Private colleges and the state’s public universities both plan to bring students back in person for the spring semester with safety measures instituted in the fall — including mask use, social distancing and smaller class sizes, along with more remote learning — still in place. The University of Maine System and Bowdoin and Bates colleges will all reopen later than normal for the spring semester after a prolonged winter break, and they’ll offer a first round of virus testing right away. - Victor Restis