A historic alliance was created Monday, June 18, when representatives of Stora Enso North America (SENA), the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (UW-SP) and Mid-State Technical College (MSTC) pledged to work together to meet the educational and training needs of SENA's 6,500 employees in Wisconsin and Minnesota.
MSTC President Brian Oehler and UWSP Chancellor Thomas George joined Gary Parafinczuk, SENA's senior vice president of human resources in signing the agreement to develop courses and hire instructors based upon needs assessments conducted at SENA's eight business units.
With its purchase of Consolidated Papers, "Stora Enso brought the economy of central Wisconsin to a new level of global involvement," said UW-SP Chancellor Tom George. "Now the company's contract for educational services with UW-SP and Mid-State Technical College brings higher education in central Wisconsin to a greater degree of collaboration with the business community.
"We are excited by the opportunity to form this partnership. This education and training agreement will serve as a model for other businesses looking for a means of assuring a highly trained, well-educated workforce at all levels of their organizations."
Oehler said, "Our ability to bring customized training directly to Stora Enso will save them time and money resulting in higher skills and even more productive employees. "MSTC instructors are professionals with practical job experience in their respective fields, thus ensuring that SENA employees will receive the highest quality instruction available."
The program will be coordinated at Stora Enso's Wisconsin Rapids offices where a facilitator will work with personnel at the company's sites to understand their training needs and bring the findings back to the two schools.
MSTC and UW-SP will then collaborate with their respective faculty to help develop the appropriate credit and certificate courses. The alliance will involve comprehensive training services, including on-site seminars, classes, training and technical assistance geared to meet the specific needs of SENA.
SENA's commitment of resources for employee training will create additional opportunities for employees to complete coursework toward a certificate, an associate degree or a bachelor's degree. UW-SP's Paper Academy program currently provides training in managerial and technical skills for paper industry employees that lead to certificates in those specialty areas.
"By attaching credit options to certificate programs like we do now with our managerial option, employees will be able to work toward a bachelor's degree," said UW-SP project manager Sue Gunderson. "We're optimistic that in the future this partnership will be so beneficial to all parties, it will evolve into its own educational entity to serve industry."
John Clark, vice president of academic affairs at MSTC, said, "The flexibility of this alliance means SENA can reach its fullest potential with training courses specifically targeted to meet its needs."
Classes will be offered at SENA facilities, at both colleges and at the Education and Training Center housed in the Portage County Business Park.
Stora Enso North America, a division of Stora Enso Oyj, has papermaking operations in Wisconsin Rapids, Stevens Point, Whiting, Kimberly, Niagara and Biron, plus Duluth, Minn., and Port Hawkesbury, Nova Scotia, Canada.