Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development

TOMMY G. THOMPSON Governor State of Wisconsin

For Immediate Release - December 29, 1998
Contact: David Blaska (608) 266-6925

GOVERNOR NAMES KUSSART TO HEAD WORKFORCE INITIATIVE

Madison - Gov. Tommy G. Thompson today named Gene E. Kussart as his special assistant to lead his Initiative on Building Tomorrow’s Workforce. The job will have cabinet rank.

Kussart replaces Peter Fox, who was named secretary of the Department of Employment Relations.

"Gene Kussart knows how to get things done for the people of Wisconsin. Now his challenge will be to assure that all state agencies are working cooperatively with business, labor and educators to build tomorrow’s workforce," Gov. Thompson said. "Increasing the supply of high-skilled workers keeps business growing and helps families move up the earnings ladder."

Kussart, 49, is executive assistant at the Wisconsin Department of Transportation - the No. 3 job at that large agency. From 1991 to 1996 he served as executive assistant at the former Department of Health and Social Services and from 1989 to 1991 he was executive assistant at the former Department of Industry, Labor, and Human Relations. Before that he was chief of staff for U.S. Rep. Thomas Petri, R-Fond du Lac.

Kussart also serves as coordinator of the Wisconsin Fatherhood Initiative. He is a member of the Educational Approval Board and a former member of the Council on Mental Health.

The Governor’s Initiative on Building Tomorrow’s Workforce emphasizes training, education, recruitment, and supportive services, such as transportation and childcare. It responds to five workforce forums held this summer throughout the state involving 435 businesses in which, overwhelmingly, employers said they needed more and better-trained workers, especially in the industrial and technical trades.

The initiative is so important to the governor that he has made it the centerpiece of his term as president of the national Council of State Governments.

Kussart, his wife Pauline and their three children live in the Town of Middleton.

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