Collaborations key for partnership success

It was a busy week of collaborating with colleagues in higher education, business and industry partners and even a state government leader. The week started off with a Northeast Wisconsin Educational Resource Alliance (NEW ERA) meeting. NEW ERA fosters partnerships among public colleges and universities in the NEW North.

Collaborations continued at the NEW North regional summit. This event allowed private and public sector leaders throughout Northeast Wisconsin to network, supporting the NEW North’s mission of sustaining and growing our regional economy.

Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch, center, visited Moraine Park Technical College’s Fond du Lac campus on Wednesday, Dec. 7. Kleefisch met with Moraine Park President Sheila Ruhland and toured the College’s Integrated Manufacturing Center (IMC) to learn about job training options. Here, Process Engineering Instructor Tom Roehl  explains some of the instructional processes used in the IMC.

After the summit, I received a visit from Rebecca Kleefisch, Wisconsin’s Lieutenant Governor. She is a strong believer in job creation and retention so I shared with her information on our programs and business and industry partnerships. To further display our job training efforts, I took Rebecca to the Integrated Manufacturing Center, where process engineering instructor Tom Roehl and mechanical design instructor Jeff Quackenboss gave us a tour and highlighted the hands-on projects students are working on this semester.

Wednesday night ended with Demystifying the Financial Aid process, an event hosted by Fond du Lac area educational institutions: Moraine Park, Marian University, UW-Fond du Lac and Fond du Lac High School. Students and their families were invited to learn about the financial aid process and hear from Presidents of the three colleges. Another wonderful collaboration between Fond du Lac School District and the three institutes of higher education in this area!  

As the week wrapped up, I reflected on the importance of these collaborations – All integral for Moraine Park to continue providing innovative education for our evolving workforce and community.

Connecting Students and Employers - Part II

Last month I was enthusiastic about sharing feedback with you related to visits I had with employers throughout the Moraine Park District. The insight and perspective I gained was invaluable; so much so, that I continued with more business meetings this month.   

KLH in Germantown and GenMet in Mequon, are two examples of area employers I had the pleasure to engage in recent dialogue with. Both of these businesses have representation on MPTC advisory committees and both seek to hire MPTC graduates. It is critical to understand that their input on program and curriculum changes is imperative in ensuring our graduates leave with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to be employed by companies such as these.  From these meetings, it was increasingly clear to me that employers are seeking employees who are willing to: 1) learn, 2) problem-solve, 3) work in a team environment, and 4) achieve success/advancement through providing top-level performance.

If you are an MPTC student, these are good employee traits to be aware of. On December 1, MPTC, along with the Fond du Lac Area Association of Commerce, will be sharing the results of their 2011 Retirement and Retention Study. Results from this study will reveal trends for the future of workforce development in Fond du Lac. As employers review and analyze the study results, the importance of hiring and retaining qualified and skilled manufacturing workers will likely take on an even greater emphasis. For students, it is important to know that employers have the ability (and right) to be selective when hiring. They will review a candidate thoroughly and only decide to hire if they feel the candidate will be an asset to their company.

If you are a future graduate or alumni who has been applying for jobs or who has been recently hired, and has words of advice to share with others about the job search/hiring process, I encourage you to share them in the comment section of my blog.

Connecting Students and Employers

For several weeks now, I have been traveling throughout the Moraine Park District meeting with employers. Kraft Foods, Mayville Engineering, Alliance Laundry Systems, Ripon Printers, Signicast and Broan-NuTone all allowed me to tour their facilities and learn about the products they produce.  This was a wonderful learning experience. Even more exciting, however, was hearing these employers speak about the quality of Moraine Park’s programs and, most importantly, expressing their willingness and interest to hire our graduates!

Moraine Park has nearly 800 individuals serving on our Program Advisory Committees. These individuals are owners and employees of the hundreds of companies located within our district. They are willing to hire our graduates because they know Moraine Park teaches the technical skills needed for today’s jobs but also the soft skills such as critical thinking, problem solving, team building and communication skills needed for a well-rounded employee. If you are a Moraine Park student or graduate, I encourage you to visit these companies and learn more about their job openings as well as the types of positions they will be hiring for in the future.  In addition, check out TechConnect an option for employers to list job openings for graduates of the Wisconsin Technical College System.

If you’re a Moraine Park grad serving on an Advisory Committee or who has used our TechConnect service, please feel free to share your experience with me.

WTCS Needs Your Help

If you’re a Moraine Park student, staff or community member you have a great opportunity to provide input to the Wisconsin Technical College System. The WTCS Board is asking System stakeholders to take a few minutes to complete a very brief survey, in which the survey participant can share their perspective on System priorities.  The survey will be available through the end of October and can be accessed by visiting http://surveys.questionpro.com/a/TakeSurvey?id=2579178.  I hope you will take advantage of this opportunity and share your thoughts on the direction of the State’s technical colleges, as the Board will consider results of the survey as they identify priorities for the next four years. For more information on the survey, visit http://channels.morainepark.edu/press-releases/post/2011/10/05/Wisconsin-Technical-College-System-looking-for-survey-participants.aspx

Advisory Committees let Moraine Park Alumni get involved

I hope the fall academic term has been good and the classes you are enrolled in are going well.  As the fall term has gotten underway for me, I have been fortunate to attend Advisory Committee meetings for several programs areas including Electricity, Engine Research and Development Technician, and Automotive. 

If you are not familiar with Moraine Park’s Advisory Committees, they are a vital part of all of our educational program areas. Advisory committees ensure the education and training provided by Moraine Park meets the current and future needs of our businesses and employers.  Representation to these committees includes graduates of our programs!

If you are a Moraine Park graduate, you may have received a letter inviting you to join the advisory committee for your program area. I encourage you to accept the invite. If you have not received a letter and are interested in this opportunity, please let your program instructors know that you would like to serve on the advisory committee.  This is one way you will be able to give back to the college and help future students.

I’m interested in knowing how your fall term is going, please leave a comment and let me know. 

Moraine Park students embrace community involvement

Moraine Park students are expanding their learning opportunities beyond the classroom by getting involved with the community. I was amazed to find that Moraine Park has almost 30 clubs and organizations for students to get involved in! The Culinary Arts Club is a perfect example, with their recent involvement in Fondue Fest, held Saturday, Sept. 10. Moraine Park culinary arts students and instructors prepared and dished out 120 pounds of cheese and 80 pounds of chocolate for downtown Fond du Lac’s annual Fondue Fest event.

Fondue Fest was an excellent opportunity for culinary arts students to interact with the downtown Fond du Lac community. Festival goers had a good time getting to know a few Moraine Park students and learning more about preparing (and eating!) fondue.  I thought it was great to see our students in action, applying what they are learning in the classroom to a larger community event. And I also enjoyed sampling the cheese and chocolate fondue, of course!

Culinary Arts students continue their involvement with the downtown Fond du Lac community by selling baked goods at the Farmers Market, held every Wednesday from 2-6 p.m. until October. They have been selling their culinary creations since early June, sharing their talents with the community.

Our Culinary students aren’t the only ones working with the community. On Sept. 27, the Beaver Dam campus will host a blood drive in conjunction with the Blood Center of Wisconsin. Moraine Park’s own Brianna Rhodes, Medical Assistant student and Dodge County’s Fairest of the Fair, will be there volunteering and giving blood. Appointments can be made online at www.bcw.edu/MPTCBD.

Remembering Sept. 11

As we start the fourth week to the fall academic term, I find myself reflecting on the many events held this past weekend in memory of Sept. 11.  Reading the stories that changed each of us in some way, there is a common theme that encouraged and allowed those who lost family, friends and loved ones to continue on.  That common theme was resilience and the ability to move forward.

Whatever change or changes have been part of your life, your decision to attend MPTC was an important step in allowing you to move forward.  The lessons we learn on a daily basis can and will make each of us a better person.

Do you remember where you were ten years ago on Sept. 11?

First Week Welcomes Students and New MPTC Mascot – the Gray Wolf!

The first week of the fall semester is coming to a close for our new and returning students. As I greeted many of our new students on Monday at the Fond du Lac campus, I could see the glazed looks in their eyes and the sense of feeling lost, and maybe even a bit overwhelmed.

These are certainly all feelings to which I have been able to relate to since starting my presidency on July 5th.  Many times during the past two months I have been standing in a hall, whether I was at the Fond du Lac, Beaver Dam or West Bend campus, when thankfully someone would approach me and ask “can I help you?”  My answer was generally always “yes” and I was most appreciative for the help!  It’s great to know that our faculty and staff are there to help, whether it’s guiding a student to the right classroom or ensuring they get their new president where I need to be. Also this week, as part of Moraine Park’s Centennial kickoff, I had the opportunity to unveil the college’s new mascot – the Gray Wolf!  What an exciting time it was to join students at all three campuses to welcome MPTC’s mascot.  During these events, students were provided with the opportunity to submit a name for our mascot. I submitted a name so I’ll be anxiously awaiting this announcement!

If you didn’t get a chance to make a name suggestion, you can still be part of Moraine Park history by voting for the mascot name. From September 6^th through the 16^th, students and staff can head to myMPTC and vote for their favorite name as many times as they’d like. You can find the voting instructions below as well as how the selection of the Gray Wolf was determined.

Wishing you a successful school year!

Gray Wolf Voting Instructions

Beginning Tuesday, September 6^th, visit myMPTC, click the Student Life tab, then go to Student Life News and click Vote! Name MPTC’s Gray Wolf. You can vote as many times as you’d like. Voting ends on Friday, September 16^th.

Selecting the Moraine Park Gray Wolf

During the 2009-2010 school year, Moraine Park’s District Student Government approached then President Dr. Gayle Hytrek, with the idea of creating a mascot for the College. Dr. Hytrek charged members of District Student Government with developing a mascot they felt would accurately reflect Moraine Park’s Student body. District Student Government selected the Gray Wolf for what it symbolized – pathfinders, success, perseverance, stability and thought – and because they felt it truly embodied the spirit of Moraine Park students as well as faculty and staff.

Tech Knowledge College: Providing a path to the future

Last week, Moraine Park hosted Tech Knowledge College (TKC), a three-day opportunity for middle school students to get a hands-on, interactive look at the skills and careers in our world. The students got to choose two sessions to attend from over 20 options including: Build a Robot!, Auto Techs, Hostess with the Mostess, Good Eats Bistro, Hair Techniques and The Art of Architecture. There was an abundance of energy and fun filling the halls of Moraine Park for three days!

I was cordially invited to attend a tea party hosted by the ladies of “Hostess with the Mostess.”  They did a wonderful job setting the table and preparing delicacies to serve. Students in the class learned napkin folding, proper dining etiquette and party planning.  These ladies are well on their way to being the “perfect hostess” and I learned some techniques to help me!

TKC allows students to learn about career opportunities and the education and training required.  Students get a chance to experience a college atmosphere and see the value of career and technical education at a young and critical age.  Moraine Park has been hosting TKC for over 20 years and I look forward to seeing it continue to grow.  

Interdisciplinary learning and community support “drives” creation of new campus disc golf course

Last week I received the opportunity to participate in a very fun event and tried my hand at a new skill – disc golfing.  Moraine Park’s West Bend campus opened its new disc golf course on Thursday.  Students, faculty, staff and community members were present to celebrate by exploring the course and throwing a commemorative disc (watch out, mine made it pretty close to the basket!).

West Bend Campus and Community Partner Peter Rettler really got the ball rolling for the project.  The disc golf baskets were created by Moraine Park Metal Fabrication students and Graphic Communications students using minimal budget dollars. Metal Fabrication instructor Larry Clark worked with his students to design and build nine baskets. Graphics instructor Dan Wangerin and his students developed plans for the disc golf course and will continue working on the project this fall semester.

This kind of interdisciplinary learning and working is what Moraine Park is all about. These students gained hands-on experience working on a unique project that will be a staple on the West Bend campus for years to come — What a wonderful accomplishment!

Not only did Moraine Park students and departments work together, but a few West Bend community businesses and individuals stepped up to help with the project.  Jackson Truck Body sandblasted the newly built baskets and Kettle Moraine Coatings provided the Moraine Park blue powder coating for the baskets. Josh Hamm is a local golf pro in the West Bend community and helped to design the course and guide Pete along the planning process.  

The course will be open to the general public within the next couple weeks. I’m going to need to get my “drivers” and “putters” ready!  

Celebrating Technical Colleges and Connecting with the Community

Some of you may be wondering how my first few weeks at Moraine Park have been. I will tell you that they have been busy and I have learned a lot. What I have been most impressed with is the warm welcome I have received from not only the employees at Moraine Park’s three campuses but also the college communities. I spent my first three days on the job touring the Fond du Lac, West Bend and Beaver Dam campuses and meeting individuals within the communities.   Employees within the college were eager to learn about me and I was eager to learn about them and the important jobs they have.  Remembering their names will come in time, but for now I’m doing well to remember where and how I can locate them!



Photo by Gateway Technical College via Flickr

 I was also privileged to be able to attend and participate in the Wisconsin Technical College System (WTCS) Centennial Celebration at Gateway Technical College (GTC) in Racine.  It was a wonderful celebration with GTC laying the foundation for career training in Wisconsin.  Serving over 400,000 students annually, the WTCS provides the education and services to meet today’s student and employee needs.  I am proud to be a part of this wonderful system and look forward to kicking off Moraine Park’s centennial celebration starting in the fall. We are planning many events and activities throughout the 2011-12 academic year, and encourage you to check back this fall for more information on these activities. 

Finally, I want to share with you the wonderful lunch I had with Moraine Park’s Student Ambassador, Kristina White. Kristina was a joy to talk with and I look forward to seeing her involvement with not only Moraine Park’s campuses but also the WTCS system.  I encourage you to attend any events that Kristina plans as our Student Ambassador.

The start of the fall term is just around the corner. I look forward to meeting you as you return to MPTC this fall.

Coming Home

As a Wisconsin native, it is with great pleasure that I am coming home as the new president of Moraine Park Technical college; a role supported with deeply planted roots in both the technical educational system and the Midwest geography.  I earned my first college degree through the Wisconsin Technical College System, so it seems fitting to find myself coming full circle.

The beginning of my story is not unlike that of many other students.  I was introduced to the technical college system my senior year of high school by my guidance counselor.  Even then as I pondered my future, I understood that some formal training and education beyond high school was important. I, along with a few of my high school classmates, inquired about what MATC-Madison might have to offer someone like me.  Encouraged by what I learned, I completed the admission application and soon found myself on my way to the start of educational and career endeavors I never dreamed possible as a 17-year-old small town, high school senior.

I flourished at MATC.  I was inspired.  Sometime during my second year, Dr. Nancy Tans, a fashion/marketing instructor, encouraged me to consider going on to a four- year university.  It wasn’t something I had really considered, but with her encouragement, and that of other department faculty, I applied at UW-Stout in pursuit of a bachelor’s degree.

The rest, as they say, is history…

After earning my bachelor’s degree, I went on to UW-Madison and received both my Doctor of Philosophy degree in Continuing and Vocational Education with a minor in Educational Administration, and a Master of Science degree in Continuing and Vocational Education.  That small town girl made good on some big time dreams.

My journey from a student to a faculty member to a dean and on to a vice president has been immensely fulfilling and diverse both in scope and in geographical location.  Now, the newest role of “president” has also brought me “home.” While I’ve enjoyed the many friends, students and colleagues I’ve met along the way, “home” seemed to be a missing part of the equation. 

It feels good to be back.

What does “home” mean to you?  Send me your thoughts.