County Executive, Alliant Energy, & SunVest Solar Kick Off Construction of Solar Farm to Make Dane County 100% Renewable

90-Acre Solar Project in Town of Cottage Grove Will Make Dane County Government First County in State to Use 100% Renewable Power

Today, County Executive Joe Parisi joined Alliant Energy and SunVest Solar executives to kick off the construction of a 90-acre solar project on county-owned land in the Town of Cottage Grove. Known as the Yahara Solar Project, construction of this project will achieve Dane County’s goal of using 100% renewable electricity at all county facilities.

“Our clean energy partnership with Alliant Energy and SunVest Solar results in Dane County achieving our goal of powering our buildings with 100% renewable electricity,” said Dane County Executive Joe Parisi.  “I’m proud that our county is the first in the state and just a handful in the nation to achieve this renewable energy accomplishment that combats climate change and creates local clean energy jobs.”

Once the solar project begins operation early next year, the 17-megawatt (MW) project site will be home to over 33,000 solar panels and produce more than 31,000 MW-hours of renewable electricity per year — enough to power 3,000 Dane County homes. The renewable electricity generated from this new project will reduce greenhouse gas emissions in an amount equivalent to the emissions produced by over 3,800 cars or the burning of 20 million pounds of coal per year.

“Alliant Energy is proud to assist Dane County in achieving its clean energy goals through the Yahara Solar Project,” said JP Brummond, Vice President of Customer and Community Engagement for Alliant Energy. “We’re constantly looking for new ways to serve our customers and build stronger communities. This unique partnership extends Dane County’s position as a renewable energy leader and showcases Alliant Energy’s creative solutions for renewable energy development.”

Alliant Energy selected SunVest Solar headquartered in Pewaukee, Wisconsin to build, operate, and initially own the project. SunVest Solar has been the #1 solar developer in Wisconsin since 2015 and is ranked in the top 10 solar developers nationwide by Solar Power World magazine.

“SunVest Solar applauds the commitment Dane County has made to renewable energy and shares in its vision for an energy-independent future,” said Kirk Kindred, President of SunVest Solar, LLC. “The Yahara Solar Project is SunVest’s largest solar project in Wisconsin to date. We look forward to working with Dane County and Alliant Energy as the project comes to life.”

The Yahara Solar Project is Dane County government’s largest renewable energy project, nearly double the size of the solar installation at the Dane County Regional Airport—a 9-MW project that began operation in December 2020.

Alliant Energy will deliver the power generated to its customers, and Dane County in return for leasing the land will receive the renewable energy credits (RECs). Under an innovative deal structure, the County continues to own the land, and Alliant Energy leases the land, with payment made in RECs. This allows the County to reach its renewable energy goals for decades to come without any increase in energy costs. The RECs will offset the County’s greenhouse gas emissions without any increase in energy costs helping the County to achieve its renewable energy goals under the adopted Climate Action Plan.

The solar project will create approximately 70 jobs during peak construction. According to the National Solar Jobs Census, there were nearly 3,000 people employed in the solar industry in Wisconsin in 2020. 

Converting over 90 acres of agricultural land previously used for growing corn and soybeans to solar energy production and additional acreage on the site to prairie grass plantings will produce additional environmental benefits. Transforming the land to energy production will cut water runoff volume by about 325,000 cubic feet or roughly 3.5 Olympic-size swimming pools, reducing phosphorus runoff to area waterways by 370 pounds annually. Not tilling the land will boost habitat for dwindling pollinator populations and sequester 72 tons of soil carbon or the equivalent emissions of over 8,000 gallons of gasoline burned annually.

Dane County gets more power from solar than any other county in the state. Dane County generates power at 16 county-owned facilities, including the Dane County Regional Airport Solar Project and soon to be constructed Yahara Solar Project. An interactive “Clean Energy” map showcasing all of Dane County’s existing projects can be accessed here.

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UW–Madison Research Drives Recommendations for Enhanced Leadership Education

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 9, 2022

Contact Information:
Shauna Breneman, Communications Director
Email: sbreneman@wisc.edu
Phone: (608) 262-8862

UW–MADISON RESEARCH DRIVES RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ENHANCED LEADERSHIP EDUCATION

MADISON – University of Wisconsin–Madison team members collaborated for months with a common goal: determine how to further strengthen leadership education at UW–Madison.

Leadership advocates from across campus convened to facilitate UW–Madison’s participation in the Multi-Institutional Study of Leadership (MSL), an international research program focused on understanding how higher education can help students develop leadership skills.

Through the study, the group aimed to learn how the University can help prepare students to thrive in a changing society and an evolving global economy through the development of leadership skills.

The group provided a survey on leadership to UW–Madison undergraduate students and doctor of pharmacy students. About 5,000 students completed the survey, giving the group insight into students’ attainment of leadership skills, their access to leadership education and their experiences with leadership.

An MSL coalition of UW–Madison administrators, faculty and staff members then formed to interpret the results of the survey in collaboration with survey and data analysis experts.

Key findings from the survey included but are not limited to:

• UW–Madison students are in line with other universities’ students in acquiring leadership skills.
• UW–Madison students are gaining leadership skills at a level consistent with students in previous years.
• Students’ involvement in community service, organizations, student groups, mentoring and leadership training increased their leadership skills acquisition
• Demographics were generally not a factor in student opportunities for involvement in the above activities and usually not a factor in the acquisition of leadership skills, with the exceptions of international student status and GPA.

From these and other findings, the coalition developed the following recommendations to improve leadership education at UW–Madison:

• Identify benchmarks that allow UW–Madison to determine student success relative to peer institutions and to previous UW–Madison students
• Establish infrastructure, such as programming and staffing, that supports leadership skills development best practices
• Expand leadership research and assessment.
• Develop and/or connect complementary classroom and out-of-classroom learning programs
• Encourage both classroom and out-of-classroom leadership learning programs based in leadership theories
• Incorporate learning opportunities into the UW–Madison experience that are strongly associated with leadership skills-building in impact learning environments and work experiences

“UW–Madison is committed to preparing the next generation of leaders to make a positive impact in the world,” said Mark Kueppers, director of the Center for Leadership & Involvement (CfLI). “The Multi-Institutional Study of Leadership provides critical data to improve leadership programming in and out of the classroom.”

Current leadership opportunities for UW–Madison students include coursework offered by multiple schools and colleges as well as co-curricular opportunities that include but are not limited to more than 900 registered student organizations, hundreds of on-campus student employment positions, intramural sports, volunteer opportunities, learning opportunities through the Willis L. Jones Leadership Center, the Leadership Certificate Program, adventure-based team-building workshops through Adventure Learning Programs (ALPs), and leadership skills development through the students-run Student Leadership Program (SLP).

The CfLI team will help establish working groups to address these recommendations and work across campus to make data-driven leadership education enhancements. In addition, UW–Madison staff, faculty and students can contact CfLI at cfli@studentlife.wisc.edu for leadership consultative support.

The CfLI team encourages staff, faculty and student leaders to review the MSL report, reach out with any questions they may have about leadership development, and to use the results to inform leadership education. The team also encourages current students to explore some of the existing leadership opportunities on campus here.

The MSL study effort included facilitation leadership from Kueppers and Greg Harrington, professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Wisconsin­–Madison and chair of the Pieper Family Foundation Endowment for Servant Leadership; administrative support from CfLI staff; and data analysis support from the UW–Madison Division of Diversity, Equity & Educational Achievement.

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About the Center for Leadership and Involvement

The Center for Leadership & Involvement (CfLI) assists University of Wisconsin–Madison students in intentionally connecting with the far-ranging leadership opportunities throughout campus, including student organizations. The Center supports students in making meaning of their leadership experiences and in developing leadership capacity and the ability to affect positive change. Learn more about CfLI at cfli.wisc.edu.

To read this release online, visit union.wisc.edu/about/news/msl-2021.

Kraus-Anderson, EUA Architects: Memorial Hospital of Lafayette County completes funding for new hospital

DARLINGTON, Wis. – (April 2022) – Memorial Hospital of Lafayette County (MHLC) has completed the financing to build a new $55.5 million facility, which also will include space for behavioral health and mindfulness sessions.

The funds include a $30.87 million revenue bond and $15 million general obligation bond in direct loans from the USDA, and a $5 million guaranteed loan, all of which will be paid for by the proceeds of the hospital.  In addition, MHLC was awarded a $1 million Emergency Rural Health Care Grant.

“The USDA has been wonderful to work with during this process and we are so thankful that such programs are available,” said Kathy Kuepers, MHLC CEO.  “These funds ensure our community has access to quality health care for years to come.

As a critical access hospital, the current facility has served the greater community and provided a full range of acute care inpatient and outpatient services since 1952.  Easily accessible access to quality health care will be the core of the design for the 75,000-square-foot replacement facility.

The construction manager is Kraus-Anderson and the architect is EUA Architects.

Construction on the new hospital is expected to begin in February of 2023 and completed by the summer of 2024. The current facility will be in operation during construction.

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EUA Architects hired to design new Memorial Hospital of Lafayette County

DARLINGTON, Wis. – (March 2022) – The Lafayette County Board of Supervisors has hired the Madison office of EUA Architects to design Memorial Hospital of Lafayette County (MHLC), a new 75,000-square-foot facility that also will include space for behavioral health and mindfulness sessions. EUA is 115-year-old firm specializing in workplace, healthcare, learning living, science + technology, industrial and community environments.

As a critical access hospital, the current facility has served the greater community and provided a full range of acute care inpatient and outpatient services since 1952.  Easily accessible access to quality health care will be the core of the design for the replacement facility. The project’s cost and design details will be finalized in the coming weeks.

The construction manager is Kraus-Anderson, one of the nation’s premier commercial general contractors and construction managers  which has been leading the charge in sustainable design and construction for the last 25 years. With deep experience in healthcare construction, Kraus-Anderson is currently ranked 16th in the nation among the top health care general contractors in the U.S. by Modern Healthcare magazine.

Construction on the new facility is expected to begin in February of 2023 and completed by the summer of 2024. The current facility will be in operation during construction.

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Gail Shore
Shore to Shore Communications, Inc.
Public relations management and consulting since 1989
(612) 770-4106 cell
gshore@winternet.com    

Capitol Bank: Wendy Jirsa Elected President of Verona Area Chamber of Commerce

Madison, WI: Wendy Jirsa, Vice President / Verona Bank Manager, has been elected to serve as President of the Verona Area Chamber of Commerce. The three-year term began in January 2022 and will allow Wendy to serve in this role until December 2024. Wendy has been with Capitol Bank since 2009 and her efforts helped Capitol Bank to become Verona’s largest bank by deposits in 2019 and 2020. Wendy has a wealth of experience in personal and business banking, in addition to serving as a mortgage lender alongside Howard Cagle at Capitol Bank Verona.

In addition to Wendy’s involvement with the Verona Chamber, she currently serves as the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) Visionaries of the Year Team Chair and was the LLS Woman of the Year in 2019. Wendy also serves on the board for BOSS (Building Opportunities for Student Success) as secretary and treasurer.

About Capitol Bank: Capitol Bank, locally-owned and operated since 1995, is committed to serving the communities in which we live, work and do business. We are proud of the partnerships we have established with organizations, businesses and individuals in the Dane County area. Our philosophy of community support is demonstrated at the corporate level, as well as in the time and energy our employees devote to our community each year. Capitol Bank
is Member FDIC and an Equal Housing Lender. Wendy Jirsa NMLS #1264271. Howard Cagle NMLS #593729.

Contact: Natalie Gregerson
AVP / Marketing
Capitol Bank
710 N. High Point Road
Madison, Wisconsin 53717
608.836.1616