YOU Can Make A Difference!
Lakeland University educates individuals of diverse backgrounds, preparing them to think critically, to communicate effectively, to succeed professionally, and to lead ethical, purposeful and fulfilling lives. Rooted in the values of the United Church of Christ, Lakeland integrates the liberal arts and experiential learning to develop the whole person for success in a dynamic, multi-faceted world.
Your gift to support student scholarships, student support initiatives and other programs that help us attract and retain students is vital —and will certainly make a difference in our future and the future of our students’ lives.
EhDoh Htoo, a Sheboygan refugee student from Myanmar, is a Lakeland Promise student. Born in Myanmar, EhDoh and his family fled to Thailand when he was four to escape violence. After living in a refugee camp for 11 years, Ehdoh and his family came to the U.S. eager to start a better life. He learned the English language while going to school in the Sheboygan Area School District. Now, with the Lakeland Promise program, EhDoh is able to continue his pursuits by studying education at Lakeland University.
The Lakeland Promise tackles student debt by providing qualified Wisconsin students an opportunity to attend Lakeland tuition/fees free for four years, and up to three years for transfer students. Lakeland is Wisconsin’s first private college to offer this free tuition program for qualified students. This is all made possible through the Wisconsin State Grant, Federal Pell Grant, and other Lakeland funding.
The program is for in-state dependent students whose household adjusted gross income is less than $40,000 or independent students with an adjusted gross income of less than $15,000. Between wages from Co-Op jobs, federal loans and outside scholarships, extra money can be used for textbooks, room and board and other expenses.
As a Sheboygan County Scholar, Shyanne Koski ’20 assembled an impressive résumé of leadership during her four years. Among her accomplishments were leading STEAM Girls Rock, where Lakeland students mentored girls in Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics at Plymouth schools, and she created a partnership between Lakeland and Pawsitism, a local nonprofit organization that involved Lakeland students helping to train service dogs for children with Autism. She served as president of the Student Activities Foundation Board and the Pi Kappa Gamma sorority, was actively involved with the Lakeland band and math clubs and served as a resident assistant, an academic tutor and a campus ambassador. And to cap off her college career, Shyanne, an education major from Random Lake, Wis., was named the winner of the 55th annual Clarence H. Koehler Award, the university’s top award for undergraduate students. Following graduation, she accepted a position teaching math and computer science to 8th grade students at Oostburg Middle School.
Shyanne is just one example of the type of students the Sheboygan County Scholars program is designed to help. For the past four years, Lakeland has been bringing some of Sheboygan County’s best and brightest students to campus with the help of a full tuition scholarship. The Sheboygan County Scholars program aims to retain the area’s most promising young people and prepare them for leadership positions in the region. In addition to their education, the recipients participate in exclusive leadership development and networking opportunities. The scholarship is awarded to up to four students each year, based on an application process that includes a personal interview.
Launch is one of just two student-run business ventures at the collegiate level in the state of Wisconsin, and we currently operate five unique businesses.
We transform Lakeland students into the next generation of innovative leaders by providing experiential and entrepreneurial learning opportunities that prepare students for diverse careers in a multi-faceted world.
Elementastic - Launch student workers provide hands-on, STEM-related experiments in a variety of programs. Lakeland’s degree programs correlate with Elementastic to pave the way to future scientists, educators, and leaders.
Develop U - Launch delivers customized workshops and training programs to local businesses to provide employees with quality professional development opportunities.
Event Planning - We hire students for local events such as the Sheboygan Memorial Day Parade, concessions stand at Road America, and more!
Non-Profit Division -Launch partners with nearly 20 local non-profit agencies to provide meaningful paid experiences to students while improving the effectiveness of the organization.
Musko’s Campus Shop -We operate a 1,000-square-foot campus shop and an online store which seeks to provide students with business experience and contributes LU branded merchandise to the Lakeland community.
Check out Launch’s annual report from this past year to read about the accomplishments of our students and please consider supporting our businesses by making a donation.
The Covid-19 pandemic has rocked the non-profit sector. Non-profit organizations---all of them vital to their communities---have experienced a decrease in financial resources including earned revenue, individual giving and grant funding. Further adding to the strain, many non-profits have experienced an increase in demand for services despite the decrease in economic resources. In response, many non-profit organizations have furloughed or reduced their staff while continuing to strive to fulfill their missions.
Lakeland University is prepared to meet this critical moment by providing funded student employees to non-profit organizations through its Cooperative Education program. Lakeland students have successfully worked with non-profit organizations including the United Way, Boys and Girls Club, RCS Empowers, Safe Harbor and more to help these organizations in administrative and professional roles or by managing customized projects or events.
Unit Director Michelle Smith of the Boys and Girls Club says this of Lakeland’s Co-Op program:
“Lakeland focuses on your precise needs,” Michelle said. “Lakeland sends us people who want to be here. It’s a great opportunity for organizations to find students who are really willing to learn about their business.”
Psychology student Samantha Chovan agrees. Chovan completed a Co-Op position at the Boys and Girls Club’s afterschool program, where she found that she was able to apply techniques she was learning in her psychology classes to build relationships. “This has really helped me figure out what I want to do,” she said.
