WAICU’s collaborative programs help connect private, nonprofit colleges and universities with solutions that reduce costs, increase revenue, save time, and access superior services.

Our team leverages economies of scale that individual institutions can’t achieve alone. We understand that our efforts must continuously evolve to meet changing demands facing our colleges and universities as they deliver on their educational missions.

Over the years, we have designed specialized training programs, webinars, and exclusive content that address the unique challenges and opportunities in higher education. Dedicated staff also evaluate the program portfolio based on feedback, negotiate ways to add value to contracts, and monitor vendor performance to ensure quality and reliability.

Here are several examples of program enhancements from the past year:

• We’ve offered high-impact, low-cost summits and training. Both the Wisconsin Higher Education Summit and the Student Belonging and Success Summit attracted record attendance, positive reviews, and were financially net-positive for WAICU, thanks to sponsorship support. We provided peer-to-peer training in areas of Title IX, campus safety, and enterprise resource management technologies.
• WAICU’s group risk management program became more flexible by unbundling property coverage from liability. As a result, the WAICU members in this program realized significant premium savings and it is easier for other institutions to compare options and potentially join this program for insurance coverage.
• WAICU sponsors a multiple employer retirement plan, which recently changed investment advisory firms. This critical part of the retirement plan team brings a valuable new perspective to the design and fee structure of the retirement plan.
• WAICU also sponsors an employee benefits consortium, which will renew in 2026 with no premium increase. This is an unprecedented milestone for this essential benefit.
• WAICU’s student health insurance plan, used by ten members, renewed with no increase in premium for the 2025–2026 academic year.
• We added new vendor partners to programs for Title IX Training & Resources, Cyber Security & Compliance Services, and Technology Products & Services, increasing the options for colleges and universities to save money while meeting their individual needs.

The new Vendor Ally program is another way to facilitate connections between member institutions and providers of goods and services. Colleges and universities expressed an interest in learning which businesses their peers have successfully used in areas beyond WAICU’s contracted program areas. To meet this need, we developed the Vendor Ally program. By sharing successful brands with member colleges and universities in a fair, transparent, and productive manner, we achieve a triple win. Institutions learn about successful businesses, WAICU receives a new revenue stream to support programs, and businesses can expand their reach.

Vendor Allies receive exposure on WAICU’s website, promotion in our member newsletter, and opportunities to sponsor and attend in-person events. Criteria for entry into the Vendor Ally program include securing endorsements from two WAICU member institutions, supporting WAICU’s mission through payment of an annual fee, and affirming commitment to high standards in areas important to higher education institutions, including data privacy, data security, intellectual property, and ethical business practices.

Businesses interested in learning more can explore the program here or by contacting collaboration.info@waicu.org.