Selma Botman, new president of the University of Southern Maine, greeted Greater Portland business leaders this morning with a promise to step up student recruitment and a call for more assistance from the corporate community.

Botman spoke at her first monthly breakfast meeting with USM Corporate Partners in the Hannaford Lecture Hall at the Abromson Community Education Center on the Portland campus.

Botman thanked corporate partners such as IDEXX, MEMIC and Clark Insurance Associates and urged others to step forward as she sets out to develop a strategic plan for USM in the 21st century.

"We are not afraid to lift up the hood and ask ourselves, 'Are we doing our best?' " Botman said.

Botman said she will be visiting high schools throughout Maine in the coming months to promote USM and the value of a four-year degree.

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