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�� cybersecurity program ranks No. 14 in nation as students excel in cyber defense competitions

giffeyt — Mon, 02 Mar 2026 16:00:00 +0000

�� cybersecurity program ranks No. 14 in nation as students excel in cyber defense competitions giffeyt March 2, 2026

Program has earned national credentials, international reach during its first four years

Just four years after it was created, the �� Bachelor of Science cybersecurity program ranks as one of the best in the nation, recently landing at No. 14 among the Top 25 programs in the United States, according to Programs.com.

The cybersecurity program also was placed No. 21 among the Most Affordable Cybersecurity Bachelor ��. Programs in separate rankings compiled by Cybersecurity Guide.

The accolades arrived just as cybersecurity students are making another strong showing in the annual Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition, earning the top spot in Wisconsin for the sixth time in seven years and placing second among teams from five states in a regional qualifier. Next, the �� team will compete at the Midwest Regional CCDC on March 20-21 at Purdue University Northwest in Hammond, Indiana.

�� students also delivered an outstanding performance last fall in the National Cyber League (NCL) competition, which includes more than 9,000 students nationwide. The five-member �� team placed 43rd among nearly 800 institutions in the competition.

And in December, �� hosted its second annual Capture the Flag event, a competitive simulation in which participants solve security problems to gain points. The competition drew more than 100 participants, including students from other Universities of Wisconsin campuses, high school teachers and their students, and even students from Malaysia.

Professor Holly Yuan, program director of B.S. cybersecurity and B.S. computer networking and infrastructure engineering, points to driven, talented students as the reason for this notable string of achievements.

“I’m very proud of the students, our Stout students, because of their passion,” Yuan said. “My job is giving them the resources they need. They are self-driven.”

Last year, �� . cybersecurity program placed No. 22 on the Best Value Cybersecurity Degree rankings by Programs.com. The most recent ranking — 14th among all U.S. cybersecurity programs — considers affordability as well as academic rigor, applied learning and the relevance of the curriculum.

That curriculum, Yuan explained, combines computer networking, computer science and applied math with cybersecurity-focused courses that explore security networking, security software and artificial intelligence in cybersecurity, all of which gives students industry-ready skills.

What really strengthens the program, she added, are its small class sizes, applied learning environment and strong industry partnerships that allow students to work on real-world projects.

“I think that combination makes the Stout program unique and strong,” Yuan said.

CCDC team members are Kayne Whitney, Fletcher Meyer, Brett Bender, Will Worthington, Andrew Rhode, Blake Dirksen, Ethan Coulthard, Daisy Hardwick, Chloe Kaneski and Kaonou Lor. / Submitted photo

Competitors juggle tasks to thwart hackers

Students say the cybersecurity program excels because it offers applied learning that combines computer science, networking and security.

“Students aren’t just learning concepts; they are applying them in labs fueled by passionate instructors. The work that Holly and other professors have put into the program shows to the students,” said junior Fletcher Meyer, a cybersecurity major from Appleton, Wisconsin, and president of the Cyber@Stout student organization.

Meyer said he was drawn to �� . cybersecurity program because of its designation as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity, the availability of Department of Defense scholarships, and its success in the Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition. This is Meyer ��. third year taking part in CCDC, and he ��. been focusing on learning more about firewall systems and teaching newcomers about Linux security.

In CCDC, team members are placed in a scenario where they must defend a compromised corporate environment that includes mail servers, databases, websites, and more. “A typical CCDC competition starts with the flag drop, where all teams can suddenly enter the environment and secure these services,” Meyer explained. “What makes this flag drop so special is the fact competitors already have the knowledge their system has been hacked and must be fixed soon — otherwise the red team hackers will further compromise our systems.”

At the same time, the team must respond to simulated users facing technical difficulties while also responding to “injects,” or business memos requesting certain tasks.

“The most challenging part of the competitions for me is the mental juggling act, remaining somewhat collected while balancing troubleshooting, injects, and other requests, all while the environment is trying to burn itself up,” said senior Brett Bender, a computer networking and information technology major from Rio, Wisconsin. “There ��. a unique adrenaline rush in solving high-stakes puzzles under extreme pressure, especially when you’re doing it alongside one of the most talented teams in the Midwest.”

This is Bender ��. first year taking part in CCDC, and he said the experience has been both amazing and rigorous. “We practice multiple times a week in our own environment, have volunteer red team hackers test our skills outside of competition, and have frequent presentations regarding various topics that are relevant during competition,” he said.

“Between practicing, competition, and other weekly meetings, it ��. obvious that we all show up with a drive for excellence,” Bender continued. “Each of us finds joy in the challenges presented, and we are constantly looking to solutions for the situations we find ourselves in during competition.”

Professor Holly Yuan, right, and a �� student.

Lab experience leads to workplace skills

These competitions, as well as educational events hosted by organizations affiliated with the program, help expand the expertise of students and prepare them for the workforce. Senior Chloe Kaneski, a cybersecurity major from Plymouth, Minnesota, interned last summer as a technical support engineer at Verkada, a security technology company.

“This role was very centered around understanding networking concepts and how their devices were connected to a client ��. network,” Kaneski said. “For my future career, I believe that the skills Stout ��. program has given me and the knowledge I have learned from competitions will set me up for success.”

Kaneski, who will graduate in May, is already making a mark in her field. Last semester, she helped found a campus chapter of Women in Cybersecurity (WiCyS), which has hundreds of student and professional chapters worldwide, and she now serves as the organization ��. president. “We are hoping that we can make a change for both current and future women in cybersecurity at Stout,” Kaneski said.

Sophomore Tram Nguyen of Vietnam is also involved WiCyS, and she received a scholarship to attend the Women in Cybersecurity Conference in Washington, D.C., in March. While Nguyen is majoring in computer networking and infrastructure engineering, she said that program is strongly connected to cybersecurity.

“Security is no longer separate from networking. It is embedded in infrastructure design, authentication and system architecture. That integration really drew me in,” she said.

Nguyen said being able to work directly with CNIT lab equipment helped prepare her for a network support internship with the City of Eau Claire. “Being able to rack equipment, cable switches, configure real devices, and troubleshoot physical connections builds practical confidence,” she said. “Those skills translate directly into industry roles. The combination of theory and real-device experience makes the program strong and career-focused.”

Cybersecurity degree, internships underscore ��'s renewed designation as national cybersecurity center

National Security Agency recognition goes through 2028; students receive paid internships as Career Services grows industry partnerships

Program has notable credentials, reach

�� is designated as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity through the 2028 academic year. �� was the first four-year university in the state to receive this designation.

The cybersecurity program is also recognized as a Cisco Certified Networking Academy, an AWS Certified Academy, a Palo Alto Cybersecurity Academy, and a Microsoft Certified IT Academy. Real-world lab experiences and courses are taught by faculty members with advanced IT industry credentials.

In addition to serving as cybersecurity program director, Yuan is also founding director of �� . Cybersecurity Research and Outreach Center, which promotes cybersecurity research, education and workforce needs for the state of Wisconsin. While she is quick to laud her students and their success, she has earned honors of her own. Among other things, in 2024 she received the Visionary Academic Leadership Award at the 14th annual Cyber Security Summit in Minneapolis.

Cybersecurity program director receives national Visionary Academic Leadership Award

Yuan recognized for ‘pushing the envelope’ to train next generation at Cyber Security Summit

Last fall, she was selected by the U.S. State Department for the Fulbright Specialist Program, which sends professionals and academic experts abroad for two- to six-week project-based exchanges. In May, Yuan will travel to Malaysia for a specialist appointment in the Cybersecurity & Technological Convergence Department of the University of Kuala Lumpur. Her work will focus on cloud security and AI-driven cybersecurity, compliance frameworks and workforce skill gaps in Malaysia ��. digital economy, as well as hands-on workshops in cloud security, AI-powered threat detection, digital forensics, and ethical hacking. Yuan said she will also provide faculty mentorship and curriculum development.

The connection between �� and the University of Kuala Lumpur was formed several years ago when Yuan first traveled to Malaysia thanks to a U.S. State Department grant obtained with the help of �� . Office of International Education. “They made me feel so honored and welcomed, I couldn’t wait to go back!” Yuan said. “I’m super excited to strengthen the relationship between the two schools.”

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Career-connected learning: SkillsUSA brings nearly 400 middle, high school students to ��

goersab — Wed, 25 Feb 2026 15:00:00 +0000

Career-connected learning: SkillsUSA brings nearly 400 middle, high school students to ��goersab February 25, 2026

Engineering, technical, design competitions prepare young people for future careers

Abbey Goers

Nearly 400 students from 41 middle schools and high schools across the state will put their engineering, technical and design knowledge to the test at the SkillsUSA Regional Competition at ��, Thursday, Feb. 26, and Friday, Feb. 27.

Students will compete in more than 35 events hosted by Continuing Education and Conferences. Using industry-standard machinery, devices and software across campus labs, competitors’ hands-on experiences help prepare them for their future careers – a goal at the core of Wisconsin ��. ��.

�� students will also build their leadership skills as they help coordinate judging and develop many of the challenges, such as the Team Engineering Challenge. Technical events include 3D printing, additive manufacturing, automotive service technology, carpentry, CO2 dragster, electronics technology, entrepreneurship, mechatronics, medical terminology, precision machining technology, robotics, photography and video production, welding and more.

Events are coordinated and judged by �� faculty, staff and students, SkillsUSA advisors, technology educators and alumni.

Media are welcome to cover the competition. Contact Youth Program Manager Tiffany Hoage at hoaget@uwstout.edu for a full schedule and location of events.

The competition will also host a Future-Ready Workforce Summit from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Feb. 26. Area business leaders, human resource directors, and recruiters from across Wisconsin will participate with SkillsUSA Wisconsin team members to discuss the challenges of finding and recruiting skilled employees and how SkillsUSA Wisconsin can partner with organizations and school districts to provide a pipeline of skilled and qualified future workers.

Career-connected learning in action

Career and technical student organizations (CTSOs), like SkillsUSA, are what ��. working in education, said SkillsUSA Wisconsin State Director Jake Mihm, technology and engineering consultant with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.

“When we think about career-connected learning and developing the whole child to be college and career ready, CTSOs are the perfect fit to round out a student ��. professional endeavors. Thank you to �� for hosting this event for more than 40 years,” he said.

Mihm, a 1998 �� education in technology and engineering alum, hopes the competition helps students:

Gain a sense of purpose and connectedness to what they are learning in their technology and engineering courses.
Gain a sense that there is more to learn outside of high school and that there is a wonderful variety of opportunities for them beyond secondary education.
Have a positive experience on a Universities of Wisconsin campus.
Get comfortable with being uncomfortable.

Students build leadership skills

Many student volunteers are members of student organizations, such as the Student Construction Association and the Technology and Engineering Education Collegiate Association, which provides leadership opportunities for future educators.

Students Jessica Heckenkamp and Lilly Douty are leading two volunteer efforts this year. Heckenkamp, a double major in manufacturing engineering and mechanical engineering, is the logistics lead for the Team Engineering Challenge, working with engineering technology Program Director Abhi Ghosh. Douty, a hotel, restaurant and tourism management major, is a SkillsUSA Wisconsin alum and has been helping to plan the regional competition.

“I hope the competitors take away from the challenge are the benefits of being able to solve a problem promptly, the value of teamwork, and gracious professionalism, which is the ability to be competitive whilst being a good sport,” Heckenkamp said. “The biggest benefits I see from young students getting to work within Stout are exposure to the college work environment and the confidence that they will get from knowing they can continue their learning and expand their skills up to the college level.”

For Douty, an events management minor, it ��. been a nostalgic experience planning the event. “It has reconnected me with my old SkillsUSA advisor and brought back many other sweet memories. It ��. been great to apply my HRTM skills I’ve learned in class to this event coordinator position. I plan to pursue a career in event management after college, so both HRTM and this campus position are equipping me for the future,” she said.

As a SkillsUSA alum, Douty ��. biggest takeaway from participating in the competition was the connections she made. “I connected with like-minded students from all over Wisconsin, many of whom are still close friends,” she said. “Beyond the friendships, I developed valuable skills such as public speaking, leadership and project management. Competing and collaborating pushed me outside of my comfort zone and helped me gain confidence in my abilities, both personally and professionally.”

The annual SkillsUSA State Competition will be held April 7-8, in Madison. �� faculty and students will be running the Team Engineering Challenge at the state competition.

SkillsUSA is a nationwide organization that provides educational programs, events, and competitions focused on career and technical education. Founded in 1973, Wisconsin SkillsUSA has 166 high school and middle school chapters. Its talent pipeline covers more than 110 trades, technical, and skilled service occupations, mostly related to science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

��'s College of Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics & Management offers 26 undergraduate and 11 Graduate Studies degree programs, eight academic departments, the School of Management and the Robert F. Cervenka School of Engineering.

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Engineering, technical, design competitions prepare young people for future careers SkillsUSA Regional Competition

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Excitement, accomplishment and potential are three words that probably best describe what you will experience here.

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As the Youth Program Manager at the University of Wisconsin-Stout, Wisconsin ��. ��, I design and lead initiatives that help young learners discover their strengths, spark curiosity, and see themselves as innovators and problem-solvers.

Through programs such as STEAM summer camps, FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), SkillsUSA, and Science Olympiad, students explore emerging fields, build technical and transferable skills, and gain confidence in their academic and career pathways.

By collaborating with faculty, student leaders, PK-12 and higher education partners, industry, and youth-serving organizations, I help expand access to high-impact experiences that develop future-ready talent and strengthen communities.

If you are interested in partnering, I welcome the opportunity to connect and explore how we can create meaningful impact together.

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�� announces Latha Ramakrishnan as provost and vice chancellor for Academic Affairs

giffeyt — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 19:33:20 +0000

�� announces Latha Ramakrishnan as provost and vice chancellor for Academic Affairs giffeyt February 18, 2026

Dr. Ramakrishnan will advance strategic priorities, foster academic initiatives at Wisconsin ��. ��

Tom Giffey

�� has announced that a new provost and vice chancellor for Academic Affairs will begin on Aug. 1.

Dr. Latha Ramakrishnan, currently special assistant to the provost at Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania, will advance strategic priorities and foster academic initiatives that reflect �� . status as Wisconsin ��. ��.

“We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Ramakrishnan to ��. She brings the background, ideas, and experience that will help advance �� . distinct polytechnic identity and support student success,” said Chancellor Katherine Frank, who announced the appointment on Feb. 16.

With a focus on collaboration and innovation, Dr. Ramakrishnan will work closely with faculty, staff and stakeholders to address regional and state needs and support student success. 

Dr. Latha Ramakrishnan

“I am excited to join �� and contribute to its vibrant polytechnic identity,” Ramakrishnan said. “I am inspired by the ‘Do More on Day One’ spirit, and I look forward to partnering with all stakeholders to lead Academic Affairs. Together, we will advance academic excellence in alignment with our core polytechnic tenets to better serve our students.”

Glendalí Rodríguez, who has served as �� . provost and vice chancellor for Academic Affairs since 2019, will return to the faculty within the Operations and Management Department.

Ramakrishnan will come to �� with considerable academic and administrative experience, having served as a professor, chairperson, program director, dean and associate provost (interim). During her tenure at St. Cloud State University and Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania, she secured or contributed significantly to securing more than $9 million in external grants, including several National Science Foundation grants, which provided scholarships in STEM, improved student success, and enhanced research infrastructure. At Commonwealth University, she established the college ��. first external advisory board and empowered faculty to lead the development of the first college strategic plan.

During her interview process at ��, Ramakrishnan demonstrated a strong commitment to student success and excitement to lead the Academic Affairs unit in advancing �� . polytechnic mission. Ramakrishnan holds a Ph.D. in physical polymer chemistry from the Indian Institute of Science; a M.S. in chemistry from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras; and a B.S. in chemistry from the Sri Sarada College for Women. She was a Postdoctoral Fellow and a Research Associate at Cornell University from 2000 to 2006, including a year as Epilepsy Foundation and Milken Family Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow.

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Building with air – how nature ��. hole-filled blueprints shape manufacturing

hugginsm — Thu, 05 Feb 2026 17:29:24 +0000

Building with air – how nature ��. hole-filled blueprints shape manufacturinghugginsm February 5, 2026

Professor Anne Schmitz examines the influence of the natural world on engineering and additive manufacturing.

Anne Schmitz

This article appeared in TechXplore and others, and originated from The Conversation, an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.

If you break open a chicken bone, you won’t find a solid mass of white material inside. Instead, you will see a complex, spongelike network of tiny struts and pillars, and a lot of empty space.

It looks fragile, yet that internal structure allows a bird ��. wing to withstand high winds while remaining light enough for flight. Nature rarely builds with solid blocks. Instead, it builds with clever, porous patterns to maximize strength while minimizing weight.

Cross-section of the bone of a bird ��. skull: Holes keep the material light enough that the bird can fly, but it ��. still sturdy. Steve Gschmeissner/Science Photo Library via Getty Images

Human engineers have always envied this efficiency. You can see it in the hexagonal perfection of a honeycomb, which uses the least amount of wax to store the most honey, and in the internal spiraling architecture of seashells that resist crushing pressures.

For centuries, however, manufacturing limitations meant engineers couldn’t easily copy these natural designs. Traditional manufacturing has usually been subtractive, meaning it starts with a heavy block of metal that is carved down, or formative, which entails pouring liquid plastic into a mold. Neither method can easily create complex, spongelike interiors hidden inside a solid shell.

Bird bones, seashells and honeycombs use clever, porous designs to stay strong without the extra weight. Now, 3D printing is letting engineers copy those natural blueprints.

The sustainable future

Beyond performance, mimicking nature ��. less-is-more approach is a significant win for sustainability. By “printing air” into the internal structure of a product, manufacturers can use significantly less raw material while maintaining the necessary strength.

As industrial 3D printing becomes faster and cheaper, manufacturing will move further away from the solid-block era and closer to the elegant efficiency of the biological world. Nature has spent millions of years perfecting these blueprints through evolution – and engineers are finally learning how to read them.

The invisible architecture

That paradigm changed with the maturation of additive manufacturing, commonly known as 3D printing, when it evolved from a niche prototyping tool into a robust industrial force. While the technology was first patented in the 1980s, it truly took off over the past decade as it became capable of producing end-use parts for high-stakes industries like aerospace and health care.

3D printing makes it far easier to manufacture lightweight, hole-filled materials. kynny/iStock via Getty Images

Instead of cutting away material, printers build objects layer by layer, depositing plastic or metal powder only exactly where it ��. needed based on a digital file. This technology unlocked a new frontier in materials science focused on mesostructures.

A mesostructure represents the in-between scale. It is not the microscopic atomic makeup of the material, nor is it the macroscopic overall shape of the object, like a whole shoe. It is the internal architecture, including the engineered pattern of air and material hidden inside.

It ��. the difference between a solid brick and the intricate iron latticework of the Eiffel Tower. Both are strong, but one uses vastly less material to achieve that strength because of how the empty space is arranged.

If engineers wanted to make a part stronger, they generally had to make it thicker and heavier. This approach is often inefficient, wastes material and results in heavier products that require more energy to transport.

I am a mechanical engineer and associate professor at the University of Wisconsin-Stout, where I research the intersection of advanced manufacturing and biology. For several years, my work has focused on using additive manufacturing to create materials that, like a bird ��. wing, are both incredibly light and capable of handling intense physical stress. While these “holey” designs have existed in nature for millions of years, it is only recently that 3D printing has made it possible for us to replicate them in the lab.

From the lab to your closet

While the concept of using additive manufacturing to create parts that take advantage of mesostructures started in research labs around the year 2000, consumers are now seeing these bio-inspired designs in everyday products.

The footwear industry is a prime example. If you look closely at the soles of certain high-end running shoes, you won’t see a solid block of foam. Instead, you will see a complex, weblike lattice structure that looks suspiciously like the inside of a bird bone. This printed design mimics the springiness and weight distribution found in natural porous structures, offering tuned performance that solid foam cannot match.

Engineers use the same principle to improve safety gear. Modern bike helmets and football helmet liners are beginning to replace traditional foam padding with 3D-printed lattices. These tiny, repeating jungle gym structures are designed to crumple and rebound to absorb the energy more efficiently than solid materials, much like how the porous bone inside your own skull protects your brain.

Testing the limits

In my research, I look for the rules nature uses to build strong objects.

For example, seashells are tough because they are built like a brick wall, with hard mineral blocks held together by a thin layer of stretchy glue. This pattern allows the hard bricks to slide past each other instead of snapping when put under pressure. The shell absorbs energy and stops cracks from spreading, which makes the final structure much tougher than a solid piece of the same material.

I use advanced computer models to crush thousands of virtual designs to see exactly when and how they fail. I have even used neural networks, a type of artificial intelligence, to find the best patterns for absorbing energy.

My studies have shown that a wavy design can be very effective, especially when we fine-tune the thickness of the lines and the number of turns in the pattern. By finding these perfect combinations, we can design products that fail gradually and safely – much like the crumple zone on the front of a car.

By understanding the mechanics of these structures, engineers can tailor them for specific jobs, making one area of a product stiff and another area flexible within a single continuous printed part.

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Professor Anne Schmitz investigates how nature provides a blueprint for better engineering. bee-honeycomb.jpg

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Co-op Q&A: Amber Kuhn, IBM, Rochester, Minnesota

goersab — Wed, 04 Feb 2026 14:40:00 +0000

Co-op Q&A: Amber Kuhn, IBM, Rochester, Minnesotagoersab February 4, 2026

Computer science senior hired as a hardware developer before graduation

IBM, the largest industrial research organization in the world, has been at the forefront of innovative technology and systems for more than a century. Advancing from its earliest electric accounting machines to partnerships in space travel and cloud computing, IBM is a leader in artificial intelligence and high-performance computing.

At IBM in Rochester, Minnesota, �� computer science senior Amber Kuhn is completing her cooperative learning experience as a hardware development intern.

Kuhn, of Andover, Minnesota, will graduate in May 2026 and has accepted a full-time hardware development position at IBM, where she plans to continue growing her skills in industry while gaining deeper experience in large-scale systems and engineering practices, she said.

“This internship has reinforced my interest in the field of computer science and confirmed that I am on the right career path. I am grateful for the support from both �� and IBM, and I am excited to continue learning and contributing as I move into a full-time role.”

What interests you most about computer science?

What interests me most about computer science is the combination of problem-solving, logic and creativity. I enjoy building systems that have real-world applications, especially when software interfaces directly with hardware. I find it especially rewarding to take abstract concepts and turn them into functional, reliable solutions.

How do you hope to make an impact in your field?

I hope to make an impact by contributing to well-designed, reliable systems and by building tools that improve efficiency and reduce errors for both engineers and users.

Long-term, I want to be involved in work that bridges software and hardware and that has tangible, real-world impact. Enterprise computing systems are a strong example of software and hardware with significant real-world impact. Large-scale server hardware, combined with low-level software, firmware, and automation tools, supports industries such as health care, finance, government, cloud services and research. These systems are critical because they must be highly reliable, secure, and scalable to support essential services and large volumes of data.

Through my internship experience, I’ve seen how internal software tools and automation can make a meaningful difference by streamlining workflows, reducing configuration errors, and improving system reliability. While these tools may not be customer-facing, they have a broad impact by supporting the engineers and technicians who build and maintain complex systems.

I hope to contribute to fields that rely on dependable infrastructure and high-performance systems, particularly enterprise computing and hardware-software integration. I am especially interested in building tools and systems that support technical teams and help ensure that critical technologies people rely on every day function reliably and efficiently.

What are your main roles as an intern with IBM?

My main roles include supporting hardware development and testing, assisting with automation and tooling, working with cross-functional teams, and contributing to projects that improve reliability, usability and efficiency of engineering workflows.

One project I worked on involved developing and improving internal tools to automate test setup and configuration, making bench setups more consistent and reducing manual errors. I also assisted with hardware-related testing and documentation efforts that helped streamline workflows for engineers and technicians.

These projects were primarily designed to support enterprise computing and infrastructure development. While the tools and testing work I contributed to were internal-facing, they directly support hardware platforms that are used across many industries, including health care, finance, cloud computing, government and research.

My team ��. work fits into a much larger system at IBM, where every part of the supply chain, from hardware design and manufacturing to testing, integration, and deployment, plays a critical role in delivering reliable systems. Each team contributes a piece that ensures these platforms can meet the needs of a wide range of industries and use cases.

By improving test automation, configuration consistency, and documentation, the work helps ensure that hardware systems are reliable, scalable, and ready for deployment in environments where downtime or errors can have serious consequences. In that sense, the impact extends beyond a single field and supports industries that rely on high-performance, dependable computing systems to operate critical applications.

The projects also supported engineering and technical teams directly, helping them work more efficiently and accurately, which ultimately improves the quality of the systems delivered to customers across these industries.

What do you enjoy most about your internship?

What I enjoy most is working on meaningful, real-world problems alongside experienced engineers. I appreciate being trusted with responsibility and having the opportunity to learn how large-scale systems are designed, tested and maintained in an industry environment.

What is challenging about your internship, and how do you face those challenges?

The most challenging aspect is the complexity of the systems and the steep learning curve that comes with enterprise-level hardware and software integration.

I face these challenges by asking questions, seeking feedback, reviewing documentation and breaking problems down into manageable pieces. I’ve learned to be persistent and proactive when troubleshooting.

How will your courses and experiences at Stout help you make an impact in your career?

�� . hands-on, applied learning approach has been especially valuable. Courses in software development, databases, and web programming, along with project-based assignments, have prepared me to work on real systems.

Projects where I designed full applications from backend to frontend stand out the most, as they closely mirror the work I’ve done during my internship.

A strong example of this preparation is my capstone project, Rock the Wall, which I completed the semester before starting my internship. Rock the Wall is a full-stack, web-based route management system designed for the Stout Adventures Rock Climbing Wall. The application was created to replace a manual Excel-based process used to track climbing routes and employee hours, which was time-consuming, error-prone and difficult to manage collaboratively.

The application serves multiple end users. Climbers can view currently set routes, track their progress, see leaderboards and climbing rankings, and leave feedback on routes. Employees can add, edit, or retire routes and log their setting hours, while managers have additional administrative tools to manage user roles and oversee wall activity. The system was built using JavaScript and PrimeVue for the frontend, Firebase for authentication, PostgreSQL for the database and GitHub for version control.

Designing Rock the Wall required me to think critically about user roles, data modeling, authentication, and usability, skills that directly transferred to my internship work. Building a complete application from backend to frontend gave me confidence working on production-level systems and reinforced the importance of clean architecture, collaboration and user-centered design. This experience has been foundational in helping me contribute meaningfully in a professional software development setting.

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Computer science senior hired as a hardware developer before graduation Amber Kuhn, IBM internship

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�� . packaging program ranks among top 10 in national listings for its polytechnic approach

goersab — Tue, 03 Feb 2026 14:00:00 +0000

�� . packaging program ranks among top 10 in national listings for its polytechnic approachgoersab February 3, 2026

Applied learning, strong industry partnerships benefit students, create clear career pathways

Abbey Goers

�� . B.S. packaging program has been recognized by three national ranking authorities in their annual listings:

College Raptor: No. 3 for 2026
Universities.com: No. 9 for 2026
College Factual: No. 5 for 2025

“We are honored to be recognized as one of the top packaging programs in the nation,” said Associate Professor Min DeGruson, program director. “�� . distinction comes from our polytechnic approach of hands-on, applied learning, our deep and long-standing industry partnerships and our strong career focus.”

DeGruson said students with an interest in design, engineering, problem-solving and sustainability can find wonderful careers in the packaging field. In the end, every product needs a package — meaning every industry needs packaging engineers, she said.

�� packaging graduates achieve 100% job placement with an average starting salary of $70,000. Located near the Twin Cities and Wisconsin ��. Fox Valley, two major hubs for packaging innovation, �� offers unparalleled access to packaging suppliers and career opportunities across the food, consumer products and medical device industries.

Recent employers of graduates include 3M, Bosch, Boston Scientific, General Mills, Great Northern Corporation, Kimberly Clark, Medtronic, Milwaukee Tool, Post Consumer Brands, Sartori Cheese, Target and more.

�� . award-winning Cooperative Education & Internship Program helps students connect with placement opportunities to gain additional career-readiness skills before graduation. More than a third of students accept positions after graduation with their internship employer.

Students begin working in five dedicated packaging labs in their first semester, spending more than half of their coursework engaged in lab-based testing, materials research, prototyping, and design verification alongside faculty and peers.

“With our dedicated labs, a rich program history, and a highly engaged alumni network, our students benefit from exceptional industry support and clear career pathways. These strengths are reflected in our outcomes,” DeGruson said.

Cross-disciplinary research and projects are another highlight of education at ��, as well as the Great Northern Corp. Collaboration Experience course, in which students design packaging for a Great Northern client.

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“Packaging students work alongside students from the graphic communications, and graphic design and interactive media, industrial and product design and video production programs,” Associate Professor Kate Liu said. “We offer students multiple development paths to maximize their potential for success, including design, management, sustainability, business, medical packaging, food packaging, quality control, manufacturing, sales and supply chain.”

The program ��. dedicated faculty, including three professors and an adjunct professor with diverse expertise, ensures students are well-prepared for their careers. “We have excellent instructors and small class sizes that allow students to develop key skills for success,” added Provost Glendalí Rodríguez.

In addition to her faculty role, DeGruson is chair of the Food Packaging Division under the Institute of Food Technologists and is an Executive Committee member of Kilmer Innovation in Packaging. Liu recently worked with Madison-based Tricky Foods to identify sustainable insulation options to safely ship charcuterie and cheese boards coast to coast.

Students have the opportunity to join the Stout Packaging Association. They also participate in and are frequently awarded for their designs at national and international student competitions, including the Paperboard Packaging Alliance, International Molded Fiber Association, Flexible Packaging Association and 48HR REPACK, created by the Institute of Packaging Professionals. A team of students even won a competition sponsored by Kellanova, a division of Kellogg ��., and the Packaging Association of Canada, for their redesign of the iconic Pringles packaging.

�� is the only school among the Universities of Wisconsin that offers a bachelor ��. in packaging. Schools that ranked first and second in each list are Michigan State University and Clemson University.

�� also offers a minor in sustainability and a B.S. plastics engineering, in which faculty and students research how the plastics industry can be more sustainable, including by using more recycled materials.

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Applied learning, strong industry partnerships benefit students, create clear career pathways Students in the Packaging Lab

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Min DeGruson

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Royal Credit Union internship gives �� grad student opportunity to apply skills in data science, machine learning

giffeyt — Thu, 29 Jan 2026 15:00:00 +0000

Royal Credit Union internship gives �� grad student opportunity to apply skills in data science, machine learninggiffeyt January 29, 2026

M.S. applied computer science student finds workplaces experience aligns with coursework

Tom Giffey

A yearlong business intelligence internship at Royal Credit Union, one of Wisconsin ��. largest financial institutions, has helped a �� applied computer science graduate student gain confidence and skill in both data engineering and machine learning.

“It ��. been a fun experience. I’m really grateful,” said Justin George, who expects to receive his M.S. applied computer science degree in May. “This internship has been the best part of my Stout experience so far.”

George began his business intelligence internship last May at the Eau Claire-based financial institution, which serves 330,000 members through 28 branches in western Wisconsin and eastern Minnesota. Now in its third semester, George ��. internship has provided an opportunity for him to apply what he ��. learned through his degree program at Wisconsin ��. ��.

Professor Keith Wojciechowski of �� . Department of Math, Statistics and Computer Science, who encouraged George to pursue the internship, praised the graduate student for seizing the opportunity and making it a successful experience.

“One of the things that we emphasized and that he was very eager to do was to get an internship where he could apply those skills and learn on the job,” Wojciechowski said.

Lou Heimstead, Royal ��. business intelligence and analytics manager, supervises �� student Justin George during his internship.

Student ��. work makes business data visual

�� . M.S. applied computer science program provides professionals in a wide range of occupations a pathway to deepen their knowledge, skills and experience with computer systems that automate tasks, analyze data and create new workflows. Through the program, George has been able to focus on topics that interest him, such as data visualization and machine learning, both of which have played a role in his Royal internship.

Lou Heimstead, business intelligence and analytics manager at Royal, said George has been fully integrated into her team and its work. “He ��. not doing isolated intern tasks,” Heimstead said. “He ��. been learning and applying the same processes that our business intelligence analysts and data engineers use.”

And as George has continued to demonstrate his skills, the scope of the internship has expanded into the realm of machine learning, a subset of artificial intelligence in which algorithms are used to find patterns in data to make predictions without explicit programming.

“What he has added is the capacity to bring in his technical skills that align closely with what he ��. been studying at ��, specifically data science and machine learning,” Heimstead explained. “With that background, he ��. been able to contribute to more technical work that would otherwise compete for my senior analyst ��. time. So rather than replacing existing work, he ��. actually been expanding what the team can realistically take on, especially in areas requiring stronger programming, modeling and data science skills.”

Students from three Universities of Wisconsin campuses use machine learning to solve problems for Royal Credit Union

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Expanding machine learning applications

Last summer, four undergraduates — including two from �� — took part in a machine learning internship at Royal. They focused on writing software to dive into Royal ��. data and address two issues: The first was studying the factors that could lead members to leave the credit union, while the second aimed to determine a “next best product” that might interest an existing member. After the undergraduates’ internship ended last summer, George was asked to continue working with the machine learning-powered software models they built.

“It was not part of my job description, but since I was interested, they were happy to give me the opportunity to work on machine learning,” he said. As a result, George continues to hone his machine learning skills, while Royal continues to benefit from what the previous interns helped build.

Graduate student Justin George, at far right, in a �� Advanced Machine Learning class.

In fact, Heimstead said, George has enhanced and unified the multiple machine learning models into a single model for each issue. His work ensures the solution remains both usable and valuable. That continuity helps Royal keep the work ready to build on in the future.

George said the �� master ��. program offers a sharp contrast to his bachelor ��. degree experience. “Here I get the exposure of practical training and working on projects. There are so many internship opportunities, and they are directly aligned with my academics,” George said.

“I feel like the professors are very helpful,” he continued. “They are always making sure you are getting practical exposure. It ��. not just theory. That ��. something I like about Stout.”

Wojciechowski is impressed by George ��. hard work and adaptability in the Royal internship. “He ��. out there in the world solving problems,” Wojciechowski said.

Not only has George been able to tackle the tasks he was originally hired for, but he ��. been able to grow his skill set, too. “He ��. been able to adapt and evolve at Royal,” Wojciechowski said. “I think that speaks very well for him.”

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M.S. applied computer science student finds workplaces experience aligns with coursework RCU employee Lou Heimstead works with intern Justin George

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Hero Caption: M.S. applied computer science student Justin George interns at Royal Credit Union ��. Corporate Center in Eau Claire.

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Students from three Universities of Wisconsin campuses use machine learning to solve problems for Royal Credit Union

giffeyt — Mon, 26 Jan 2026 14:00:00 +0000

Students from three Universities of Wisconsin campuses use machine learning to solve problems for Royal Credit Uniongiffeyt January 26, 2026

Computer science students from ��, UWEC, UWRF exercise ‘exceptional’ AI acumen for leading financial institution

Tom Giffey

Three Universities of Wisconsin campuses partnered with Royal Credit Union to launch an innovative internship program using AI to support this Wisconsin-based financial institution. This story is one of four in a series showcasing the impact of this collaboration. Read more about the faculty who supported the internship, how the partnership supported the state's economic development and how the collaboration originated.

Computer science students from three Universities of Wisconsin campuses leveraged their knowledge of machine learning to address real-world questions for one of the state ��. largest credit unions in a unique internship program.

Four students — two from ��, one from UW-Eau Claire and one from UW-River Falls — honed their professional skills through internships with Royal Credit Union ��. AI Innovation Lab last summer. The internship was a pilot program to help Royal implement machine learning, a subset of artificial intelligence in which algorithms are used to find patterns in data to make predictions without explicit programming.

Chris Meyer, Royal ��. vice president of IT Innovation and Efficiency, said such partnerships with the Universities of Wisconsin provide “immeasurable” value for the credit union, which serves 330,000 members in western Wisconsin and eastern Minnesota.

“This particular program brought about an opportunity for us to try some new, innovative ideas without the risks of derailing existing strategic projects or core work that were going on with our existing teams,” Meyer said.

Royal Credit Union interns, left to right, Paige Keller of UW-Eau Claire, Mariah Waslie of UW-River Falls, Emmett Jaakkola of �� and Matthew Peplinski of ��. / Submitted photo

“The interns we worked with from ��, UW-River Falls and UW-Eau Claire absolutely exceeded our expectations,” he continued. “Not only did they bring exceptional skills immediately out of school into the workforce, but they brought a perspective that we don’t always see — a younger perspective in how to approach some of the projects we’re looking at.”

The student interns were Matthew Peplinski and Emmett Jaakkola of ��, Paige Keller of UW-Eau Claire, and Mariah Waslie of UW-River Falls.

“We got to fully make our own data set, run all these machine learning models, analyze the results, present them, double check our own processes, and lay out a foundation for the company. It ��. amazing what we could do as interns,” said Peplinski, of Milwaukee, who graduated in December with a B.S. in applied mathematics and computer science.

“We were the catalyst to all machine learning that Royal was delving into,” explained Jaakkola, of St. Paul, who graduated in December with degrees in both computer science and applied math and computer science.

Matthew Peplinski works on his laptop in an Advanced Machine Learning course at ��.

Leveraging students’ talents

Interns were recruited from the computer science programs at the three universities, all of which are within Royal ��. geographic footprint. Once the interns began working in June at the Royal Credit Union Corporate Center in Eau Claire, the students began brainstorming how they could apply their machine learning acumen to the financial institution.

Keller, a UW-Eau Claire senior from Crystal Lake, Illinois, majoring in computer science, was excited by the opportunity, which allowed the students to come up with their own use cases for machine learning. “It ��. almost like we were in the driver ��. seat as the interns, which was what I loved most about the experience,” Keller said.

For the first few weeks of the internship, the students delved into Royal ��. databases, learning what data was available, creating queries to gather it, and determining how it could be used to make projections.

Working with interns from multiple universities enhanced the experience because of the students’ varied experiences and curriculums, Keller said. “We all helped each other. We all asked each other questions,” Keller said. “We ran into the same roadblocks a lot of times, and so we had to come together and brainstorm. Having that experience from different backgrounds was very useful in coming up with different ideas.”

For example, Waslie — a UW-River Falls senior from Maiden Rock pursing a double major in computer science and data science — was adept at creating models with the programming language R, which the other interns had less experience with. Meanwhile, Peplinski used SQL to combine data and Python to develop models, while also bringing business skills to the table thanks to his �� minors in business and economics.

Universities of Wisconsin interns pose with Royal Credit Union employees Tad Carlson, far left, and Linda Kampa, far right. / Submitted photo

With the help of their team leader — Linda Kampa, a senior data engineer at Royal — the interns built a giant table set of more than 100 customer attributes, combining pieces of data from multiple sources. Once all this data had been gathered, the team tried to use it to predict members’ future behavior.

“Building out our own data set was a pretty astounding part of the internship, something that is pretty unique,” Peplinski said. His �� classmate, Jaakkola, agreed: “Working with a large database like that, it would be hard to get that experience without actually doing it.”

Over the course of the summer, the interns focused on two main classification problems. The first was to determine which factors indicated a member was about to leave the credit union: For example, was it when their balances reached a certain amount, or perhaps when a loan had been paid off? The second aimed to determine a “next best product” that would interest an existing member, similar to how a streaming service algorithm might recommend a new TV series.

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Jaakkola said he was well-prepared by his �� machine learning coursework to tackle problems for Royal. “I think the foundation we had from our classes really made it possible,” he said. Nonetheless, he added, the tasks were more complex: For example, while the queries he wrote for class might have included roughly 10 lines of code, some he wrote for Royal were as long as 1,000 lines.

The interns worked with managers from many of the credit union ��. departments, strengthening their communications skills in frequent meetings and presentations. Part of the project ��. goal, Peplinski said, was to create confidence that machine learning could supplement these managers’ own business intuitions.

Peplinski said the experience also helped him hone his technical communication skills. “In the same way that when you’re building machine learning models you iterate and make it better every iteration, I felt we also got better over time communicating results,” he said.

Emmett Jaakkola, right, in an Advanced Machine Learning course at ��.

Learning workforce skills

Professor Keith Wojciechowski of �� . Department of Math, Statistics and Computer Science, commended Royal Credit Union for putting trust in student interns to create algorithms for the financial institution. “This is like being part of a real research and development team,” Wojciechowski said.

Professor Keith Wojciechowski

During the course on the internship, Wojciechowski and faculty members from UW-River Falls and UW-Eau Claire met twice with the interns and the Royal Credit Union team, once in the middle of the summer and once at the end for a final showcase of their work.

“Not only are we impressed with their ability to solve the problems, but by their ability to present and work in a professional environment,” Wojciechowski said of the interns. “That ��. also a very important skill that they eventually have to learn.”

Kampa, the senior data engineer who worked side by side with the students, said part of the goal of the internship was to determine if Royal is ready to build machine learning models in-house. The interns, she said, were well-positioned to pursue the project.

“They came in with fresh ideas,” Kampa said. “None of them had a lot of financial background, but it was nice to have that clean slate. There were no preconceived notions of how something should work. It really led to a lot of unique and fresh perspectives, unbiased solutions and the recommendations that they made.”

Kampa said the interns arrived with excellent technical skills and absorbed new abilities quickly. The team experienced numerous “lightbulb moments” throughout the summer, she said.

“Early on in the internship, we were meeting to discuss what type of data we would be including to feed into the models,” Kampa recalled. “The idea that we were working through was really a complex concept to understand right away. We met a few times, we worked through some examples and did some whiteboard drawings, and to see the look on their faces when it clicked was really a rewarding experience for both me and the interns.”

Both businesses and students benefit from these collaborations, Kampa added. “Having the interns participate was a win-win for both Royal and the interns, because we got things up and running more quickly with their expertise from all the classes they’ve taken, and it gave the interns a chance to see what it ��. like to work in a business setting,” she said.

Having Universities of Wisconsin campuses nearby creates a talent pipeline for the credit union as well as other organizations in the region, added Meyer, Royal ��. vice president of IT Innovation and Efficiency. “The opportunity to work with faculty, who are experts in their areas, and students who are learning from them is something unique that we would not be able to do if we didn’t have those universities in our backyard,” he said. “And the opportunity to do that means that we can provide new value to our members, growing our organization in a way that would have been impossible without the universities’ presence.”

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AI reshaping industry: Advanced Machine Learning students develop impactful, competitive models

goersab — Thu, 22 Jan 2026 16:48:14 +0000

AI reshaping industry: Advanced Machine Learning students develop impactful, competitive modelsgoersab January 22, 2026

Projects result in innovative way to search course bulletin, play digital Othello board game

Abbey Goers

�� . 360-degree AI education approach prepares graduates to meet the needs of a rapidly evolving workforce by embedding artificial intelligence training in all of its degree programs. For two groups of applied mathematics and computer science students in an Advanced Machine Learning course, their final projects resulted in a model that could actively impact their institution and another that created a highly competitive AI opponent for a classic board game.

One group built a RAG model – or Retrieval Augmented Generation – to allow students to search the �� course bulletin in a much more engaging way. Another created a digital version of the board game Othello, using a Monte Carlo Tree Search (MCTS) and a database of top international players to train the model.

Matthew Peplinski presents on the group Stout Bulletin RAG project.

“The motivation of the class is for students to pick up a cutting-edge paper, read it, understand it and implement it. Five years from now, when they are in their careers, they’ll know how to read a tech-heavy math paper and translate it into code,” said AMCS Program Director, Professor Seth Dutter. “These are the types of top-tier projects I look to give my students. The experience sets them apart. That ��. polytechnic and gets to the point of ��.”

The Stout Bulletin RAG

In developing their group project, Tyler Smith, of Rochester; Matthew Peplinski, of Milwaukee; Aaron King, of Rhinelander; and Kyler Nikolai, of Rochester, wanted to create an easy way to gather information about �� . courses, degree programs, minors and certifications without having to read through the entire course bulletin.

“We created the Stout Bulletin RAG, which can take any question someone has about Stout ��. courses and programs and give them accurate information back within a couple of seconds,” Smith said. “A new student could use the program when applying to Stout to find out what classes and programs are offered, or a current student could use it when scheduling their classes for the next semester. The program actively uses ChatGPT to curate a response that provides the necessary information in a nice way. It also gives ChatGPT more specific information because the data is directly from the current Stout bulletin, so there will be no mistakes in finding old or irrelevant information.”

The group demonstrates the Stout Bulletin RAG in a final project presentation.

A RAG model allows the user to describe what they are looking for in sentence form, rather than just by using a single word search. The model consists of three parts, Smith explained: the prompt, the retrieval of data and the response from a LLM, or large language model. The prompt is what the user, like a student, asks the model. The model then searches through the stored data and finds what sentences, paragraphs or documents of text are most similar to the question asked.

“This is determined by an embedding model, which, in short, is a specific model trained to find similarities between text using a vector space,” he said. “The RAG then retrieves the top results of the most similar text and throws it into a new prompt. This prompt has all the details of the question asked, the information retrieved, and any rules in place, so when the model gets an LLM, like ChatGPT, to summarize the information, the LLM will not make up information it does not have.”

Peplinski added that the point of the RAG is to leverage existing LLM models’ reasoning capabilities, utilizing information that it was not trained on. “We used two different AI models in the process, one for the text embedding and one for the summarization,” he said. “The embedding model was used to determine how similar a user ��. question is to the information available in our data set. We then pulled the top five most similar bits of information and sent that to the LLM, or ChatGPT, in our case. The LLM was used only to give the summary of the information that we provided it and given strict instruction to not make up false information.”

An example of a response generated by the Stout Bulletin RAG. / Tyler Smith

Peplinski and Smith thought the best part of the project was seeing how thorough their RAG model was during the final class presentation, as it nearly flawlessly answered prompts and challenges given by attendees.

The most challenging part was gathering all of �� . program information and automating the data collection process so they would not have to write it out manually.

Smith will graduate this spring and will begin work at Federated Insurance this summer. He feels the project helped prepare him for industry, as many companies already use internal chatbots to search documents. “They are very likely using similar RAG model structures to what we created. So, going into industry with that knowledge is helpful,” he said.

Dutter agreed, adding, “Companies would benefit from employees who know how to code a RAG. It ��. a useful skill to help a company that wants to be able to search for information within its sometimes decades worth of documents.”

Othello AI project

In four days, Nathan LaCrosse, of Portage; Noah Stitgen, of Lodi; Jake Swanson, of Eden Prairie, Minnesota; and Lindsey Redepenning, of Elk River, Minnesota, programmed their digital Othello version from scratch, creating an interface and teaching the AI model parameters of play, how to capture an opponent ��. piece, and conditions to win the game. Over the next two weeks of the project, they optimized the game to make the most challenging, hyper-aggressive AI opponent they could.

Download their game at GitHub.

Nathan LaCrosse presents on the group Othello AI project.

LaCrosse originally wanted to select chess for the group ��. project, but they decided on Othello, as it ��. a simpler board game that ��. easy to watch and play. Also, unlike checkers, Othello cannot end in a draw.

The group used an MCTS, a lightning-fast algorithm used in AI for decision-making processes, particularly in games, to develop their model. It simulated 3,500 Othello games per second. “When the MCTS evaluates a board position, it plays out a bunch of random games and picks the move that statistically leads to a win,” LaCrosse said.

They were challenged by the tree search to make sure it worked properly. “We actually discovered that we had programmed the game incorrectly because the algorithm was finding glitched moves that gave it an unfair advantage,” LaCrosse said.

An example of opponents' positions in the AI board game of Othello. / Nathan LaCrosse

They later added a neural network to the tree search that studied a database of top French Othello players. They used the database to train the network.

The group enjoyed playing against all the variations of gameplay the model allowed. In the published version, they selected the tree search that had the most unique playstyle, LaCrosse said.

“This project prepared us for industry because it familiarized us with the process of creating a full application, where we had everyone working on different elements of the program and combined it all together in the end,” said LaCrosse, who plans to pursue a Ph.D. in computer science.

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Breaking ground for polytechnic partnerships: �� top story highlights of 2025

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Breaking ground for polytechnic partnerships: �� top story highlights of 2025 giffeyt January 21, 2026

Heritage Hall renovation, AI innovations, industry-sponsored focus among year ��. notable headlines

It was a year of big things at ��, from breaking ground for the biggest construction project in university history to posting some of the most notable enrollment growth in the Universities of Wisconsin to being chosen as the area ��. Large Business of the Year.

In 2025, Wisconsin ��. �� also earned big accolades, such as being named one of America ��. Best Colleges by Money Magazine for the second year in a row and made big waves by continuing to break down barriers and redefine higher education for the 21st century.

These milestones are just some of the university ��. Stout Story highlights as it looks back at 2025.

Reinvigorating renovations

The university began its fall 2025 semester with a groundbreaking for the long-awaited $144.3 million Heritage Hall renovation project, which will transform the half-century-old building into a cutting-edge educational hub to help meet Wisconsin ��. workforce needs. The project, which is expected to be finished in 2028, will be paid for with funding from the state as well as $13.5 million donated by university supporters, industry partners and alumni.

‘Power of Partnership’: �� celebrates groundbreaking for $144M Heritage Hall renovation

Chancellor, lawmakers, community and campus leaders join to highlight project that will boost Wisconsin workforce

“The renovation of Heritage Hall is a direct reflection of our mission as Wisconsin ��. ��: to provide career-focused, applied learning and research, and industry collaboration that meets the evolving needs of the state ��. workforce and communities,” Chancellor Katherine Frank said.

The campus also looked forward to another major project, a $31.7 million revitalization of the Recreation Complex. Funded through the 2025-27 state budget as well as a record-setting $5 million gift, the renovations are expected to begin this year. And in October, �� celebrated the opening of a $1 million Esports Arena, a new high-tech home for the championship-caliber esports team.

Advances in AI

Artificial intelligence isn’t a stand-alone subject at �� — it ��. been integrated across all programs, a 360-degree approach to create tomorrow ��. AI-ready workforce.

“Equipping students from every major with AI skills is not only important but necessary,” said engineering and technology Assistant Professor Yuan Xing, who is working with applied social science Professor Tina Lee on a cross-disciplinary program focused on an AI-enhanced farming robot.

AI, fully integrated: �� . 360-degree approach to artificial intelligence embeds skills across all programs

‘Equipping students from every major with AI skills is not only important but necessary.’

The university ��. AI Fellows and AI Innovation Committee, led by faculty and staff, ensure AI is embedded into learning, operations and innovation, while directing AI integration, governance, ethics and literacy. Among the many examples of faculty engagement with AI include employing machine learning in engineering and manufacturing processes as well as comparing human and AI-generated written communication.

Assistant Professor Cami Banger, program director of business information technology and digital marketing technology, created a business technology class with AI “baked in,” while Professor Betsy Pudliner used AI-driven prompts to transform hospitality industry experiences into interactive online course content.

Meanwhile, a $647,000 grant from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation will allow �� . Center for Advanced Manufacturing and Artificial Intelligence – CAM-AI – to provide advanced manufacturing and AI support to small- and medium-sized manufacturers.

Upgrading STEMM spaces

The completion of a two-year, $7.4 million renovation project ensured that labs in the Jarvis Hall Technology Wing provide the technology, accessibility and visibility necessary for students to succeed in Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics & Management.

Some of the new equipment in labs in both Jarvis and Fryklund halls — including production-level 3D printers, a fully-integrated automated manufacturing system and more — was funded through a $3.1 million donation from the Ronald and Joyce Wanek Foundation. The gift was the result of an ongoing partnership between �� and the Wanek family and their business, Ashley Furniture Industries, based in Arcadia.

Ronald & Joyce Wanek Foundation donation transforms labs with advanced manufacturing equipment

Machinery for automated manufacturing, 3D printing and more will impact thousands of students’ polytechnic experiences

Such campus labs create space for innovation, such as work by Associate Professor Kevin MacDonald, director of the B.S. construction management program, and his students to create innovative low-carbon concrete using blast-furnace slag, which was tested in April in a campus project.

Labs also provide workspaces for students like mechanical engineering senior Heidi Benningfield, who received more than tuition and an internship through the U.S. military ��. SMART Scholarship program. After graduation, she ��. guaranteed a job with the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command in Huntsville, Alabama.

Other students brought research on optimizing plant growth through the use of robotics to the national stage, while a faculty-student collaboration created software for making better 3D models of priceless objects in museums from Minneapolis to Amsterdam.

Degree and university programs honored

�� and its programs continued to rake in top rankings in 2025. Princeton Review listed �� . undergraduate game design programs, which include the B.F.A. game design and development and B.S. computer science – game design concentration, No. 5 in the Midwest and No. 24 worldwide.

�� . game design programs ranked among international best by Princeton Review

Side gigs at Roblox, Respawn strengthen students’ skills; Stout Game Expo on May 8

�� . Bachelor of Science in cybersecurity was named a Top 25 Best Value Cybersecurity Degree Bachelor ��. Program in the U.S. by Programs.com, the only Wisconsin program on the list. And U.S. News and World Report said �� had some of the Best Online Programs in the nation, including the M.S. manufacturing engineering online (Top 20 in the Midwest), the M.S. education online (Top 45 in the Midwest), and the B.S. management and leadership online (Top 15 in the Midwest).

University programs also garnered state and national honors, with the Grow, Persist, Succeed on-campus job program earning an Academic Staff Excellence Award from the Universities of Wisconsin Board of Regents and the Stout Vocational Rehabilitation Institute receiving the annual W.F. Faulkes Award from the National Rehabilitation Association for its nearly 60 years of helping tens of thousands of Americans with disabilities.

High-ranking services for veterans

For veterans and active military students, �� was named to the 2025 Best for Vets Colleges list by Military Times for its commitment to serving veterans and their families, ranking first in Wisconsin among traditional and online universities.

Serving those who served: �� among top 25 in Midwest on annual Best for Vets list

University lauded by Military Times for services to veterans, their families

The university was also honored as a Military Friendly® School. Its silver designation marked the 16th consecutive year the university was named a Military Friendly® School for its efforts to offer service and support to meet the needs of military students. It was also named a 2025-26 Military Spouse Friendly School.

Army ROTC Northwoods Battalion students learn leadership theory, time management skills, basic soldier skills, map reading and other skills from experienced Army leaders. �� has a long-standing agreement with the Air Force ROTC program at University of St. Thomas, in St. Paul – a unique agreement among Wisconsin universities – that allows students to enroll in Air Force ROTC classes while completing their degrees.

Top design awards

While ��'s School of Art & Design celebrated its 60th anniversary, students from across degree programs celebrated top wins in state, national and international competitions.

Interior design senior Khendra Thompson rose to the challenge at the 12th Annual Steelcase NEXT Student Design Competition and won with her design of a 16,000-square-foot workplace spread across two floors in a Chicago office building, beating four other finalists from a field that began with 1,600 students from across the continent.

Interior design student tops international field to win Steelcase competition

Interior design majors who entered the 12th Annual Steelcase NEXT Student Design Competition faced a lofty challenge.

To address the concern of microplastics in food and water, Master of Fine Arts in design student Ashley Jandro created a social awareness campaign called “MicroWhat?,” for which she received a Student – Integrated Consumer Campaign Silver Pin at the Minnesota AdFed awards, sponsored by the Advertising Federation of Minnesota.

A team of four packaging students won first place among university teams from around the globe in the 2025 International Molded Fiber Association Student Competition. They created a sustainable packaging solution for a waffle iron, previously packaged in polystyrene, and replaced the components with molded fiber.

The claustrophobic, cooperative game Dread Not, in which players try to survive a sinking submarine, won the award for Best Student Entry at M+DEV, the largest game industry conference in the Midwest. Dread Not was developed by a team of 15 game design students.

With a design inspired by her adventures with her black lab, Max, studio art major Jaelyn Logterman won the 2026 Wisconsin State Park and Forest vehicle admission pass design contest, announced by the state ��. Department of Natural Resources.

Students lending a Helping Hand

Two interior design students are working to ensure their peers have a more efficient, comfortable and warm experience at Helping Hand Food+ Pantry, the university ��. student pantry. Emma Walstra and Klaire Johnson, project co-leads, reimagined the pantry space to create an “atmosphere that reflects the care �� places in serving its students.”

Interior design program partners with Helping Hand pantry to highlight ‘essential campus resource’

Student design team reimagines pantry space to ensure peers have comfortable, warm experience

In a cross-disciplinary collaboration, four groups of students in a Light Construction Methods class built two raised garden beds, one raised tool bench and one raised tool holder for The Neighbors of Dunn County, a senior living home. The project was part of a service-learning activity and was launched last summer during a new STEAM camp for high school students.

A team of animation and digital media students collaborated with Dunn County Humane Society to develop a public service announcement as part of the Animation Production junior capstone class. Their 72-second 2D animated film, “Stray,” was created to help advocate for pet adoption. The informative short features Bow, a stray orange tabby cat rescued during Wisconsin ��. bitter winter.

Industry-sponsored projects are standard practice

Arcadia-based Ashley Furniture sponsored multiple engineering student projects in 2025. A team of students, including Inspiring Graduates Luke Mertens and Zachary Morgan, designed an innovative nonstandard pallet stacker. Ashley Manufacturing Engineer Erik Kramer, the team ��. project manager, said, “The �� team built a better system, a better product for us. Now, with the team ��. documentation, our automation team can replicate their functional design to build six more stackers for our facilities.”

All stacked up: Ashley Furniture-sponsored project results in ‘better product’ developed by engineering seniors

Student team builds functional nonstandard pallet stacker to be implemented, replicated in company ��. facilities

Students also developed toolless bed connections for Ashley and worked in eight cross-disciplinary groups to research market trends, ideate preliminary designs, test materials and build professional prototypes. The class traveled to Ashley for a tour of the facility and to present their prototypes to the R&D team.

Packaging faculty and student research is poised to help Madison-based Tricky Foods deliver its tasty but temperature-sensitive charcuterie boards coast to coast. Associate Professor Kate Liu of �� . packaging program worked with Tricky Foods to test the insulating abilities of two eco-friendly packaging options – one made of cornstarch, the other of recycled paper.

Three industrial and product design students were awarded a cash prize by Room & Board in exchange for the rights to produce their designs if they choose. The senior’ project focused on storage solutions for media, dining, living, entry, bathroom and kitchen systems.

Blue Devil athletes excelling

The �� Blue Devil women ��. basketball team ��. Cinderella run to the Final Four last March marked the team ��. best-ever performance in the NCAA Division III National Tournament. They completed their historic season with a 23-8 record, going 10-4 in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletics Conference. Senior Raegen Sorensen became ��'s all-time leading scorer with 1,754 career points.

Blue Devil women ��. basketball makes history in Cinderella run to the Final Four

Records set in tenacious battle against undefeated, defending champions NYU

Gymnast Jamie Beatty delivered a historic performance at the National Collegiate Gymnastics Association National Championships, capturing national titles in both the all-around and the uneven bars and being named WIAC Newcomer of the Year.

The inaugural women ��. flag football team hoisted the Midwest College Women ��. Flag Football League Championship trophy at the Minnesota Vikings’ TCO Performance Center in April. �� was a founding member of the collegiate league, which was kickstarted with support from the Vikings.

Women ��. golf took the WIAC conference championship, where they triumphed by a near-record margin. Sophomore Julia Imai and junior Brin Neumann placed first and second individually.

Blue Devils football made history at Bank of Sun Prairie Stadium, earning the program ��. first-ever postseason victory with a 31-23 win over Washington University in the Culver's Isthmus Bowl. �� finishes the season 6-5 for their second straight winning season.

Officer Harvey: University Police therapy-dog-in-training is already warming hearts

The newest police officer at the University of Wisconsin-Stout is also the department ��. furriest.

BONUS: Introducing Officer Harvey

Officer Harvey, a therapy dog in training, joined ��'s University Police as its newest member in March. Once Harvey is fully trained, he will serve University Police by assisting people experiencing mental health crises as well as victims of crime and will help the department bridge the gap with members of the community, said University Police Chief Gregory Kalosis.

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January 21, 2026

Heritage Hall renovation, AI innovations, industry-sponsored focus among year ��. notable headlines Dignitaries with shovels at Heritage Hall groundbreaking

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Breaking ground for polytechnic partnerships: �������� top story highlights of 2025

Reinvigorating renovations

‘Power of Partnership’: �������� celebrates groundbreaking for $144M Heritage Hall renovation

Advances in AI

AI, fully integrated: �������� ��������. 360-degree approach to artificial intelligence embeds skills across all programs

Upgrading STEMM spaces

Ronald & Joyce Wanek Foundation donation transforms labs with advanced manufacturing equipment

Degree and university programs honored

�������� ��������. game design programs ranked among international best by Princeton Review

High-ranking services for veterans

Serving those who served: �������� among top 25 in Midwest on annual Best for Vets list

Top design awards

Interior design student tops international field to win Steelcase competition

Students lending a Helping Hand

Interior design program partners with Helping Hand pantry to highlight ‘essential campus resource’

Industry-sponsored projects are standard practice

All stacked up: Ashley Furniture-sponsored project results in ‘better product’ developed by engineering seniors

Blue Devil athletes excelling

Blue Devil women ��������. basketball makes history in Cinderella run to the Final Four

Officer Harvey: University Police therapy-dog-in-training is already warming hearts

BONUS: Introducing Officer Harvey

Our Polytechnic Advantage

Inspiring Graduates Share Their Stout Experiences

�� cybersecurity program ranks No. 14 in nation as students excel in cyber defense competitions

Cybersecurity degree, internships underscore ��'s renewed designation as national cybersecurity center

Career-connected learning: SkillsUSA brings nearly 400 middle, high school students to ��

�� announces Latha Ramakrishnan as provost and vice chancellor for Academic Affairs

Building with air – how nature ��. hole-filled blueprints shape manufacturing

�� . packaging program ranks among top 10 in national listings for its polytechnic approach

Royal Credit Union internship gives �� grad student opportunity to apply skills in data science, machine learning

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Breaking ground for polytechnic partnerships: �� top story highlights of 2025

‘Power of Partnership’: �� celebrates groundbreaking for $144M Heritage Hall renovation

AI, fully integrated: �� . 360-degree approach to artificial intelligence embeds skills across all programs

�� . game design programs ranked among international best by Princeton Review

Serving those who served: �� among top 25 in Midwest on annual Best for Vets list

Blue Devil women ��. basketball makes history in Cinderella run to the Final Four