GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – At a time when some colleges and universities are struggling and forced to make cuts, NWTC says its enrollment is on the rise and programs are thriving.
From welding to nursing and everything in between, Northeast Wisconsin Technical College continues to grow and evolve.
According to NWTC President Dr. Kristen Raney, “Our enrollment is up a little over 2% from where we were last year. Enrollment in our skilled trades program is up significantly, about 17%, and we continue to have really strong partnerships and industry support for what we do.”
Addressing community leaders and business partners during the NWTC’s annual State of the College address, Raney — who’s only been on the job nine months — believes NWTC and the Wisconsin technical college system as a whole are something special.
“When I became the president, I knew that I had landed my dream job. And I knew that I was joining an extraordinary, award-winning college that was part of the best two-year college system in the country.”
The technical college system as a whole is thriving too.
“In the last 12 years that I’ve had the honor to lead this system, our sort of place in the state’s public life and in how employers and legislators and the public think about us has really changed,” added System President Dr. Morna Foy.
NWTC and other state schools have focused on working with local companies and employers to create programs that help fulfill regional employment needs.
“We hire graduates. So, staff at our company, we hire electro mechanical and electricians that came out of this college. Also, we have a person that we hired that studied marketing here who does our social media, website, marketing for us,” said Tad Campana with Service Plus.
It’s those partnerships, along with grants, and taxpayer funding that help NWTC operate.
College officials tell FOX 11 they are also working on some internal reorganization and the school has left some jobs unfilled in an effort to stay within budget constraints and stay healthy.
Raney added, “We’re going to reduce by just a handful of positions this year, but we’re really healthy. We’re not doing deep cuts or anything like that, and we’re really trying to prioritize how do we make sure that we are structured in a way that we continue to be responsive to the community because that’s what we get up for every day.”
NWTC looks to continue to be innovative and cutting edge in the future. Its manufacturing, skilled trades, health and health sciences programs continue to be some of the strongest, but the college says associative arts and sciences, which are part of its transfer pathways to four year colleges, are gaining traction too.
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