MEXICO – Jean Kay remembers how impressed she was with the packet of information the Maine Chamber of Commerce sent her as part of a geography assignment she had in fifth-grade.

The Colorado native was particularly taken with the aromatic pillow stuffed with balsam fir. She remembers thinking she’d like to live in the place that smelled so good.

It took decades, but Kay and her husband, Will, moved to Weld in 2000.

Last week, she was named director of University College at Rumford/Mexico, replacing eight-year administrator Robert Ellis, who retired.

“He’s a tough act to follow, but he and I agreed that our function is to support students who are typically nontraditional, to help with their career or education plans,” she said Friday afternoon.

Before taking the leadership position, Kay was student services coordinator at the local campus. She has also taught English at Colorado State University in Fort Collins and Aims Community College in Greeley, as well as served as director of library services.

She now oversees a community campus of nearly 300 students. The student population expands or contracts according to the economic climate, she said.

Education is her passion.

“It’s very personal, the stability, the opportunities.” she said. “Education is the best pathway to pride and to contribute to the community.”

She particularly enjoys learning the stories of individual students and what they have experienced in their lives.

Kay and her husband bought a nearly 200-year-old farmhouse in Weld seven years ago. They are busy updating and redoing the sprawling structure, and eventually want to turn it into a cancer retreat.

Kay’s successful battle with the illness in 1996 helped her decide to make major changes in her life that eventually led to Maine.

She doesn’t want to make too many predictions for the local college campus because she is so new to the position. However, she said a greater number of degrees will likely be offered in the future to add to the more than a dozen two-year and four-year degrees already available.

She’s also excited about working with the new University of Maine system chancellor, Richard Pattenaude, and the colleagues heading up the 11 University of Maine System centers scattered around the state.

Campus directors plan to go on retreat next week to come up with ways to improve the support for nontraditional students attending classes in their centers.

Kay said she loves her new job.

“I’m in the next best thing to being a professional student,” she said.

She has two adult sons and a granddaughter.