Stout recognized for community impacts with Large Business of the Year
MENOMONIE — While being recognized as Large Business of the Year by the Menomonie Chamber of Commerce, the University of Wisconsin-Stout also celebrated its role in the community.
The recognition comes as the chamber annually recognizes several entities in the community, including small businesses, with this year's recipient as Markquart Menomonie; nonprofits, recognizing The Bridge to Hope; emerging leaders and others.
Seth Hudson, executive director of corporate relations and economic engagement, said the recognition is an honor.
'It really celebrates our partnerships with the community and our relationships with businesses and our collaborations that we put in place over a number of years,' he said. 'We sit in the heart of downtown Menomonie and we are a large economic impact to the community as well, but we see ourselves in a relationship where we are working collectively and I think that's what this award really calls out and shows.'
Amid this recognition, the university was also able to talk about community impact.
On average, Stout sees roughly 7,000 students enroll and attend classes annually. Furthermore, the college employs roughly 1,100 faculty and staff throughout their campus and off-campus facilities. In total, the university has an estimated annual economic impact of $306 million.
'Stout is a very large driver for our community,' said Ashley DeMuth, Menomonie Chamber CEO. 'When the Chancellor [Katherine Frank] was first hired, I had the opportunity to get to know her a little bit and it was fun getting to know her and watching her get to know the community through the eyes of the university. Because the university is not only our largest employer in the community, but it also brings in those large influx of temporary residents to the community as well.'
Hudson said as part of their role, there are strong relationships with industry within the community created through a variety of programming, alumni relationships and investments into the community.
For the region as a whole, Hudson said, 'we're very fortunate to have that educational ability and the ability to work with industry from that collective,' noting that Stout sits in a very unique place in the 10-county region alongside two other Universities of Wisconsin, UW-Eau Claire and UW-River Falls, and two technical schools, Chippewa Valley Technical College and Northwoods Technical College.
Hudson said there are 'lots of different ways to engage and we're always looking for new ways to do that and give back.'
'We have a great, deep and strong relationship with the university,' DeMuth said. 'They do a really great job participating in our programs and events. They also help us enhance our programming here at the chamber because they are such a large footprint in the community, so they really lend their expertise to us in a variety of ways as well.'
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