The History of Western Technical College

Where did it all begin?
We frequently read the sentence that our vocational-technical school (WWTC) was established in 1912
following legislation that was enacted in 1911. But, what was that legislation all about?
The Beginning
Our School
In the early years of the 20 th Century, education was a scarce commodity. In rural Wisconsin, in 1900, over half
of the students quit by fifth grade - only one in thirty graduated from high school. For most, there was no need
for more education. Wisconsin's agricultural, forestry, and mining economies called for physical labor. Going
back to school was simply not something adults did. However as automation required workers to have more
skills, the 1900's brought out a need for education that had not existed before.
Charles McCarthy, a Massachusetts native, saw that need. He was concerned about the young people who had
left school and who could never better themselves. Although he was not an educator, he held a PhD in History
from the University of Wisconsin. McCarthy educated himself so successfully that he was admitted to the
University of Wisconsin after writing examinations proving that he had attained the equivalent of a high school
diploma. He was head of the State Legislative Reference Library, an agency that drafted legislation. McCarthy
was a strong supporter of the movement called "The Wisconsin Idea", a collection of Progressive ideas, and
spoke out for public education and government reform. "The Wisconsin Idea" produced changes such as
election reforms, regulatory commissions, civil service laws, and conservation laws.
Labor and industry were becoming aware of their responsibilities to help people meet the challenges of the
changing times. Wisconsin State legislators were persuaded by McCarthy to further educational opportunity by
encouraging localities to set up the first vocational schools.
In 1909, McCarthy mobilized legislative support for a study of Wisconsin's educational situation. McCarthy
wrote the study that recommended continuation schools for boys and girls who had quit school. The study also
recommended evening schools for adults, trade schools, and formal education for apprentices since
apprenticeship was unregulated at that time. That study became the nucleus of the 1911 Laws for Industrial
and Continuing Education.
In 1911, legislation was passed providing what McCarthy had recommended. Wisconsin was the first state to
establish a system of state support for vocational, technical and adult education (Chapter 616, Laws of 1911).
The law appropriated state aid for continuation, trade and evening schools; required every community with a
population of 5,000 or more to establish a local Board of Industrial Education comprised of two members
representing industry, two members representing labor, and the local Superintendent of Schools; and
authorized the local boards to levy a property tax up to one-half mill.
The 1911 legislation also created a nine-member State Board of Industrial Education consisting of three
employers, three employees, the dean of the University of Wisconsin Engineering Department, the dean of the