As a local undergraduate student, Nicole Van Ert '10 under-took a preceptorship at Mayo Clinic Health System in La Crosse. During the new employee orientation, she had the opportunity to learn about the history of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration and Viterbo University.

“I was incredibly inspired by their journey and service to the common good,” said Van Ert of the sisters. “After visiting Viterbo’s beautiful campus and interacting with faculty, I had a strong desire to become part of the community.”

Van Ert would go on to earn an MBA from Viterbo and today serves as the director of the university’s Center for Professional Learning and Development. The CPLD provides customized executive education to transform organizations and communities, and Van Ert oversees the center’s program development and implementation.

The CPLD has conducted educational programs for a long list of prominent La Crosse area employers. Its upcoming Executives in Residence initiative will extend the Viterbo mission by partnering with business and education leaders.

“This work will meet the specific development needs of today’s business leaders through certificate programs, custom training, short courses, and consulting services,” said Van Ert, who in addition to her Viterbo MBA earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse and is a PhD candidate at Cardinal Stritch University.

Van Ert is an active board member of the Coulee Region Authentic Learning Council and La Crosse SOUP. She is a new mom to an 8-month-old daughter, Dahlia.

For fun, she enjoys restoring historic homes with her best friend and business partner.

They have three vacation rentals in the La Crosse area, each a home that was built in the 1900s.

“We are dedicated to learning more about the history of each property,” she said. “The La Crosse Public Library has been a huge asset. Recently, we met one of the original owners, who is in her 90s. She gave us a skeleton key to the second floor, and it still works!”