Chancellor: Faculty share time, expertise

The academic year is in full swing, yet intellectual horsepower is not limited to our campus classrooms. Hundreds of faculty and staff from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point share their expertise and time in the community.

These volunteers are active and engaged in Stevens Point and surrounding cities and counties. Like many who live, work and play in central Wisconsin, faculty and staff give back and get involved in the community.

It’s no surprise that the president of Portage County CAN, a network committed to healthy eating and active living, is also chair of UW-Stevens Point’s Health Promotion and Human Development Department. Or that a social work professor serves on the Healthy Communities Advisory Committee; or education faculty serve on the Literacy Task Force. You’d probably expect music professors to also be involved in choral and symphonic groups in the community.  And when expertise is needed locally on water resources, forestry or fisheries concerns, it’s not unusual for faculty at UW-Stevens Point to be tapped.

These demonstrate the breadth and wealth of knowledge on campus, and the willingness to share it.

A few more examples:

• Sociology professors are analyzing data for United Way of Portage County and Saint Michael’s Foundation to complete the Portage County LIFE (Local Indicators for Excellence) report, a social indicators study of needs assessment and quality of life.
• Faculty tutor children who struggle with reading and math. They also tutor adults who wish to read better through the Portage County Literary Council.
• Math faculty and staff work with children and their parents from various schools in central Wisconsin to increase math skills through the MAPPS program.
• Communication faculty judge writing and other competitions and provide peer reviews for professional journals.
• Nutrition faculty and others involved in sustainable food systems have been instrumental in guiding Central Rivers Farmshed, developing its Growing Collective and setting up a commercial kitchen.

UW-Stevens Point staff and faculty share marketing, communications, leadership and business skills when serving on a variety of nonprofit boards, from United Way to Community Industries to the Community Foundation. They provide intervention experience and support to the Family Crisis Center and expertise on the county Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Board.

They offer land use planning skills on local plan commissions and redevelopment committees. Others serve on municipal boards and committees and volunteer at community centers.

They also follow their personal interests, serving on the Green Circle Committee and being active in Friends groups at Schmeeckle Reserve, the Tomorrow-Waupaca River and Mead Wildlife Area.

They monitor streams and lakes and serve on various natural resources advisory committees. They’re involved with the local Audubon Society chapter, North Central Conservancy Trust, Citizens Climate Lobby, Trout Unlimited, Ducks Unlimited and the Wildlife Society and Midwest Renewable Energy Association.

Some are mentors with Big Brothers Big Sisters or help at the Children's Museum and YMCA. They are 4-H leaders and Scout leaders.

Others volunteer with Hospice, American Red Cross, Salvation Army, Goodwill, the Humane Society, the hospital and library. They give time to Special Olympics, walk at Relay for Life and raise funds at charitable events. They provide elder care and visit assisted living.

They volunteer at the Portage County Cultural Festival and Portage County fairs.

Many serve on parent-teacher organizations or volunteer at their children’s school. Others coach children’s sports teams or help with concessions.

They are active in churches and teach Sunday school. They’re involved in Interfaith Volunteer Caregivers and AIDS Ministry.

They cook for the hungry and homeless. They deliver meals to the homebound.

Some volunteer for Operation Bootstrap or ‘Grow a Row for the Hungry.’ Others teach children and adults about growing and preserving food.

Others are involved in the Wisconsin Nicaragua Partnership, SHAMA Inc., or are resources for Hmong and Native American organizations.

We’re proud of our faculty and staff involvement in the community and hope you agree: Stevens Point and the university benefit from each other, depend on each other and thrive because of each other.

Bernie Patterson is the chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.