“When you say Wisconsin, you’ve said it all!” isn’t just a catchphrase for a high-energy spirit song at football games.
As a group of dedicated University of Wisconsin students have shown in their work in Green County over the past academic year, the Wisconsin Idea — that special commitment to bring the university out from beyond ivy-covered walls and use the knowledge gleaned to solve problems and improve the quality of life for folks all over the state — is alive and well.
No state, and no university, does it better!
These students will be sharing what they’ve learned and accomplished with us at Green County Development Corporation’s Annual Meeting and Recognition Dinner on April 24 at Turner Hall. You’ll want to make sure you’re there — in addition to learning more about UniverCity outcomes, we’ll have a special visit from Bucky Badger and live jazz music by some talented UW musicians during our dinner’s social time!
It will be a fun and fitting way to celebrate the UniverCity Year program, a unique partnership that has paired advanced UW students and faculty with a Wisconsin county. Green County was indeed fortunate to have been selected for the UniverCity program for the 2018-19 academic year, and our communities are sure to see the fruits of the students’ projects for years to come.
How so? The UniverCity Year projects got down to the nitty-gritty of helping our local communities with important projects — projects that local communities would have neither the time nor the staff to tackle.
In all, there were 50 projects involving more than 250 students and 21 faculty from 14 departments and eight schools and colleges. The projects included all corners of Green County, including Brodhead, New Glarus, Browntown, Monroe, Monticello, Belleville and Juda.
As the UniverCity Year program comes to a close, some students will present short “TED Talks” at the GCDC Annual Dinner to help bring us up to speed on what they’ve been doing.
Here are some of the projects we’ll be hearing about from UW students on April 24:
● Analyzing the use of opioids in Green County, as well as the drugs’ prevention and treatment
● Revitalizing downtown Brodhead and the surrounding community through landscape architecture
● Designing a renewable energy system to subsidize energy costs for Juda School
● Increasing access to affordable internet for Juda residents
● Developing a master plan for the village of Monticello to enhance the mental, physical and sociological health of current and future residents
● Mentoring and building a network for rural school teachers
Everyone is welcome to attend the Annual Meeting and Recognition Dinner. It’s a wonderful opportunity to come learn more about UniverCity and what we do at GCDC, as well as network with business and community leaders. And with Bucky there, it’s bound to be a real Badger blast!
The social hour with a cash bar begins at 4:30 p.m. Dinner at 6 p.m. will feature beef medallions with a mushroom demi-glace and baked salmon in a lemon dill sauce. (Let us know if you prefer a vegetarian entree.)
After dinner, we’ll give some brief highlights of GCDC activities over the past year and announce the winners for our business awards: Outstanding Business, Entrepreneurial Spirit and the Richard B. Schmied Leadership awards. It’s always a pleasure to honor the businesses and individuals at the forefront of our communities. This year, we’re particularly excited to bring back the Entrepreneurial Spirit award in recognition of how important start-up businesses are to our local economy.
Tickets are available at Eventbrite.com, by calling 608-328-9452 or emailing gcdc@tds.net. We’ll see you at Turner Hall on April 24!
— Cara Carper is executive director at Green County Development Corporation. She can be reached at cara.gcdc@tds.net.
