Milwaukee Area Technical College (or MATC) is a two-year vocational-technical college based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. MATC offers day, evening, and weekend classes at campuses in downtown Milwaukee, Oak Creek, West Allis, and Mequon. Enrollment is about 60,000. MATC offers over a dozen accredited associate degrees, as well as well over a hundred vocational licenses, job training certificates, and adult enrichment courses. MATC also runs GED and HSED classes at local community-based organizations and offers high school diplomas through its Adult High School program.
One of MATC's educational outreach programs is the operation of two PBS stations serving southeastern Wisconsin. The stations, WMVS channel 10 and WMVT channel 36, are known collectively as Milwaukee PBS. In 1992, in partnership with Zenith Corp. and AT&T, Channel 10 produced the nation’s first test broadcast of a digital television signal. In March 2000, the station became the first in Wisconsin to begin regular broadcast of digital, high-definition programs. MATC entered the wireless digital era in 2003, becoming the first college in Wisconsin to provide wireless Internet service throughout all campuses.
Milwaukee Area Technical College traces its roots to a 1911 Wisconsin law whose purpose was to encourage young adults who dropped out of high school to work full-time to continue their education part-time. Employers were required to allow workers to attend and students could participate in the evenings. This innovative approach to education was a first of its kind in the U.S. and quickly spread to other cities in Wisconsin.
The Continuation School was established in 1912 near Mason Street and the Milwaukee River. Its name was changed to the Milwaukee Vocational School in 1916 as trade skills were emphasized. Enrollment grew quickly and by 1923 a new six-story building was completed at 6th & State Street. In 1968, it combined with the Milwaukee Institute of Technology to become Milwaukee Technical College. The following year, it merged with the other vocational schools in the metropolitan area to form Milwaukee Area Technical College, which became a member of the statewide Vocational, Technical and Adult Education System (now the Wisconsin Technical College System).
MATC District
The MATC District is one of 16 districts that make up the Wisconsin Technical College System (WTCS). The district covers all of Milwaukee County, the southern two-thirds of Ozaukee County and parts of Washington County. It is governed by a nine-member board composed of residents of the district. Board members serve without pay and are appointed to three-year terms by an appointment committee that consists of elected officials from the 21 school districts within the MATC District.
References
External links
- Milwaukee Area Technical College
- Milwaukee PBS
