The Winona State University Foundation is always finding ways to take what Winona State is doing well and make it even better. Right now, the Foundation is working on several long-term goals what will have lasting effects on students, staff and the rest of the Winona and Rochester communities.
For Winona State’s art department, there’s a brand-new space on the horizon. The Laird Norton Center for Art and Design will provide a new, innovative space to create and display art, complete with 21st-century creative technology and state-of-the-art galleries. The new space will have a Fab Lab and a Makerspace, which will be available for students – as well as local artists – to create art, or even new products of their own design. It will also fit right into the Winona Arts District, connecting students with the artistic hub of the city. Learn more about this initiative .
College of Business students can look forward to exciting new learning opportunities through the College of Business Engaged Learning Endowment. The endowment will power programming that takes students outside the classroom, out into the real working world. Students will tackle real-world projects, side-by-side with Winona State’s external business partners, so they can get the experience they need to impress potential employers. Learn more about the endowment.
Students will also be able to get hands-on experiences at the planned WSU-Rochester Discovery Center for Simulated Learning. The facilities will include a boardroom fully equipped with cameras and microphones, perfect for students in the College of Business. Graduate nursing students will be able to use the center’s various rooms modeled after hospitals and homes, as well as its data centers. There will also be family therapy space, where counseling and nursing students can train with standardized actors to simulate real therapy scenarios.
“These spaces are essential to the human engagement work that our high-quality faculty and students have delivered for over 100 years in Rochester,” Jeanine Gangeness, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, said.
The Winona State University stadium has been the nexus of fun and excitement for many a Homecoming game, but it’s in severe need of an update. The stadium was built in the 1930s, and hasn’t been renovated since the 1970s. The updated stadium will improve the experience in almost every way, from the seating to the scoreboard.
Athletes and student fans aren’t the only ones who will benefit from the upgrade. It will also give the community a chance to get more involved in Winona State’s athletics. Tom Wynn, former president and CEO of Winona’s Peerless Industrial Group and immediate past president of the WSU Warriors Club, believes the updated stadium will bring the Winona community closer to the University.
“A lot of members of our community, although they live in Winona, don’t really have a connection to Winona State,” he said. “If we have first-class facilities to give them a really good game day environment and game day experience, they’re going to come with their kids and their grandkids just to enjoy being at a game.”
To learn more about these initiatives and how you can help make them a reality, visit the Winona State University Foundation.
The Winona State Foundation, a non-profit, tax-exempt Minnesota corporation, raises general and restricted funds, stewards them in perpetuity, and distributes them in ways that support the mission of Winona State University.
Governed and guided by a volunteer board of directors, the WSU Foundation represents philanthropic leadership throughout the University. The Foundation engages those who care deeply about the University; supports student scholarships, teaching, research and outreach programs; and guarantees ethical stewardship of the resources received.
The WSU Foundation Annual Report and Donor Honor Roll (PDF) recognizes gifts given during the 2017 fiscal year (July 1, 2016 to June 30, 2017). In the creation of this report, every effort has been made to ensure accuracy; however, it is inevitable that some omissions and errors may occur.
If your name does not appear, or should it be misspelled, please notify the WSU Foundation Office so that we can correct our error and offer our apologies. We can be reached at 800.DIAL.WSU (800.342.5978), extension 5020, or wsufoundation@winona.edu. The WSU Foundation, a non-profit, tax-exempt Minnesota corporation, raises general and restricted funds, stewards them in perpetuity, and distributes them in ways that support the mission of Winona State University.
