM.

The University of Maine System mandates that each of its seven universities has a board of visitors of up to 20 members who are recommended by the campus presidents and confirmed by the board of trustees.

The regional leaders serve as advocates and advisers for each institution, review final recommendations on tuition increases and new academic programs and raise private funds for the university.

UMF’s other current board of visitors members include Richard Batt, Richard Bjorn, Fenwick Fowler, Diane Johnson, Alison Hagerstrom, Lou Hight, Lee Anne Larsen, Robert McArthur, Paul Mills, Vici Robinson, Linus Travers, John Witherspoon and Dr. Barbara Woodlee.