Innovation Fund

The Chippewa Valley Technical College (CVTC) is well respected for being proactive and highly responsive. Being nimble requires strong leadership and flexible resources. As the fastest growing technical college in the Wisconsin system, CVTC is a great example of how important technical colleges are to the overall economic growth of the regions they serve. Much like a business needs investment for business development, infrastructure and new initiatives, CVTC needs its own Innovation Fund as a sustaining, guaranteed revenue stream. The Innovation Fund enables CVTC to create new programs and initiatives, rapid response to constituents’ business and training requests, and provide leadership in identifying and meeting the technology education of West Central Wisconsin.

The Innovation Fund serves as a business development tool by giving CVTC the greatest flexibility to respond rapidly to the region’s workforce needs through new programs and cutting-edge technologies. These opportunities would be identified by CVTC or its partners in the College’s service region. Often colleges must demonstrate the long-term viability of a project before receiving ongoing funding. With capital from the Innovation Fund to jump start new opportunities, CVTC is the logical organization to interpret community needs and translate those into action as a reflection of the College’s mission. The Innovation Fund is a critical resource to provide early stage funding for initial endeavors, allowing them to become established and to secure ongoing funding from other sources. It also provides CVTC with the matching dollars that can leverage state and federal grants and secure funding from private foundations. Being able to commit matching funds quickly significantly increases the College’s likelihood of securing funding.

The goal is to build a $2 million endowed Innovation Fund. Once fully endowed, the Innovation Fund would generate $100,000 per year to be used for the purposes specified above. The Disbursement Committee of the CVTC Foundation Board of Directors and the Foundation Board will annually evaluate funding opportunities and determine the best use of the annual income from the endowment.

Contributions to the CVTC Innovation Fund may be made by cash, check, credit card, stock, planned gift or any other tangible asset. Pledges up to three years may be made. All commitments of $10,000 or more will be recognized with membership in the President’s Cabinet, a prestigious donor recognition program through the CVTC Foundation.

For more information contact:

Diane Pavelski, Executive Vice President, CVTC Foundation (715) 833-6356, dpavelski@cvtc.edu

Darcy Way, Development Specialist, CVTC Foundation (715) 833-6277, dway@cvtc.edu

620 W. Clairemont Avenue, Eau Claire WI 54701