Governor Scott Walker Visits Campus

The talkative crowd comprised of students, staff, and adults silenced almost immediately as Wisconsin’s polarizing governor walked in towards the Campus Center stage. On February 11, Governor Scott Walker arrived at St. Norbert College to outline the new budget proposal that included 7.4 million dollars to be appropriated to the establishment of two new Medical College of Wisconsin campuses, one in Wausau, the other situated in St. Norbert's to-be-reconstructed science building.

            Walker, the subject of vehement political contention stemming from his audacious extraction of the state union's bargaining power, took less than a sentence to reference those sweeping legislative actions, to instead emphasize the result: a balanced budget, and a surplus to be utilized for the state's benefit. Walker expressed the budget proposal’s ambition to not only train physicians, but to enact means (as of yet unspecified) to keep those newly trained professionals within the state.

            St. Norbert President, Thomas Kunkel, and Green Bay Mayor, Jim Schmitt, attended the presentation, with Kunkel providing a short introduction for the governor. Before launching into his financial plan, Walker anecdotally mentioned his two sons, one being a college freshmen, to the predominantly undergraduate audience in order to convey that he can relate to the students. After his statement, Walker took time to step down from the stage and shake hands, scribble out a few signatures, talk with the press, and smile for photos captured frequently by smart phones.