The LWV Whitewater-Area board is delighted to announce that Lacey Reichwald, UW-Whitewater alumna and owner of The SweetSpot Café, and James Hartwick, Curriculum and Instruction Professor at UW-Whitewater, have both been named to receive the League's 2017 Making Democracy Work award. The nominees highlight the dual importance of having UW-Whitewater in our community by demonstrating the positive potential of its students and the influence of its faculty.
Lacey Reichwald graduated from UW-Whitewater in 2008 with a degree in Interpersonal Communication. She chose to stay and invest in the Whitewater community, which, as a student, she grew to love. In 2008, she purchased The SweetSpot Café, which is now a well-recognized social hub of downtown Whitewater, where town and gown commingle in a safe, enjoyable, and family-friendly environment. She expanded her business in 2013 with the opening of The SweetSpot Bakehouse. Most recently, Reichwald spearheaded the formation of the Whitewater Grocery Co., responding to the need for a local grocery after Sentry closed its doors almost two years ago. Reichwald's successful and promising leadership demonstrates the impact one student with vision and compassion can have in our community.
James Hartwick has lived and worked in Whitewater for the past 15 years; he is a staunch defender of democracy, education and grassroots organizing, and the common good. As a Professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at UW-Whitewater, he prepares future social studies teachers, who in turn prepare their students to become thoughtful and engaged citizens and participants in democracy. His scholarly writing addresses how to engage students in deliberating controversial public issues.
As the Faculty Senate Chair (2015-16 and 2016-17) and faculty leader, he has been a defender of shared governance, faculty tenure rights, and a quality comprehensive university. In 2011, as a part of the Truth to Power Pilgrimage, he walked with colleagues to the state capitol, carrying a letter from the UW-W faculty to express concerns and to raise awareness over issues and cuts facing the university.
He is the co-advisor for the PEACE student group, which shows monthly documentaries, and hosted a 2011 Occupy Whitewater event, which was designed to raise awareness of the many issues and inequities facing Wisconsin.
Hartwick has been a leader of the Whitewater Chapter of Move to Amend and served for two years as the state co-director of Move to Amend. With the help of the PEACE student group and Move to Amend, Whitewater (84% in favor) and Fort Atkinson (77% in favor) passed referenda calling for a Constitutional Amendment to overturn the Citizens United Decision. He was a founding member and leader of the Historic Strain Park Neighborhood Association, where he helped to pass a chronic nuisance ordinance and added zoning protections in an effort to build a stable, positive, and connected community.
