[media-credit name=’SUNDEEP MALLADI/Herald photo’ align=’alignright’ width=’336′][/media-credit]A group of Wisconsin technical college students plan to lobby lawmakers today for more funding in Gov. Jim Doyle's biennial budget.

The Wisconsin Student Government, which represents 460,000 technical college students across the state, will push for additional state aid, improved academic credit transferability and support for veteran tuition reimbursement.

Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton jump-started a conference of the students Monday morning at the Madison Concourse Hotel, as she congratulated the students' efforts with words of encouragement.

"Hopefully in the end … we will have a document that, with decisions that are made how we spend the people of Wisconsin's hard-earned tax dollars, will reflect our values," Lawton said.

WSG is calling for increased state funding, which, according to a Wisconsin Technical College System budget summary, is proposed to increase by nearly $4.4 million, reaching nearly $40 million over the two-year budget.

The Wisconsin Technical College System is requesting $5.5 million to reimburse tuition for veterans and their dependents.

Some student government leaders also addressed the current transfer agreement between state technical colleges and the University of Wisconsin System, saying it is easier to transfer academic credits to out-of-state institutions than transferring them to UW institutions.

"Credit from technical colleges will not transfer into the UW System," said Ryan Epperson, a Southwest Wisconsin Technical College student and WSG treasurer. "If I have an associate degree and I want to get a bachelor's degree from a UW campus, I would need to go out-of-state to turn my credit into actual credit and then transfer back into the UW System."

If credit mobility were increased, students could transfer credits directly from Wisconsin technical colleges to UW campuses, WSG president and Western Technical College student Vanessa Pickar said. Pickar also said it would save students and taxpayers' money.

However, student government leaders said they were not only meeting with legislators to explain their budget concerns but also to relay their personal stories.

"This puts a face on the issue — it makes it personal," Pickar said. "Legislators then can relate to the position being outlined by the students and can then better advocate for their views."

Though other speakers addressed the conference, most students called Lawton's speech the cornerstone of the event.

"She cheerleaded the rest of the students on," WSG Vice President Rachel Wyers said. "She got us all on the same page."

In order to grow Wisconsin's economy, Lawton said the state must support technical colleges to fill the increasing job market. Without proper attention and funding, the engine of the Wisconsin economy could sputter and stall, she added.

Aside from specific issues regarding technical college proposals, students said they also gathered in Madison to generate mutual support and share ideas.

"We are here to empower students to come to their legislators, to talk about issues regarding technical colleges," Epperson said. "It's not just one college fending for itself — it's all of us together as a unified front."