The University of Maine at Fort Kent (UMFK), founded in 1878, is a public liberal arts university serving 1339 students in Fort Kent, Maine during 2008–2009. It is a member of the University of Maine System. The campus also bears an official name in French, Université du Maine à Fort Kent, in recognition of the strong Franco-American heritage in this region of the state. The school offers undergraduate degree programs in the areas of Arts and Humanities, Education, Natural and Behavioral Sciences, and Nursing and was listed among U.S. News & World Report's "America's Best Colleges 2009." In 1878 Maine governor Selden Connor signed an act establishing a teacher's school in the northern border region of the state (then known as the Madawaska territory) in an effort to Americanize the French settlers of the area. This became known as the Madawaska Training School. In 1955 the name was changed to Fort Kent Normal School to more accurately reflect its location. The name would change three more times, beginning in 1961 to become Fort Kent State Teachers College, then Fort Kent State College, and finally the University of Maine at Fort Kent in 1970.