Garden Club of Greater Milwaukee Annual Scholarships 2025

Alyssa Wittman is receiving the GCGM 2025 Capstone Scholarship based on an exceptional community project with Green Bay Botanical Gardens, outstanding studies in landscape architecture and recommendations by her UW professors. She is a senior at UW Madison majoring in Landscape Architecture with certificates in Environmental Studies and Art History.

This capstone project focuses on the Green Bay Botanical Garden (GBBG), a vibrant cultural landmark in Green Bay, WI. The redesign includes 6 different areas: an Arboretum Garden, Stream Garden, Belvedere Hillside Garden, Trial Garden, and boardwalk system over a delineated wetland, along with a new parking lot design. These areas are currently underutilized, inaccessible, and facing serious environmental problems, such as flooding and erosion.

Alyssa’s landscape design incorporates sustainable stormwater management systems and several conservation practices. Native plantings are being used for erosion control while weirs and bioswales will store stormwater, reducing runoff. Additionally, stormwater will be directed, filtered, and reused for irrigation to decrease the garden’s reliance on city water.  She is designing landscapes that are inclusive and meaningful to the community through artistic features such as art, sculptures, wood carvings, and educational signage. Celebrating the various cultural groups of Green Bay is important along with being more welcoming to all. Being very intentional, Alyssa wants to ensure that every landscape is healthier and more

resilient. 

After graduation, she hopes to find new ways to solve the environmental challenges faced today by restoring and protecting land while continually learning about new sustainable systems to help in that task.  Alyssa’s values are reflected in every decision for both the environment and the people that live in it. We only have one Earth, and she is determined to do her part in protecting it. As Robert

Swan said, “The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.”

I’ve been fortunate enough to have been involved with different research applications throughout high school and my undergraduate education at UW-River Falls. I’ve worked on a range of crops including roses, apples, cherries, and turfgrass. These different genera and taxa have exposed me to a variety of breeding systems and their genetic architecture that supports them. I’ve also been introduced to multiple selection and breeding systems such as metabolomics, marker assisted selection, advanced phenotyping techniques and molecular biology. 

After my undergraduate education, I plan to attend graduate school to be trained professionally in plant science, breeding and genetics. Given this knowledge and experience, I will pursue a professorship in higher education. This allows me to give back to the community who built my knowledge, to train the next generation of students, and conduct research for horticultural crops. 

My career goal is to support gardeners with new varietals of ornamentals and fruits for their landscapes. This scholarship assists in funding my undergraduate education and helps me experience internships, research and classroom experience to prepare me for graduate school. 

Thank you, Garden Club of Greater Milwaukee, for awarding me this opportunity

I am a junior at Ripon College, double majoring in biology and environmental studies with a minor in educational studies. My career goals align well with this scholarship program's intentions, as I am deeply passionate about pursuing a career in a botany-related field. In addition, I am driven to conserve and protect the environment using my educational background and experience. My ultimate goal is to work as an education coordinator at a nature center.     

Since coming to Ripon, I have expanded my love for plants beyond gardening and am interested in environmental sciences, sustainability, and the power of education. I am involved in various clubs, organizations, jobs, and research programs that have increased my passion for plants and more specifically prairie plants. This past summer, I was in a research program at Ripon, where I researched prairie pollinators floral preferences in central Wisconsin prairies.  

Also, I attended an Eriogonum Society conference in Salida, Colorado, where I fell in love with the genus Eriogonum and spent the last semester researching the genus and learning how to create herbarium collections.  I am the campus greenhouse employee, and this past spring and summer, I helped to plant and grow native prairie plant species for a new prairie study garden on campus. As president of the Environmental Group of Ripon, I have organized and participated in prairie clean-ups within our campus prairie where we remove woody invasives and clear trash. 

Thank you, Garden Club of Greater Milwaukee, for encouraging me to continue my botany and environmental studies journey.   

My career journey has been deeply rooted in hands-on experiences and a passion for agriculture and horticulture. From working on our family farm, museum, and petting zoo, to my employment at the Flower Source Greenhouse, I have honed my skills in growing fruits, vegetables, and ornamental plants.  At the greenhouse, I have gained valuable experience in plant care, propagation, and customer service, further solidifying my love for horticulture.  

In addition to my work at the greenhouse, I am eagerly anticipating my upcoming summer internship at the Sturgeon Bay Peninsular Agriculture Research Station. This opportunity will allow me to delve deeper into the nuances of fruit and vegetable growing, providing me with invaluable knowledge and hands-on experience that will better prepare me for my future career aspirations.

Over the years, I have taken on increasing responsibilities, from tending to our family garden since childhood to spearheading the planning and care of extensive demonstration gardens. The creative freedom afforded by my family has allowed me to delve deeper into the study of horticulture, culminating in projects like establishing new orchards and fields of specialty crops. I have embraced the social and educational aspects of our family business. Engaging with thousands of visitors each season has sharpened my communication and teaching abilities, reinforcing the importance of agriculture in society. These experiences have laid a solid foundation for my career aspirations in production agriculture and plant research and genetics. Looking ahead, I am committed to continuing my involvement in agriculture and horticulture.

This scholarship will help alleviate financial burdens but also enable me to gain foundational knowledge at UWRF that one day will help me pursue my goals of owning a farmer’s market or conducting research to enhance fruit and vegetable genetics. With the support of my family, I am eager to expand our family business into production agriculture, offering educational experiences like U-pick fruit crops.

I am grateful for the support from the Garden Club of Greater Milwaukee. With a strong foundation in practical experience, education, and a network of support, I am ready to embrace the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead in my professional career in horticulture.

UW-Madison’s Landscape Architecture program requires seniors establish a Capstone Project which allows students to work directly within a community. Capstones provide students the time to research, plan, and design a project that solves a “real world” problem. These students commit to spending

additional time studying and being directly involved and responsible for a significant community effort.

Keegan Ripley, a senior L.A. capstone student, discovered a “hidden gem” county park along the Milwaukee River about 20 miles north of Milwaukee called Hawthorne Hills. This public park has opportunity to improve its entry to promote awareness and development of this natural resource. While preserving the park for public recreation, proposed developments include an expanded trail network, improved youth camp, new campground, and ADA accessible kayak launch to the river. These changes will provide more families, scouts, and schools with the opportunity to explore the outdoors.

Making the most of his landscape architecture degree, Keegan is also designing a nature-based children’s garden at the botanical gardens in Madison. Developing parks that are to be used by the public is Keegan’s passion. He realized during the pandemic the value of nature, and some of the difficulties that keep people from being able to access and enjoy all that being outdoors has to offer. He plans to also study multiple cultural perspectives and bring more familiarity of the natural world with consideration for different experiences.

As an outstanding student, leader of UW Madison’s American Society of Landscape Architecture chapter, and collaborator with Ozaukee County Parks, Keegan has earned recognition and excellent recommendations from all who have worked with him. GCGM Scholarship Committee is very pleased to

be able to award Keegan Ripley a $3000 Capstone scholarship for tuition. The Garden Club will receive a copy of his UW- L.A. Capstone final publication.

Hello, my name is Grace Kielkucki and I am currently a student at Fox Valley

Technical College, in the Landscape Horticulture and Greenhouse Operations

associate degrees! I am also a part of my school's grounds crew. 

As a kid, I loved being outside in nature and observing the bugs all over my yard. So, when I found out that could be my career, there was no better option! Sadly, this is my only real background in horticulture, and grounds crew at my school is my first job in the green industry! 

As a member of grounds crew, I am responsible for weed identification and

removal, tractor operation, mulching, tree pruning, softscape installations, and

landscape bed cleanup/maintenance. I am put in charge of collection of food

scraps for compost and annual planter maintenance (watering, fertilizing,

pruning/deadheading, pest control). I also water all the new plantings around

campus. I have some greenhouse experience as well. I know how to identify and control pests with organic methods and help with watering when needed. 

I am not entirely sure what I want to do when I graduate, but I do know that some of my passion lies with native pollinators and plants, especially prairie plants. I have been reading about native pollinators and how to attract them using native plants. I am hoping to incorporate these plants into my own yard someday! I am also interested in sustainability and conserving resources. I am hoping that someday I will overcome my shyness enough to be a positive voice for these topics! 

I want to thank the Garden Club of Greater Milwaukee for this scholarship

opportunity and for supporting me in my horticulture journey! It is awesome that this club is so dedicated to helping the environment!

Thank you, Garden Club of Greater Milwaukee, for supporting my horticulture

studies at Fox Valley Technical College. My educational journey has been a

testament to my perseverance and passion for sustainable living and holistic

wellness. I am dedicated to advancing my knowledge in horticulture, particularly in Greenhouse Operations. 

Choosing to specialize in Greenhouse Operations stems from my deep-seated fascination with plant cultivation and sustainable management practices. Beyond academic pursuits, I am driven by a vision of creating a homestead that promotes nutritious foods and medicinal herbs year-round. This scholarship acknowledges my dedication to horticulture and affirms my commitment to contributing positively to my community's well-being and environmental sustainability.

This scholarship is an honor and a validation of my journey thus far. It inspires

me to continue pursuing excellence in my studies and to forge a path that

integrates knowledge, sustainability, and community service. I am grateful for the opportunity this scholarship affords me to further my education and make a meaningful impact in the field of horticulture.