Questions Raised About WCTC's Advanced Technology Centers

Waukesha County Technical College (WCTC) is planning to use the same discredited management structure that has been severely criticized at Gateway Tech for wasting millions of taxpayer dollars.

The Wisconsin Legislative Audit Bureau (LAB), the Department of Justice and Democratic state legislators have all criticized Gateway for establishing a private non-for-profit corporation to run its Advanced Technology Centers (ATCs). Millions of dollars were diverted from technical education and student services to the control of a private board that was not accountable to the public and did not follow open meetings laws.

The LAB reported that Gateway’s ATC’s trained very few students and duplicated existing Gateway educational programs. Ironically, none of the Republican legislators who inaccurately criticized MATC, its faculty and staff at a recent LAB Committee hearing (See MATC Fact Sheet) have uttered a word about Gateway’s misuse of taxpayer dollars.

Three years ago the Milwaukee Area Technical College District Board voted to oppose legislation that would have allowed technical colleges to establish private non-profit boards to provide training. The Board’s opposition was based on its concern that diverting public dollars to private boards undermines transparency and public accountability and is a surreptitious way to try to circumvent labor agreements. All of these emerged as problems at Gateway.

Governor Doyle vetoed the Wisconsin Advantage Bill sponsored by Republican Senator Joe Leibham because of Doyle’s concerns that the legislation undermined public scrutiny and accountability. He was more than prescient in foreseeing the problems that have been uncovered at Gateway.

WCTC's rational for establishing a separate 501c3, non-profit corporation is identical to the rational first used at Gateway.

The argument that private non-profit organizations should control public funds and assets has been used repeatedly with dismal results. It is often justified by suggesting that private boards will generate more donations. When such projections fail, as they inevitably have, it is the public entity that is held accountable. Gateway is only the most recent example.

The Milwaukee Public Museum is an even more glaring example. A private not-for-profit board was given control of the Museum's operations. In return, the community was promised a more efficient operation and increased donations. It got neither. The museum, removed from public scrutiny, was grossly mismanaged. When the Museum's financial crisis finally became public, it was Milwaukee County that was held responsible!

There are no quick and easy fixes. Or as President Reagan used to say: "There is no such thing as a free lunch."

If the public is going to provide technical colleges with up to $5 million dollars to construct Advanced Technology Centers, these dollars and the ATC's operation should be under the control of the District Boards which have the fiduciary responsibility for managing the public's technical college assets and are its governing boards.

See The Journal Sentinal Article "A Building Concern: Critics doubt management for WCTC Tech Center"