In 2012, all 16 college districts within the Wisconsin Technical College System (WTCS) embarked on an unprecedented journey of applying for a grant as a single statewide consortium. This required that leaders of each college agree to not compete against each other by submitting an application on their own, which required high levels of trust during a tight budget climate. This calculated risk proved successful, and Making the Future: The Wisconsin Strategy received a $14.9 million Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training (TAACCCT) grant from the U.S. Department of Labor.
From the Judges' Report
This project established a successful model that two other Wisconsin colleges built on and improved for funding in subsequent TAACCCT rounds. The project not only supported the institution's mission to serve its region in the provision of lifelong learning opportunities to build a skilled workforce, it aligned with the mission of its partner colleges as well. In addition to demonstrating creativity and innovation, this project showed evidence of great courage and confidence that such an audacious statewide collaboration could succeed. The project had statewide impact, both in terms of creating a collaborative model for replication and a mechanism for awarding credit for prior learning and experience. Success on a statewide journey with 15 partners requires very, very good planning; and based on the results, this project was clearly a success.
