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Photo by Pete Amland
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Marty and Elaine Schreiber point to themselves as perfect examples of the value of a UWM education.
“UWM is remarkable in the opportunity it offers people,” says Marty (’60 3+3 Program), speaking in the living room of the couple’s Bay View home. “It gave me the chance to continue college when there weren’t resources to do it another way. And then you have Elaine (’72 BA Exceptional Education), a young married woman with small children who was able to finish her degree in the evenings.”
The couple weren’t the only ones who benefited from their education. The city reaped rewards, too, Marty says, when you consider that Elaine’s career filled a need for teachers of at-risk children, and her volunteer work supports a Milwaukee neighborhood in need.
The state of Wisconsin shared in the benefits of their education, too. After college, Marty’s public life led first to the state Senate (1963-71), then to the lieutenant governor’s office (1971-77), and finally to the governor’s mansion (1977-79). Today, he is a public affairs consultant and also serves as director of the Friends of the Golda Meir Library.
Elaine, who taught children and worked with preschool teachers at the Silver Spring Neighborhood Center for years, is now on the center’s board of directors and heads the center’s capital campaign.
“UWM has educated hundreds and thousands of people doing the same kinds of things for the city and the state that we have,” Marty says.
Support for public higher education is vital when you look at it as the foundation for economic and social health, says Marty. It explains the couple’s close connection to UWM.
The Schreibers became life members of the UWM Alumni Association in 2001, and Marty was honored as a Distinguished Alumnus this year (see story).
Marty and Elaine met at Milwaukee Lutheran High School, and both of them transferred to UWM as sophomores. After two years, Marty took advantage of the 3+3 Program, a program that allowed students with a high grade point average to combine their last undergraduate year with their first year of law school at Marquette.
He developed an interest in politics from his father, who was a Milwaukee city councilman for 32 years, from 1944-76. And, with the help of friends from UWM, he campaigned the old-fashioned way – driving through Milwaukee’s neighborhood “commercial corners” with a loud- speaker and walking through the district knocking on doors. He was elected to the Senate while still in law school.
Elaine dropped out of college to help her husband through law school and into politics. But when she returned and finished her degree, she was the only graduate at commencement who was kissed onstage when she received her diploma. Marty, then lieutenant governor, was the keynote speaker for the UWM ceremony that year!
The Schreibers’ commitment to education is evident in their choice of volunteer service.
“It’s sometimes hard to get people to invest in an educational resource, because you have to have the vision to see the potential of it,” he says.
He cites UWM’s library as one example. “Golda Meir is unique in the state,” he says. “The AGS (American Geographical Society) map collection alone is a world treasure.”
—Laura L. Hunt