NWTC recognized for diversity work

Jeff Rafn, president of the Northeast Wisconsin Technical College, believes the school has a moral obligation to help students reach their goals and earn a degree.

Students typically do not drop out of the community college because of academics, but because their car breaks down, they get evicted, they lose their job, or a child becomes ill —  in other words, life gets in the way. Helping them find ways to solve those life issues could go a long way to helping them get earn a diploma and a good-paying job, Rafn said.

"The thing that drew me to technical education is the idea of making higher education available to everyone," Rafn said. "For whatever reason, whether it's financial, where they grew up or bad decisions they have made, they did not go on to higher education after high school, and I truly believe in today's economy and in the future, everyone will need some kind of training after high school. If they make the decision to come here, I want to make that opportunity as successful as possible."

That has meant launching the Shared Harvest food pantry filled with foodstuffs mostly donated by staff, creating an emergency fund to provide low-income students with cash to cover a cost they may need to stay in school, and bringing in mental-health counselors as well as pro-active advisers to reach out to struggling students.

"We had students at the end of the month who were eating crackers," he said. "Or you would ask them why they weren't in class, and they would say their car broke down and they couldn't afford to fix it and had no way to get to school. If we can say, 'Here's some bus money to get to class,' that can be the difference of them continuing on or dropping out. If they get two weeks behind they might feel there's no way they can make it up, and get discouraged."

The school also started a book rental program for students who might not have the funds to buy a semester worth of books in one swipe.

"We are always looking for ways to smooth the path and keep students in school," Rafn said.

For his efforts, Rafn was among 27 college leaders nationwide to receive the 2016 Giving Back Award from INSIGHT into Diversity magazine, the largest and oldest diversity publication in higher education.

The annual award recognizes college leaders who go above and beyond their everyday campus duties to give back to the school and their communities. Many of the other award winners came from much larger institutions such as Penn State, the University of Oklahoma and DePaul University.

Rafn says the college needed to adapt as the Green Bay community changed.

He noted that when he came to Green Bay in the mid 1990s, the Green Bay School District's minorities accounted for about 16 percent to 17 percent of students. This year, about half of the district's students are minorities. Many of the counties NWTC serves are primarily white, but the school's student diversity is growing. Nineteen years ago, about 3 to 4 percent of NWTC's students were minorities, compared with about 14 percent today.

For many minorities, English may be a second language, Rafn noted, and many may be the first generation in their family to attend college.

"All of this, and also poverty, can add challenges for succeeding in a college setting," he said.

Earlier this week, Rafn settled into an armchair in his office to discuss the award with USA TODAY-NETWORK-Wisconsin. Rafn had returned the night before from the East Coast where he accepted a different award, and was working on the school's 2016-17 budget proposal. Despite a busy schedule, he was happy to discuss the school's diversity initiatives.

He is quick to point out that programs are working not just because of him, but because of the entire school community. The food pantry is stocked mostly through staff donations, he said, and many are eager to find ways to help struggling students.

"You can definitely see his passion," said Amber Michaels Schmitt, manager of student support services for NWTC. "He is always excited and energized to interact with the students."

Based on a program run by a college in Waukesha, NWTC started a mentoring program this year, in which 30 first-semester students were paired with 20 experienced students. Many of the incoming students were minorities, Michaels Schmitt said.

"They work one-on-one with them, they help them stay connected and build connections," she said. "We know if you're engaged you are much more likely to remain in school."

Slightly more than 82 percent of the freshman students came back for the spring semester. Michaels-Schmitt said they hope to expand the mentoring program to first-generation and low-income students as well.

"Dr. Rafn was so excited to hear about the program's success," she said. "He helps drive what we do."

The magazine listed the following among Rafn's successes:

» He added staff who solicit scholarship donations, supporting the creation of on-campus food pantry and second-hand career clothing shop for students, and creating a financial coaching office.

» He oversaw a plan to close achievement gaps, hire more diverse employees, and build partnerships with high schools.

» He encourages students and staff to provide community service through a college-wide service-learning program and by giving employees professional development credit for service.

» He serves on more than a dozen nonprofit boards, advisory councils and committees at the local, state and national levels.

Finding minority staff to hire can be a challenge in Northeastern Wisconsin,  Rafn acknowledged.

"It is difficult to attract and retain minority staff, particularly professionals who typically have choices," he said. "The best would be if we grow our own, but that takes time."

NWTC administrators reach out to minority organizations nationwide, advertise in minority publications and a diversity committee scouts for minority candidates.

"We had a goal, we haven't achieved it," he said. "We truly believe our staff needs to mirror the college, not the community. We have a ways to go."

In terms of attracting more minority students, Rafn said local companies approach him about finding potential minority workers in an effort to increase their own diversity.

"It's not a matter of job opportunities," he said. "We know they're there."

That's why addressing potential language barriers, poverty or other life challenges is imperative to helping people succeed, Rafn said.

"I believe we have a moral obligation as a society to help others," he said. "One of our values as a school is that everyone has value."

For more information about the 2016 Giving Back Award and INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine, visit insightintodiversity.com.

pzarling@pressgazettemedia.com or follow her on Twitter @PGPattiZarling