A generous donation from a local employer and long-standing community partner is a welcome layer of protection for students, faculty and staff at Fox Valley Technical College.

As students in agriculture, construction and transportation-related programs return to class this fall, they will benefit from a hefty supply of new personal protective equipment (PPE) gifted to the college by J. J.  Keller & Associates, Inc. The Neenah-based employer is the nation’s leading provider of regulatory, compliance and safety products and services.

The donation started as a casual conversation between the college and the company. It eventually morphed into something more formal and the college recently took delivery of a wide range of J. J. Keller® SAFEGEAR® PPE, proprietary safety equipment the company introduced in 2020. 

“We are excited to provide SAFEGEAR PPE to students at Fox Valley Tech,” explains Susan Baranczyk, head of Corporate Communications at J. J.  Keller. “Helping them learn how to protect themselves right out of the gate as they start their careers—and having safety underscored in the classroom—really is a perfect fit with our corporate purpose.”

Several FVTC programs require students to wear personal protective equipment while they receive hands-on training. And with the college seeing more students entering the different trades programs, the need for PPE has grown. The SAFEGEAR donation includes such items as high-visibility vests, safety glasses, gloves, ear plugs as well as high-visibility heavy winterwear jackets for instructors.

“Sometimes when we think of corporate donations, we think very high-level but this donation is helping our students and faculty on a very individualized level; they can see the benefits of the donation immediately,” says Jennifer McIntosh, associate dean of Manufacturing, Agriculture and Construction Technologies. "J. J. Keller has been such a big partner for us through the years. This safety equipment just makes that connection stronger between the student and our donor.”