Southern Door Receives Education Innovation Award

The Southern Door County School District will receive the Education Innovation Award at the 7th annual “Excellence in Manufacturing/K-12 Partnerships Awards” held Oct. 23 at the KI Convention Center in Green Bay. The event, sponsored by the Northeast Wisconsin (NEW) Manufacturing Alliance, spotlights best practices of manufacturing and education collaborations.

John Dennis, president of Gardan Inc. and Board chair of the NEW Manufacturing Alliance stated, “The awards dinner is a celebration of the strong partnerships that have been formed between manufacturers and education.”

“There are so many reasons why Southern Door County School District is being recognized as the NEW Manufacturing Alliance’s ‘Education Innovation Award’ winner,” said Ann Franz, director of the NEW Manufacturing Alliance. “The Alliance has held the Excellence Awards the last seven years to showcase best practices of manufacturing/K-12 partnerships. Southern Door School District is an exemplary example of all of the great partnerships in the region.”

“The technical education department at Southern Door has a long-standing tradition of excellence in preparing our youth for the trades, manufacturing and engineering,” Superintendent Patti Vickman said. “Such innovative programs as the High School Formula Racecar program under the direction of instructor Dave LeBrun and the High School Fab Lab under the direction of Glen VanderVelden continue to engage our students in new career pathways. Such programs are made possible through strong partnerships that the district has fostered with local businesses and Northeast Wisconsin Technical College.”