Sponsoring Milwaukee Business Journal’s 40 Under 40

This year PAVE decided to be a first-time sponsor of the Milwaukee Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 Awards. It seemed like a win, since the audience for this award are young, dedicated professionals, leading the community in innovative ways (the type of individuals we seek for Board Corps!). Our decision to sponsor this award was further validated when the winners identified “improving education” as the most pressing issue facing the Milwaukee area. (Read the Biz Journal article here.)

Our ad in the 40 Under 40 publication:

PAVE’s President, Dan McKinley, spoke at the sold-out event on February 24th and his comments were inadvertently aligned with Mark Sabljak’s mention of Marty Stein – a Milwaukee businessman and philanthropist who spent a great deal of effort and money supporting students and education-focused organizations in Milwaukee. Dan’s speech at the event is very applicable to the 40 Under 40 winners, but it’s also relevant for the thousands of other professionals in Milwaukee who want to help improve education for our children, but don’t know where to begin or how to get involved:

On behalf of PAVE’s board and staff, I congratulate you who are honored here tonight as emerging leaders. New leaders are especially needed when long-lasting problems must be confronted with new insights and new resolve.

You have identified “improving education in Milwaukee” as one of your top issues. Are you ready to get involved in real solutions for Milwaukee’s children?

I say “real” because much of what you might read about education reform is too abstract or too simple or biased to be helpful. You have to see for yourself where your skills and dedication can make a big difference.

One path to consider is PAVE’s Board Corps program. Through Board Corps, PAVE recruits, trains and connects the best and brightest professionals to serve on independent school boards. We are engaging Milwaukee’s greatest resource—the ingenuity of new leaders—to improve the education of Milwaukee’s children.

To encourage you further, tonight PAVE is giving you a complimentary certificate for best in class training to become exceptional board members. This training would be valuable for any board you might serve on. But I think you will like to learn how Board Corps, and PAVE’s Partner Schools, are developing excellence from the boardroom to the classroom.

Whatever path you take as leaders, Milwaukee is fortunate to have you. Thank you.

How do you support education in Milwaukee? What organizations are you involved with or know of that are doing interesting work to help students? Please share in the comments below.