Earlier this month, Wisconsin state legislators, Moraine Park leadership, district board members and student representatives gathered for a legislative breakfast at Moraine Park’s Fond du Lac Campus to discuss various issues, concerns and current priorities.
Legislators in attendance included Lieutenant Governor Sara Rodriquez; representatives from Glenn Grothman’s and Tammy Baldwin’s Offices; Rick Gundrum, Assembly District 58; Jerry O’Connor, Assembly District 52; and Dan Feyen, Assembly District 18.
President Bonnie Baerwald and Pete Rettler, Dean of the West Bend Campus, welcomed the legislators and College leadership.
Lt. Governor Rodriguez spoke about the workforce challenges facing health care and how the new Healthcare Workforce Task Force, a new executive order signed by Governor Tony Evers, will work towards strategic, long-term solutions.
“Whether I’m talking to folks at technical colleges, health systems, or behavioral health clinics–there is always something new that I learn,” Lt. Gov. Rodriguez, said. “One of the things that I found out was that we are not just short on nurses, but we are short surgical technicians, ultrasound technicians, radiology technicians and dental hygienists, too. That is really what this task force will be focused on.”
President Bonnie Baerwald shared about the College’s current and future referendum projects and the impact on student learning, the College’s K12 Career Academies and the challenges of partnering with local high schools and the College’s University Transfer Degrees.
Lane Holte, Moraine Park’s Dean of General Studies, spoke about the partnership with UW-Milwaukee after closing their Washington County campus, the uptick in enrollment and challenges with the new FAFSA.
Two Moraine Park Nursing students, Delilah Hernandez and Nick Blommel, and a Manufacturing student, Taryn Reese, spoke about their decisions to enroll and how the college is impacting their futures.
“In 2017, while I was 7 months pregnant, I decided to get my GED at Moraine Park,” Hernandez said. “After that, I was motivated to take my education further. The faculty really played a big part in me learning about myself and feeling prepared to take the next step. I decided to go into nursing, which was scary because I knew I wasn’t good at math. I will graduate in May, and my daughter will graduate high school in June. I just signed on with Froedtert, and I am so excited for this new chapter of my life.”
The meeting concluded with a tour of the Fond du Lac Campus and the newly constructed Automation, Innovation and Robotics (AIR) Center.
