MATC Matters

Dear Faculty and Staff,

I’m looking forward to an exciting event at MATC this Thursday, May 10. You may have heard about the Wisconsin Covenant initiated by Governor Doyle. It is a pledge by eighth graders to prepare for college, get good grades and be good citizens through their senior year. If they fulfill the pledge, they will be assured of affordable access to higher education in Wisconsin.

On Thursday, MATC will take part in the launch of the Wisconsin Covenant Scholars Program. As part of the activities, we will provide a group of eighth graders a “slice of college life” through tours, a student panel and interactive displays. If your work schedule permits, please volunteer as a tour guide for this special event. We may need as many as 25 tour guides. See MATC Matters for details and contact Marjorie Cook at ext. 6921 as soon as possible if you are able to volunteer. You are also welcome to attend a pep rally and media event scheduled with the students and the Governor from 1:15 to 2:15 p.m. in the Mitby Theater.

Busy, Busy, Busy
As students, faculty and staff anticipate the end of the semester and the May 20 spring commencement, many year-end activities were held last week. The MATC Portfolio Show on Monday at Monona Terrace showcased the many talents of our art program students. Cookouts were held at the Downtown Education Center and Truax Campus celebrating the end of the school year. The Yahara Journal Book Release was held on Friday. The first All-city American Indian & Alaskan Native Graduation Celebration was held on Saturday afternoon in the Redsten Gym. Club HOLA organized Cinco de Mayo celebrations on Friday and Saturday and the MATC Show Choir, directed by James Langkamp, held its spring concert on Sunday in the Mitby Theater.

The Mitby Theater has been very busy in the past couple of weeks. In the past 14 days, the Mitby staff have supported more than 16 separate events and held 10 performances with more than 5,000 people in attendance. They will continue this week with five more events, including the visit by Governor Doyle and two performances that will bring more than 1,800 K-5 children to campus. The theater staff includes Dee Traxler, Matt Breaux and several very dedicated student and casual workers.

New District Board Member
Frances Huntley-Cooper, administrator of Worker’s Compensation in the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, was appointed last Wednesday to the MATC District Board. Current Board members Carousel Andrea Bayrd and Carolyn Stoner were reappointed to new, three-year terms. Frances worked for 28 years in the Dane County Department of Human Services. She has served as president of TEMPO, president of the NAACP Madison Branch and in 1991, she was elected mayor of Fitchburg - the first African American to be elected mayor of a Wisconsin city.

MATC Marvels
Here are this week’s “favorite teachers,” as mentioned to me by students:

Mary Ellen Kraus, genetics
Emmalee Pearson, visual communications
Christopher Dyszelski, psychology
Bernardo Hoes, English
John Luke Matthews, anthropology
J. Mark Thomas, social science
Rossitza Ivanova, English

Highlights of my week (in addition to the events already mentioned)

• Met with the President’s Advisory Team and the full-time faculty union president.
• Attended “AQIP Vital Focus: The Next Stepâ€? listening sessions at the Portage, Reedsburg, Fort Atkinson, Watertown and Truax campuses.
• Attended Rotary and heard about the Swedish Sustainability Movement on renewable energy.
• Participated in the Manufacturing Cluster meeting, a group of CEOs from manufacturing companies who conveyed their workforce needs to us and to representatives of Blackhawk and Southwest Wisconsin Technical Colleges.
• Dropped in at the Fashion Marketing/Marketing Forum where representatives from the largest retailers in our area gave advice to our students.
• Met with Jennifer Alexander, president of the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce and the Regional Economic Development Entity.

In closing, here is a quote from the Dalai Lama, who visited the Madison area last week:

“I expect to pass through life but once. If, therefore, there be any kindness I can show, or any good things I can do to any fellow being, let me do it now, as I shall not pass this way again.”

Thanks for all you do for our students!

Bettsey