ATC

Inaugural Spikes for STEM season is a hit for education

ATC is honored to complete the first season of our Spikes for STEM partnership with the University of Wisconsin Badgers, Panthers and Phoenix volleyball. Congratulations to the teams on a great season! We could not be prouder of these amazing female student athletes! We look forward to growing our partnership with these excellent programs in the coming seasons. 

ATC makes significant contributions to several STEM programs throughout Wisconsin to support K-12 education, scholarships and internships. We also hire many STEM graduates for full-time careers at ATC. If you’re interested in a challenging and exciting career in a STEM related field, check out all that ATC has to offer on our careers page. 

ATC, Milwaukee Bucks ready for seventh season of Trees for Threes

American Transmission Co., with the Milwaukee Bucks, have announced our seventh consecutive season of partnership for the Trees for Threes program, which is deeply rooted in care for the environment and cause for the community.

Here’s how it works: for every 3-point shot that the Bucks score at home during the 2022-2023 season, an eligible Wisconsin school can earn a tree. With nine of 42 home games under their belt this season, the Bucks have already made 113 3-pointers toward the total.

“Our partnership with the Milwaukee Bucks and the Trees for Threes program is a win for local schools and the environment,” said Gregory Levesque, ATC’s director of corporate communications, policy and strategy. “Trees for Threes is all about connecting students with educational opportunities that help improve the environment. We’re proud to continue our relationship with the Bucks for the seventh consecutive season to plant more trees at Wisconsin schools.”

Last year, ATC donated a record 579 trees to 180 schools across Wisconsin thanks to the Bucks setting a new franchise record for three-pointers made in a season at home. The 579 threes made at Fiserv Forum during the 2021-2022 season were also the most by any team in the Eastern Conference and were the fifth-most by any team in the NBA during the 2021-22 season.

The 579 trees were donated to 180 schools in 42 counties across Wisconsin. All 180 schools received a video message from Bango, the Bucks’ mascot, and an infographic and activity sheets to share with their students. In six seasons of the Trees for Three initiative, the Bucks and ATC have teamed up to donate more than 2,900 trees to help make Wisconsin greener.

School administrators can register for the Trees for Threes program on our website until April 10, 2023.

Teaming up with women’s college sports for STEM

Science, technology, engineering and math skills are foundational to many critical job roles at American Transmission Co. We employ electrical and civil engineers, cybersecurity and computer engineers and analysts, financial analysts and other STEM-related positions.

Because our future workforce depends on quality STEM education to succeed, ATC recently joined forces with University of Wisconsin women’s sports teams to raise awareness of STEM education and careers. Fans of women’s volleyball and basketball can look for ATC’s presence at Badgers, Phoenix and Panthers home volleyball and basketball games and campus events during the 2022-23 seasons.

ATC chose to partner with women’s college sports to support the connection between STEM careers and women, who are traditionally underrepresented in STEM fields. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2021 women made up half the country’s workforce and only 27% of all U.S. employees in STEM careers.

These partnerships are a great opportunity for ATC to widen our career net and empower our future workforce with the skills necessary to succeed.

Are you interested in a STEM career opportunity at ATC? Check out our careers page.

ATC named to the 2022 Fortune Best Workplaces in Manufacturing & Production list

Great Place to Work® and Fortune magazine have honored American Transmission Co. as one of the 2022 Best Workplaces in Manufacturing & Production™. This is the fifth consecutive year ATC was named to this prestigious list, and the seventh overall time, this year coming in at number 13 on the list. Earning a spot means that ATC is one of the best companies to work for in the country.

The Best Workplaces in Manufacturing & Production award is based on analysis of survey responses from 57,000 current employees in the manufacturing and production industry category. In that survey, 88% of ATC’s employees said ATC is a great place to work compared to 57% of employees at the average U.S. company.

The Best Workplaces in Manufacturing & Production list is highly competitive. Great Place to Work, the global authority on workplace culture, developed the list using rigorous analytics and confidential employee feedback. Only Great Place to Work-Certified™ companies are considered for the list.

“These companies have adapted to the challenges of an ever-changing workplace by their commitment to inclusive, high-trust cultures where employees are treated as human beings first and foremost,” says Michael C. Bush, CEO of Great Place to Work. “Congratulations to the Best Workplaces in Manufacturing and Production.”

We congratulate and thank our employees for putting us on the list and making ATC a great place to work.

ATC grants help Ledgeview and Stevens Point increase pollinator habitat

The town of Ledgeview, Wis., and the North Central Conservancy Trust are welcoming bees, birds, butterflies and other pollinators to sections of the East and Wisconsin rivers thanks to American Transmission Co.’s Pollinator Habitat Program.

Roughly 35% of the world’s food crops depend on pollinators. Part of the reason for the recent decline in pollinator populations is due to loss of habitat, so efforts to restore pollinator habitat like these projects are critical to current and future pollinator health.

Restoring Bukolt Island with over 2,000 native species

Situated in the middle of the Wisconsin River on the western edge of Stevens Point is the two-acre Bukolt Island. Purchased in 2019 by the North Central Conservancy Trust, nearly half of the island is now home to an emerging pollinator habitat.

In late 2021, the NCCT received a grant from ATC, which owns the power lines running through the island. The NCCT also received a grant from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program to support pollinator habitat on Bukolt Island.

In late May, over 50 local volunteers crossed the water and joined the NCCT in planting over 2,000 native species to create a pollinator habitat on the island.

“This is really done to protect that landscape,” NCCT Executive Director Chris Radford told WSAW-TV CBS 7 in an interview. “We want to protect the ecosystems that are associated with it, make it accessible for the public, and steward it as best we can for the benefit of our native flora and fauna.”

In addition to supporting pollinators, the new plants will also be beneficial for the river by helping prevent erosion and eliminating invasive species.

Ledgeview adds to pollinator habitat in popular park

On June 27, employees from the town of Ledgeview and members of the local Pheasants Forever Chapter, with assistance from Stone Silo Prairie Gardens, added to pollinator habitat in Ledgeview Park near the Winding Waters entrance to the popular East River Trail, a six-mile hiking and biking trail along the East River.

A grant from ATC provided the funding to bring native pollinator plantings to the pollinator habitat in the park, which is located under an ATC electric transmission line. This is the second year in a row Ledgeview has been awarded a grant. Last summer crews planted nearly 1,000 native forbs on a plot near the northern part of the property.

Stone Silo Prairie Gardens, a local nursery located in Ledgeview that specializes in native species, was brought on to provide guidance with the grant administration and creating the 8,600-square-foot habitat.

“Native plants are low-maintenance options to help pollinators and our ecosystems. Using plants native to our area is better for the bees, birds and butterflies,” Justin Kroening, owner of Stone Silo Prairie Gardens told WLUK-TV Fox 11 in an interview. “These plants are very adaptable to dry conditions, they have large tap roots which go way down into the soil, and that’s also really good for soil, and that’s good for water filtration, and it’s good for erosion control and things of that nature.”

In addition to supporting pollinators, the habitat will also help mitigate stormwater runoff into the East River.

ATC accepting grant applications until Sept. 30

ATC’s Pollinator Habitat Program promotes planting low-growing vegetation within transmission line rights-of-way to beautify communities in a way that doesn’t compromise the safety and reliability of the electric transmission system.

ATC accepts applications from June 1 through Sept. 30, and award recipients are selected and notified by the end of the year. Awards range from $100 to $5,000. Additional information and program applications can be found at atc-GrowSmart.com.