Melanie Platt-Gibson has been named community outreach director for the UW-Platteville Baraboo Sauk County and the UW-Platteville Richland branch campuses. She has extensive experience in marketing, communications and economic development across multiple industries, including tourism, healthcare, higher education and manufacturing. Platt-Gibson will connect the campuses with opportunities in support of programming and student recruitment. She began with UW-Platteville on Wednesday, April 21.
Platt-Gibson is joining UW-Platteville’s Office of Corporate Relations and will be based at both branch campuses. According to Craig Beytien, executive director of Corporate Relations, maximizing the university’s ability to connect with businesses and community organizations in the Richland and Sauk County service areas has been challenging to do from Platteville, and this new position is part of the university’s deepening commitment to its branch campuses and the students and communities they serve.
“Melanie will bring energy, experience and focus to our team’s ability to connect with, and serve, the Baraboo Sauk County and Richland areas,” said Beytien.
Expanding relationships with under-served populations and adult learners looking for new opportunities in the changing economy will be a particular focus of Platt-Gibson’s role, according to Dr. Michael Compton, UW-Platteville’s assistant provost for branch campuses, who leads operations at both Baraboo Sauk County and Richland.
“We know there is more we can do to connect with adult and under-served communities in each campus’ service area, and Melanie will be able to lead our effort to broaden our reach and help us target programs where they are needed,” said Compton.
Extending and enriching the campus’ connections with alumni, high schools and other community partners, in addition to business and industry, will all be part of Platt-Gibson’s work.
“I earned my associate’s degree at what we lovingly called Boo-U; I know how very special both branch campuses are,” Platt-Gibson said. “There’s a tremendous opportunity now to reintroduce the branch campuses locally as part of UW-Platteville and to enrich their long legacies in Richland and Sauk counties. I can’t wait to get started.”
In addition to her associate’s degree from what was then UW-Baraboo/Sauk County, Platt-Gibson has a Bachelor of Arts from UW-River Falls and an MBA from UW-Madison. She is the current board president of the Friends of the Campus, which supports students at Baraboo Sauk County through scholarships and other funding, and is also currently the board vice president of the Boys & Girls Club of Baraboo - West Central Wisconsin.