Meagan Wolfe is the Administrator of the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC), serving as the state’s Chief Election Official. Meagan was appointed by the bi-partisan, six-member Commission in February of 2018 and unanimously confirmed by the Wisconsin State Senate in May of 2019 for a four-year term. Meagan will provide an outline of Wisconsin’s very thorough and decentralized system of running elections. She will discuss how our system is different than systems in other states, and why voters should trust it to deliver accurate and fair results.

Dan and Mary Naylor sponsored this program.

Drake Hokanson, PhD, author and photographer, spent 45 years exploring and taking photos along the Lincoln Highway, small midwestern towns, the endless Great Plains, colorful county fairs, and along the 1st transcontinental railroad. We’ll hear a few stories from the road, examine some of the influences that motivate Hokanson, and consider the nature of photographic art and nonfiction literature, and the brilliance they create when brought together.
 

Glenda Rhodes sponsored this program.

Alex C. Wiedenhoeft, PhD, is a Research Botanist in the USDA Forest Products Lab’s (FPL) Center for Wood Anatomy Research (CWAR). Alex speaks about the history and the legacy of forensic work on cases including murders, car bombings, arson, transportation disasters, and forest fires. He also discusses the forensic relevance of science influencing policy, presents some civil cases and a few less serious cases where forensic botany was used to solve a mystery or a problem.
 

Pat Pfeifer sponsored this program.

Chris Matheny, PhD, is president of Fox Valley Technical College. What role does the Wisconsin Technical College System play in educating and training our communities? We’ll discuss the current state of technical education in the State, introduce you to some things you may not know about your Technical Colleges, and touch on what the future of education might look like in a very rapidly changing world.

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Florence & Rich Dittle sponsored this program.

Hugh Kress is an educator and resource leader for Land Acknowledgment for the East Central Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Anahkwet (Guy Reiter), Menominee, is the Executive Director of Menīkānaehkem, Inc.
Land Acknowledgement is an international effort to work in partnership with Indigenous sisters and brothers to apply the principles of a reciprocal relationship to the land as we share its resources. It first recognizes that lands that we occupy are the ancestral home of displaced tribes. The presentation illustrates actions that have been taken and calls for adoption of an attitude that directs present and future respect for the land.

Mark Flora and Sally Stevens sponsored this program.

Ivan Jay Wayne, PhD, is founder and owner of Voyagerr, a Waupaca based consulting firm. The average American adult checks their phone every 5 minutes and American office workers switch tasks every 3 minutes. This inability to focus was not always prevalent. Are these trends generational, regional, based on personality, or are they universal? This talk includes information spanning seven books and current psychological research, spotlighting the main causes of our dwindling attention span. Additionally, we will discuss strategies we can utilize to maintain our focus once again.
 

Donavan and Mary Beth Lane sponsored this program.

Bob Jacquart is chairman of Jacquart Fabric Products which is home of Stormy Kromer. From invention and evolution throughout a century, the stylish and durably designed Stormy Kromer hats are interwoven into Wisconsin culture. The lore is part of the lure. A pull-down ear band stitched to a baseball cap kept a train worker’s head warm and dry amid winter winds. From authentic originals to ever-evolving designs, Stormy Kromer caps celebrate the art of hat and headwear design.

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Denny and Cindy Wandtke sponsored this program.