Wagner Rotary members were greeted by a different President on May 15th for their weekly meeting. Rotarian Bill Frei, a former president was standing in for current president Jerry Weber as the weather was sunny and warm. Jerry needed to get in the fields. Rotarian Bill was very gentle on the bell which was a welcome improvement over President Jerry’s earth-shattering rings!

Pastor Bill Herrmann was called upon to give the blessing. He gave thanks for the sunny beautiful day and the warm weather. He prayed for more heat to dry up the muddy fields and gave thanks for the food that will enable us to carry out His work.

Guests were Gerrit Juffers youngest daughter and Dana Sanderson, guest of Roger Wiltz

Rotarian Laurie Kidd played “You’re a Grand Old Flag” which everyone knew. Joe Stedronsky was the lucky winner of the ticket drawing, but he only drew a Jack of Clubs from the remaining cards. $21 was collected for the day which brought the Jackpot up to $604.00

Sec.-Treas. Patty Frei reported 2 misses on the Henke Team and 3 Misses on the Frei Team which leaves the teams tied at 8 misses apiece.

Jerry Weber was the Program Chairmen of the day, but he had Rotarian Roger Wiltz filling in for him. Dana Sanderson, former Guidance Counselor from WCS introduced Mr. Clayton Deuter, the Dean of Enrollment Services from Mitchell Technical Institute, Mitchell, South Dakota.

Mr. Deuter informed the club that SD MTI has been named as one of the 10 finalists for the 2019 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence. MTI has a 73% three-year graduation/transfer rate. That is nearly double the national average of 40%. 99% of students in the past four years were employed within six months of graduating.

MTI has an impressive alignment with regional workforce needs; and often secures jobs for graduates before they leave campus. They have a high success rate of ensuring that students are prepared to enter the workforce. Over 250 scholarships and workforce partnerships totaling $330,500.00 were awarded for the 2018-2019 academic year. 89 MTI students received Build Dakota Scholarships totaling $1,055,00.00 for the 2018-2019 academic year.

They have a Workforce Recruitment Program that helps a company sponsor a student in a program related to that business. Their Build Dakota Scholarship Program is offered to train workers to specifically fill skilled positions in SD industries. Students can be awarded a full ride in an eligible program.

MTI invites anyone to come and see for yourself by sitting in on a class, take a campus tour, and talk with students and faculty. They sponsor MyTI Camps in October and November, and March for different programs. They have one more Exploration Day scheduled for July 17, 2019.

At a time when many four-year colleges are experiencing dropping enrollment figures, MTI has increased enrollment by 35% in the last five years.