The Chippewa Valley was once referred to as the “Silicon Valley of the Midwest” because of an abundance of high-tech businesses, said MIS department chair Jim LaBarre. The computer science and management information systems departments are seeking increased enrollment by using about $1 million from the state as part of a program called the Chippewa Valley Initiative.

“The purpose of the whole initiative is to provide more opportunities for people in the Chippewa Valley and entice high-tech businesses to settle in the Chippewa Valley,” LaBarre said.

The MIS department is hoping to increase its enrollment by 40 to 90 students and the CS department is hoping to increase its enrollment by about 50 students.

Andy Phillips, CS department Chair, said the Chippewa Valley Initiative was proposed two years ago when local companies expressed a need for graduates in high-tech fields. Funding was an issue and it just got rolling about six months ago.

“The idea is we’re going to try to increase the number of students for this year and for years to come,” Phillips said.

To increase the numbers, the departments are going to area high schools to recruit good students interested in high-tech fields, improving campus resources for students in their fields and adding faculty so more courses can be offered.

“It is very difficult to recruit if you don’t have a new and interesting reason for people to come here,” Phillips said of a computer lab that was recently added.

The computer science department is also focusing on offering scholarships.

With the help of money from the Chippewa Valley Initiative, the CS department has the potential to offer 15-20 full-tuition scholarships next year, Phillips said. This year it is not offering any.

The goal will be for the recipients to graduate and find careers in their field in Wisconsin.

“The high-tech economy right now is not very good at all,” LaBarre said. “But when things start gearing up again, the demand for high-tech employees will be high.”