Work & Water
Photos by Mike Graff and Nate Grimm
Working Lives:
Protecting the Water
Map illustration by Julia Gueller (Artist statement)
Working Lives Protecting the Water
[Artist's Statement]
[Artist's Statement]
Slinger Area Groups
Lake Protection & Rehab. Districts
-Big Cedar Lake link
*Work Roles (Student paper)
-Little Cedar Lake link
*PPT from SHS presentation
-Pike Lake
* excerpt from student interview w/board member
Conservation Groups
-Cedar Lake Conservation Foundation (CLCF) link
*Spring 2017 SHS visit link
-Ozaukee/Washington County Land Trust (OWLT)
link to student paper
link to website
Testing the Waters Program
-website link
-SHS video w/River Edge Nature Center, SHS transcripts
Village of Slinger
-link to Public Works Administrator video excerpt
-link to Water Utility Director transcript
-link to student created water tip sheet for Villagers
Towns
-Town of Addison Sanitary District link
Washington County
-Washington County Land & Water Use Conservation Dept. link
State of Wisconsin
-DNR link
-WI Conservation Congress link
-Pike Lake link *audio clip about community
Working to Protect Local Waters
Dan Carroll (BCLPRD)
Bob Lee (DNR)
Brad Steckart (County AIS)
Lee Krueger (CLCF Invasives)
Steph Egner (County)
Mary Franz (CLCF)
Priscilla Galasso
Click pictures to explore student work
Greg Moser (Village of Slinger)
"Big Cedar Lake is one of deepest and cleanest lakes in the state and our job is to keep it that way." Mike Burns (BCLPRD commission member)
Water & Business
Global Water Center
Student reflections after GWC site visit
"I learned on this site visit how much I take water for granted.
We often don't realize that there is a
process behind getting us fresh water."
"The way the workers worked together
at the Global Water Center
reminded me of an ecosystem.
TheY may come from different places and have different backgrounds but they work well in harmony together."
"Water technology innovators, who can help
people and companies better use their water resources,
have an opportunity right now to be key players in the global community."
-The Water Council website
Click on the pictures below to find out more about the individual workers
Many different companies that I thought had no business in the water industry were there. The WI Historical Society was one of those. The Water Council also encourages students to get involved with water education, and that is why they have the two top floors dedicated to colleges.
I learned that the Global Water Center focuses on finding the root of the water issues and they build new technology and infrastructure based on new ideas coming from entrepreneurs and other businesses.
Photos by Nate Grimm and Victoria Volkmann
Elizabeth Thelen:
Water Council Director of Entrepreneurship & Talent
Kristen Leffelmann:
WI Historical Society
Evan Nisbet:
Graef USA, Water Engineer
The Water Council links together global water technology companies, innovative water entrepreneurs, government agencies, non-government agencies, acclaimed academic research programs and some of the brightest and most energetic water professionals.
Wellntel
Click here for official website
Photos by Nate Grimm and Victoria Volkmann
Nicholas Hayes
Marian Singer
“We know more about where all the oil is underground than the water underground.
Lacking that information,
we decided to form a business that was designed to help anyone who wants access to information about groundwater
... its quantity, how much is there, how long it will last and if it can be consumed.” - Nicholas Hayes
Slinger High School teachers first found about Wellntel when a Slinger graduate, Kate Hoagland, was working there part-time while working on her engineering degree at UW-Milwaukee. Instructors visited first in the summer of 2016 when Wellntel was at the Global Water Center before conducting a site visit with students in April 2017 to their larger location on Hamilton Street on the east side of Milwaukee, WI.
Click here for student data from a site visit and interview which can help explain the mission of Wellntel, who works there, and their attempts at creating community networks.
Potable Aqua
at Wisconsin Pharmacal
Senior Vice President of Marketing for Wisconsin Pharmacal, Andy Wundrock, visited Slinger High School to explain the local, national, and global impact of one their products, the Potable Aqua tablet and electrolytic water purifier. He also discussed his job as a marketer and company history in Jackson, WI. His father, John, bought the company in 1970. Photo by Amy Keliher.
The electrolytic water purifier creates a brine solution that can purify 1 to 20 liters of water at a time. The product is long-lasting and cost efficient over time. Students led a school-wide fundraiser to raise money for Hope Without Borders to purchase 4 devices from Wisconsin Pharmacal for use for people in Africa who don't have access to clean water. 3.5 billion people die each year from unsafe drinking water according to Wundrock. Photo by Nate Grimm.
Quality control worker, Mary Wundrock, discusses her work, and the work of others on an April 26, 2017 site visit to the business. Students observe workplace culture and also get to see how Potable Aqua is made. Students saw science lessons applied in work world. Photo by Nate Grimm.
John Wundrock, owner of Wisconsin Pharmacal, discussing the production process with students. Photo by Victoria Volkmann.
"Not only is communication used within the production, lab, and marketing areas to the company but there is also interdepartmental communication."
--Student site visit reflection
*Click here for student data from interviews, site visits (under construction)
*Click here for audio of Andy Wundrock describing Potable Aqua product at Working Lives session for sociology students
"What stood out to me the most at the Wisconsin Pharmacal visit was just the amount of work that went into every step of the process to make sure that the customers have the best product and experience possible.
The label alone had numerous drafts until they are decided upon by the company and buyer. They do so many lab testings (over 200 a week) to make sure it is quality product.
It's awesome to see a company so close to our home is a huge competitor among the product lines in the grand scheme of things."
- Student after site visit to see Potable Aqua production steps
Other Water-Related Business Studied:
Working Lives, Water, and Roads
Firefighting and First Responding
Water Training/Water Delivery: Training Session video by Victoria Volkmann.
Click here for student producer reflection.
Work and Transportation
“Railroad work is not a job but a lifestyle” Don Barse, retired local railroad worker
“Railroads have really taken control of technology. They used to talk about the railroad being so labor intensive. It still is but we are doing a tremendous amount of work with fewer people.” Don Barse, retired local railroad worker
Railroad
Crystal DuPont: Project Manager for Renovation of Milwaukee Intermodal Station, Co-chairperson of National Rail Committee (2017)
“Transportation is one of the most important factors in working lives. Not only does it provide steady, well paying jobs in construction, planning, engineering, architecture, and so many more, it is integral to society. Without transportation, global society would collapse, and people would be closed off from others. Transit is like your circulatory system. Without it, your blood can’t flow through your veins, and get to your heart, and lungs, and back around. Without transportation, you can’t get to your job, school, or any recreational activities.”
*Click here for a sociology student paper about the Milwaukee Intermodal Station Renovation and the Working Life of Crystal DuPont
The Work and Transportation Section is Under Construction. Some Work Data is on the Transportation Page.
Working Lives Continued: 2018
Sauve Terre Farm
Joe Mantoan, Senior and Joe Mantoan, Jr. discussed their farming philosophy and how it relates to community with Slinger High School Sociology students. Sauve Terre Farm is near Big Cedar Lake just off of Hwy 144. (More info. to come)
“I think community to me has a lot to do with exchange. Whether that is exchange of resources or information or time or energy or whatever it is, it’s this sort of collaborative exchange. Our farm has been impacted by the community a lot, because there are so many other skill sets and different forms of knowledge that our neighbors for example had or other people that I've met in my grazing network. That goes back to, in general terms, all these other people and organizations, when we are able to sort of exchange amongst ourselves, we can get a lot more done." Joe Mantoan, Jr.
Slinger High School Sociology students visited the Sauve Terre Farm in Sept 2018 to learn about creating community, collaborative conservation practices, working lives, sustainability, and various farming tactics. (More info. to come)
Sauve Terre Farm collaborates regularly with a local butcher on Hwy K, Gehring's Meat Market.
The Mantoans discussed the water catchment swales they put in the field above which helps control run-off
Sauve Terre Farm has a collaborative relationship with the Big Cedar Lake Protection and Rehabilitation district (BCLPRD). Sauve Terre Farm composts the weeds that are harvested off of Big and Little Cedar Lake
"Gehring's Meat Market is critical to my business. I have to take that live animal to Gehring’s Meat Market and with their skill in their business, they turn that into cuts of meat. Without them, I can’t bring my product to market. I’ve been working with Gehring’s since 2009. Because of the close working relationship that we have, we are able to communicate more effectively. There is some trust. We’ve developed a plan for the product that I’m taking to the farmer’s market together." Joe Mantoan, Jr.
Audio, text, and more student collected data coming soon!
Click here for Sauve Terre Farm website for now
“Sauve Terre farming practices on our conservation lands ensures that we are managing and stewarding the land in the best ways we can for soil and water quality - basic conservation values. The fact that our conserved land is managed according to these practices supports our integrity as a land trust." Cedar Lake Conservation Foundation leadership
I really appreciate how much the Mantoans care about the ecosystem. The site visit really enhanced what I learned about ecology in my science classroom. It made it more real." Student reflection after site visit
"Sauve Terre Farm has many different connections and interactions within the local community. They pay the Gehring's slaughterhouse to butcher their animals, which they later sell to local families and restaurants. This establishes an interdependency between the farm, the slaughterhouse, and their local customers in order to both make a living and receive the products they need." Student reflection after site visit
"Sauve Terre Farm aims to establish a place where farmland can be regenerated; they focus on environmentalism within their community and work towards producing the best local produce and meat possible." Student Reflection after site visit