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BOARD MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
PUTTING PEOPLE IN THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME
BY ALEXANDRIA KLAPMEIER
Susan Wolff is the queen of collaboration.
“Everything I do in my life is about collaboration and people and bringing people together for community development,” she said. “I’ve been passionate about serving my community no matter what, but that doesn’t come from just one person. It comes from observing, listening and bringing people together.”
As the CEO/dean of the Montana State University Great Falls College campus, Wolff has continued to keep col- laboration at the forefront.
Wolff is a fth-generation Montanan who was born and raised in the Flint Creek Valley. She graduated from Drummond High School and attended college at Montana State University. She earned her master’s and doctoral degrees at Oregon State University.
said, ‘We’re going to have morning, evening and after- noon classes.’ We needed to nd the resources for more faculty and we ran that welding program from 6 a.m.
to midnight.”
After their efforts to prepare for the incoming company, Great Falls MSU was awarded a $25 million dollar grant from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration. The grant helped pay for reno- vations and new equipment for the welding program.
Another joint effort Wolff is proud of is the apprentice- ship program she crafted with Dick Anderson Construc- tion. Wolff got a call from the Montana Department of Labor & Industry saying that Dick Anderson wanted to upscale his employees, but he wanted a work based learning program. She went to work and three years later the program continues to ourish. (You can read more
“WHEN A COMPANY COMES TO TOWN AND NEEDS 200 WELDERS, 15 WON’T DO. WE HAD NO MONEY TO BUY EQUIPMENT OR EXPAND, BUT WHAT WE DID HAVE WAS A FACILITY AND WELDING MACHINES USED PART OF THE DAY. I SAID, ‘WE’RE GOING TO HAVE MORNING, EVENING AND AFTERNOON CLASSES.’ WE NEEDED TO FIND THE RESOURCES FOR MORE FACULTY AND WE RAN THAT WELDING PROGRAM FROM 6 A.M. TO MIDNIGHT.”
After graduating from Montana State University, Wolff spent 37 years living and working in Washington and Oregon. During this time, Wolff found her passion for working with businesses and industries regarding work- force development and economic development. Forming partnerships was key to making these meetings work.
“I enjoy developing collaborative partnerships and bring- ing diverse groups of people together to nd solutions,” Wolff said. “I helped develop the Southwest Washington High Tech Partnership. I also developed the rst Renew- able Energy Technology program west of the Mississippi to support wind developers and wind farms in Washing- ton and Oregon.”
But one of Wolff’s most important economic and work- force development projects came when ADF Internation- al made its home in Great Falls.
When the Canadian company looked to expand to the western U.S., Wolff and a group of leaders from the Great Falls community traveled to Quebec to see its fab- rication plant. The company decided to expand to Great Falls and built its plant in January 2014. There was just one problem Wolff foresaw.
“At that time, Great Falls had one entry point for our welding program and we might admit 12 to 15 students a year,” Wolff said. “When a company comes to town and needs 200 welders, 15 won’t do. We had no money to buy equipment or expand, but what we did have was a facility and welding machines used part of the day. I
about this program on page 13).
When Wolff isn’t at work, she enjoys diving into her family history and hanging out with her family. She spends time with her mother, who is 97 1/2 years old, on her family ranch or visiting her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Wolff also enjoys the outdoors.
“The outdoors is something that is key to my existence,” she said. “Whether it’s walking the trails or being at our ranch in Hall, Montana. I do a lot of driving with my job. Seeing this beautiful landscape is such a reminder of what we all need to be appreciative of and thankful for.”
Susan Wolff joined the Montana Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors in 2014. |||
Susan Wolff, the CEO/Dean of Great Falls MSU, hangs out with her fellow Rotarians at the Phillipsburg Rotary Summer Concert in 2017. (Picture courtesy of Susan Wolff)
@MontanaChamber
December 2018 ||| Eye on Business
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