Kris Alwin ’98 is involved in her community in a deep way. As a registered nurse for REM Wisconsin, she works to integrate adults with disabilities into her community. And, in her role as a member of the Oconto school board, she works to ensure that the children in her community find their places in the world.
“We want kids to be productive, responsible adults,” says Alwin. “Sometimes it’s a thankless job. But my drive is the students. That’s why I do it.”
Alwin sees her education at UW-Madison as integral to everything she does. For her, choosing the UW-Madison School of Nursing was easy. She was accepted to another nursing school in the state, but she chose UW-Madison because she knew it had a great reputation.
UW-Madison provided me with experiences I could transfer to all areas of my life.
And once she arrived on campus, she understood why: the nursing school’s collaboration with the UW Hospital connected her with some of the top medical professionals in the world and put her in situations that helped to shape her as a nurse. She worked in the burn unit and was part of the team that cared for the victims of the Madison bus burning in 1998. “My time at UW-Madison,” she says, “has helped me to adapt to different situations, no matter where I’ve found myself.”
Alwin’s education at UW-Madison has continued in recent years. In 2013, she completed a certificate in the mental health of older adults from the UW-Madison Department of Professional Development and Applied Studies.
“It’s really great that I have been able to continue to further my education at the UW,” she says. Alwin also took another thing from her time at the UW: a love of fitness.
“Because it’s a large campus, I spent a lot of time walking,” she says. “I started working out and taking classes at the SERF. Now I teach two cycling classes at the Bond Center in Oconto.”
“UW-Madison provided me with experiences I could transfer to all areas of my life,” Alwin says.
