The MATC Foundation Inc. Board recently appointed Mona Fowler, Jaime Hurtado, Emily R. Phillips and Timothy Smith to its board of directors.
The four appointees will each serve a three-year term with the MATC Foundation, a nonprofit organization that raises funding to provide student scholarships, emergency resources and other types of support that remove barriers to students’ success and encourages their role in strengthening the region’s economic vitality.
Mona Fowler is the director of leadership development for Molson Coors Beverage Company, Americas. Fowler has over 20 years of experience leading, supporting and/or coaching supply chain, human resources, information technology, and sales teams including C-suite leaders during her tenure working for Corning Inc., Unilever HPC and Molson Coors. Her experience includes fostering engagement and performance by leading the design and implementation of DEI and development strategies. She enjoys volunteering her time supporting community programs that prepare students for work. In recent years, this has included the African American Youth Council and the Thurgood Marshall Institute. She received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering from North Carolina A&T State University. Fowler is a member of the Society of Human Resources (SHRM-SCP), Association of Talent Development (ATD), and NEXTUp. She holds many certifications including SHRM-SCP, Coaching, Emergenetics Advisor and Nutrition Counseling.
Jaime Hurtado is president and founder of Insulation Technologies Inc. (INTEC), a 37-year-old family-owned business. INTEC specializes in building performance/weatherization, commercial siding, window and door installation in residential and commercial projects, and the restoration of historic buildings. Before establishing INTEC, Hurtado was executive vice president of La Casa Development Corporation, a franchisee of WECC /The Energy Experts. He also worked at the Community Action Agency in Joliet, Illinois, and at Esperanza Unida Inc., a nonprofit organization in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, that advocates for changes in worker compensation law. Hurtado has held leadership roles in various community and academic organizations and, for the last 27 years, has led pro bono personal and professional development seminars globally through Landmark Worldwide. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in economics from Lewis University in Romeoville, Illinois.
Emily R. Phillips is a financial advisor and leads the Drosner Phillips Ristau Group, a wealth management team at Baird. Phillips has worked in management consulting, information technology, advertising and marketing. Her unique background enables her to serve clients in creative ways given her innate curiosity, desire to learn and capacity to adapt to change. Phillips serves on several business advisory and nonprofit boards. Phillips was a speaker at the 2016 TEDxUWMilwaukee “I Am We Are” event. She was one of the 2017 Milwaukee Business Journal 40 Under 40 award recipients and the 2018 OneMKE Driver of Diversity Professional of the Year award recipient. Phillips graduated with a bachelor's degree in history and sociology from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and attended the Young American Leaders Program at Harvard Business School.
Timothy (Tim) Smith retired from Marcus Hotels & Resorts after 35 years with the company. His career with Marcus included serving as a sales account executive at the Marc Plaza Hotel (now the Hilton Milwaukee City Center), director of sales and marketing for the Hilton Milwaukee, and corporate director of sales at Marcus Headquarters. In 2007, Smith opened the InterContinental Milwaukee as general manager and created the hotel’s Pink Rooms, which benefited After Breast Cancer Detection (ABCD), a nonprofit organization. The rooms garnered international guests and media recognition, leading to the creation of similar projects in three other cities. In 2015, Smith became the general manager of The Pfister Hotel and was promoted to managing director of both The Pfister and Saint Kate — The Art’s Hotel. He opened the Saint Kate as well. Smith served on numerous trade and community boards before his retirement.
"With the MATC Foundation serving as the philanthropic partner for MATC, it is great to have well-respected civic leaders stepping forth to serve and to raise awareness of MATC's impact on meeting local workforce needs,” said Laura Bray, executive director of the MATC Foundation and vice president of College Advancement and External Communications at MATC. “This incoming class of members represents many facets of our community: small business, large corporations, and homegrown brands. They bring diversity in many ways and can help connect our strategies to the financial services, construction, hospitality, and food and beverage industries."
The MATC Foundation Board of Directors also includes the following officers: President Julianna Ebert, retired partner, attorney, Quarles and Brady LLP; Vice President Jamie Berger, owner, The Box; Vice President Chantel Byrd, vice president of shared services at Veolia; Treasurer Matthew Partridge, vice president of finance, ambulatory and ancillary services at Froedtert Health; and Secretary Susan Lubar, founder and president, Growing Minds Inc. See the full list of board of directors at MATC Foundation Inc.
About the MATC Foundation: The MATC Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation that engages area philanthropy, corporations and individuals to work with college leadership on meaningful solutions to two of the most pressing problems in our community: economic disparities and the skills gap. The Foundation directs 100% of contributions toward student scholarships, emergency grants and other educational programs critical to local community and economic development. The MATC Promise is the MATC Foundation’s largest scholarship fund where, through public-private partnership, private funds provide “last dollar” scholarships to cover the difference between a student’s Pell Grant and the cost of tuition.
About MATC: Wisconsin’s largest technical college and one of the most diverse two-year institutions in the Midwest, Milwaukee Area Technical College is a key driver of southeastern Wisconsin’s economy and has provided innovative education in the region since 1912. More than 25,000 students per year attend the college’s four campuses and community-based sites or learn online. MATC offers affordable and accessible education and training opportunities that empower and transform lives in the community. The college offers more than 180 academic programs — many that prepare students for jobs immediately upon completion and others that provide transfer options leading to bachelor’s degrees with more than 40 four-year colleges and universities. Overwhelmingly, MATC graduates build careers and businesses in southeastern Wisconsin. The college is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.