While Cardinal Stritch University is shutting down after 86 years, largely because of declining enrollment, it’s a very different story at Milwaukee School of Engineering.
The small Milwaukee university, with an enrollment of 2,729, punches above its weight making a major impact on downtown. Ranked #6 on the U.S. News and World Report’s list of Regional Universities in the Midwest, MSOE plays a vital role in producing much-needed talent for the region’s businesses.
But it also continues to make major investments in its downtown Milwaukee campus, with support from members of the business community, demonstrating how important it is for business leaders to support the region’s higher educational institutions.
MSOE recently acquired the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services building at 310 E. Knapp St., adjacent to its campus, and plans to convert the 58,429-square-foot structure into the new home for its Civil and Architectural Engineering and Construction Management Department. The building was sold to MSOE by developer and MSOE alumnus Kendall Breunig for about $1 million, which is about $8 million less than its assessed value. Recognizing that contribution, MSOE will name the facility the Kendall Breunig Center for the Built Environment.
Also, earlier this year, MSOE acquired a historic home at 308 E. Juneau Ave. near its campus and plans to turn it into the Patricia E. Kern Conservatory of Music. Kern and her husband Robert Kern founded Generac Power Systems in 1959. After they sold the business, they created a foundation and made major contributions to MSOE, including for the construction of the Kern Center athletic facility, which opened in 2004.
Other major campus enhancements in the past five years include the Dwight and Dian Diercks Computational Science Hall, The We Energies STEM Center and Direct Supply’s Innovation and Technology Center.
The $34 million Diercks Hall project, completed in 2019, was funded by a donation from MSOE alumnus Dwight Diercks, who is senior vice president of software engineering for California-based tech company NVIDIA.
A $14 million renovation of the Direct Supply Innovation and Technology Center was also completed in 2019 at 1020 N. Broadway. Direct Supply first opened the center in 2012 to connect MSOE professors and students with research projects and internships at the company, a Milwaukee-based senior living industry supplier. The college has served as a talent pipeline for the company as it has expanded its e-commerce and technology solutions services.
The 10,000-square-foot We Energies STEM Center at 1444 N. Water St. was developed in partnership with Milwaukee-based We Energies, Rockwell Automation and Northwestern Mutual and Madison-based American Family Insurance. The center is now home to all of MSOE’s STEM outreach efforts and hosts K-12 students from across Milwaukee for hands-on learning experiences.
Hopefully MSOE continues to invest in and expand its campus and the business community continues to support the school’s growth.
