NWTC EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION
CELEBRATES
50 YEARS OF GROWING STUDENT SUCCESS
Construction
begins on campus.
Sometimes the seeds of a simple beginning grow
into something that will change lives forever.
NWTC’s Green Bay campus is usually bustling with human
activity now, but the site was once an apple orchard.
Johnny Appleseed had nothing on a group of dedicated
supporters who, in 1969, sold apples from the NWTC
construction site. Proceeds from the sales helped
make the College what it is today.
1970 groundbreaking at the
Green Bay campus. Apple trees
can be seen in the background.
and ultimately to improve lives of the community and
the students that graduate,” Joe Langer ‘74, NWTC
Educational Foundation board member said. “It’s really
about building the workforce of tomorrow.”
The first years of the Foundation were dedicated to
raising money to build an endowment, with the first
scholarships awarded to four students in 1974.
As cited in a 1977 NWTC Educational Foundation, Inc.
publication: Now, the Foundation awards scholarships averaging
$750 to about 850 students per year—students like
Dani Mayer ‘01.
Mayer started at NWTC in 1999 to pursue an associate
degree in nursing. As she made applesauce with her
four-year-old son in her De Pere kitchen, she reflected
on the struggles she went through that first year of
college and her determination to graduate without
incurring crushing debt.
The Foundation bylaws, charter, IRS status and
statement of not being a private foundation
were established by dedicated individuals who
saw it evolve from a modest start (funds were
derived from the sale of apples on the new site
for campus construction).
On April 2, 1970, with $14,000 from apple sales and other
donations, the NWTC Educational Foundation officially
became a non-profit organization with a goal to provide
students with scholarships and support to empower
them to continue their education and earn a degree.
Those same principles guide the Foundation Board of
Directors today.
“NWTC has a primary goal of being able to match
the needs of education to the businesses in the area
8 \ FRIENDS OF NWTC
“I was working three jobs at that point,” Mayer said.
Paying her rent, car payment, studying and working
sometimes all day and night, the stress began impacting
her health.
“It was just a rough time,” Mayer said. “My arms were
full of psoriasis. That was my first and only breakout I
ever had, because of the stress of everything.”
Then Mayer’s miracle happened.