On any given day across Wisconsin, private college campuses are buzzing with activity that reaches far beyond their classroom walls.

Nursing students provide care in community clinics. Engineering students partner with local manufacturers. Education majors complete student-teaching placements in school districts facing staffing shortages.

These aren’t side projects. They’re intentional, innovative programs designed to meet real community needs.

Wisconsin’s private, nonprofit colleges and universities have long been trusted partners in workforce development and community vitality. Today, that role matters more than ever.

A proposed Innovation Grant Program (Senate Bill 1069) would help these campuses expand high-impact programming that benefits Wisconsin communities while strengthening the state’s talent pipeline. At the same time, lawmakers considered action to support low-middle income students, whose families earn too much to qualify for federal Pell Grants.

Together, these investments address two realities facing Wisconsin: the growing need for innovative workforce solutions and needed support for families striving to provide their children access to higher education.

Private colleges operate in every corner of the state, from urban centers to rural communities, and their impact is deeply local. According to a recent economic impact study commissioned by the Wisconsin Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (WAICU), the state’s private colleges generated $5.4 billion in economic impact in the 2024–2025 academic year alone and supported more than 39,000 jobs statewide.

But the story goes well beyond numbers.

“Innovation Grants would accelerate program development in high-demand fields, expand clinical and experiential-learning capacity, modernize facilities, and scale partnerships with employers and community organizations,” said Eric W. Fulcomer, president and CEO of WAICU, during testimony before the Senate Committee on Universities and Technical Colleges.

These grants would be competitive, one-time investments, matched by institutional dollars and designed to produce measurable, long-term benefits for students, employers, and communities alike.

Presidents from across the private college sector echoed that message in testimony. Presidents testifying included Carroll University President Cindy Gnadinger; Concordia University Wisconsin President Erik P. Ankerberg; Edgewood University President Andrew P. Manion, and Milwaukee School of Engineering President Eric Baumgartner.

They emphasized how innovation funding can help colleges respond quickly to workforce shortages in health care, engineering, education, and technology.

“Our campuses are agile by design,” Fulcomer said. “That agility allows us to launch new programs, adapt curriculum, and build partnerships that align directly with Wisconsin’s workforce needs.”

The legislation was introduced at the end of the 2025-2026 legislative session and can be introduced again in the next session of the legislature for further consideration. We are grateful to Representative Dave Maxey, Senator Rob Hutton, and Senator Rachel Cabral-Guevara for offering these legislative initiatives to highlight the economic impact and innovation of the private, nonprofit sector of higher education and its importance to the State of Wisconsin