Women & Giving Advisory Committee Visits LATC & MMU

The WACF’s Women & Giving Advisory Committee members attended the spring scholarship luncheon at LATC in late January. After visiting with several Women & Giving Scholarship recipients over lunch, the group sat down with representatives from both Lake Area Technical College and Mounty Marty University for a discussion centered around evolving student needs, especially those of non-traditional students.

Noted during the advisory committee discussion with school leaders was the escalating pressure on non-traditional students who typically have more competing priorities than traditional students. Family, including aging parents and young children, work responsibilities, and the rising cost of living expenses all present headwinds to non-traditional students. Moreover, changes in the local job market resulting in higher hourly wage rates entice students to leave the pressures of furthering their education to enter the job market, albeit often for less desirable positions.

This year, the Women & Giving Advisory Committee awarded five $3,000 scholarships.  Lejean Beck, April Geffre, Amanda Sowers, and Jessica Yada, all attending Lake Area Technical College, and Thelma Waldner, attending Mount Marty University were this year’s deserving students. 

 

Women Encouraging Women >>> Foundation Women & Giving Advisory Committee members and Foundation staff met with LATC Women & Giving Scholarship winners in late January for lunch and conversation about each of their paths to higher education. 

“Our scholarship recipients are often young mothers and women returning to school to achieve their potential,” said Cammie Mengwasser, Executive Director of the Watertown Area Community Foundation. “These scholarships keep women in school and on the path to success. By helping to reduce some of the financial barriers these students face, they can further their education and ultimately increase their career opportunities to the benefit of themselves, their family, and our community.”

The Women & Giving Program began in 2004 with the first scholarships awarded in 2006. The program awards scholarships to deserving non-traditional female students in line with the program’s mission to help women overcome barriers, increase opportunities, and achieve goals. Over the past twenty years, $411,000 in Women & Giving grants and scholarships have been awarded in support of area women and children in the Watertown area.