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The Elf of Monroe Campus

January 12, 2021

The holiday season is when Tracey Wren shines. While her family and friends see her as their own personal Buddy the Elf with her crafting and decorating skills, the Monroe Campus is blessed to have her bring her brand of festivity and joy to their buildings every day. While she doesn’t run exclusively on syrup and candy, her daily work as an Administrative Assistant requires her to keep information flowing. She also assists students with registration and payments, schedules credit and community education courses, and proctors tests - which means she is always making a list and checking it twice.

When Tracey’s youngest son went off to kindergarten, she decided to return to work. “I saw the position for Library Assistant in the paper,” she recalled. “I have always considered myself a lifelong learner. My home collection of books is a clear indication of this. The position allowed for flexibility and also allowed me to be involved in the community and school district.”

That position led her to work as a Continuing Education Specialist, where she was responsible for scheduling community education courses in Green County. At the time, she was also the Monroe Student Activities Advisor, which allowed her to get to know the students. “I enjoy my current role because of the variety of things I get to do on a daily basis and the way it’s a mix of what I’ve done up to now. No day ever looks the same.”

As a part of Blackhawk Tech for the past 13 years, Tracey has become an advocate for the Monroe Campus. Sometimes, there is such a focus on the main campus that other campuses can feel like their needs aren’t being heard or addressed. To make sure that the college community as a whole keeps the needs of satellite campuses in mind, Tracey serves on four college-wide campus committees. This allows her to continually advocate for the students and staff who learn and work there every day.  

The Monroe Campus has multiple academic programs they offer exclusively, including Laboratory Technician AssistantMedical Laboratory TechnicianLab Food Science TechnicianAgribusiness Specialist, and Agribusiness Science and Technology. Other academic opportunities at the Monroe campus include short-term certificates in Business Management, Emergency Medical Technician, Nursing Assistant, and general education courses.

Along with the Central Campus, the Monroe Campus offers advising and financial aid support and allows students to register for classes. The facility also has four computer labs featuring state-of-the-art equipment, a distance learning lab designed for global classroom connections, and a media center. In 2019, the campus added a new greenhouse, flexible agriculture workshop, and enhanced food lab to support the programs further. 

As with most Blackhawk staff, Tracey finds joy in the fact that her everyday work allows her to be a part of helping students reach their academic and career goals. “It is gratifying,” she said, “to see someone earn their degree and see them through the process from beginning to when they graduate. Seeing a student realize their potential and achieve their goals is very exciting!”

When students seek her advice, she is quick to give them the piece of advice that has served her well in her always changing day-to-day work, “hone your time management skills and always remain flexible, as these will always serve you well in life.”

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