Innovation Key to Success for the Transportation and Logistics Program

UW-Superior's Transportation and Logistics Management program continued to make progress in the past year, graduating its first students, enrolling students faster than projected, and participating in innovative educational initiatives.

Rik Somerville of Superior and Filip Capka of Prague, Czech Republic, became the program's first graduates in December 2000. Both immediately found jobs: Mr. Somerville at Schneider Transport in Green Bay, Wis., and Mr. Capka with Visteon Automotive Systems in Plymouth, Mich.

The number of students majoring in Transportation and Logistics Management stood at 28 in July 2001, which was well ahead of original projections.

Under Dr. Richard Stewart's guidance, the Transportation and Logistics Management program is participating in a wide range of  activities outside the traditional classroom. In the past year, UW-Superior has joined Superior's two other institutions of higher learning to create an educational program in transportation and logistics that eventually could become a model for schools across the country.

Superior Senior High School is among nine U.S. schools chosen by federal transportation and education officials to take part in the program. Using $15,000 in federal funding, educators at the high school are working with colleagues at UW-Superior and Wisconsin Indianhead Technical College in Superior to develop curriculum that teaches students the economic and social importance of transportation and logistics, and prepares them for career in those fields.

The Transportation and Logistics Research Center, which is affiliated with the academic program, last spring opened the J.J. Keller Transportation Safety and Compliance Study Lab in the Jim Dan Hill Library. The lab assists students, faculty and the public in accessing state-of-the-art industry practices, codes and regulations to promote safe transportation operations. The J.J. Keller Foundation in Neenah, Wis., donated the majority of funding for the lab and student research assistants.

The Transportation and Logistics Research Center also continues to offer training to incumbent workers under a grant from the U.S. Department of Labor. The grant enables the center to provide training and education to a limited number of qualified incumbent workers at no charge to the employer or the employee.