MILWAUKEE, WI – Professional Dimensions is proud to announce Dr. Vicki Martin and Catrina Crane and the 2024 Imprint Award winners. These distinctive award recipients will be recognized at the annual Imprint Award event on April 18th, 2024, at the newly renovated Pfister Hotel.
These trailblazing women were selected to receive the award based on their individual career accomplishments, leadership, community impact and influence. Both highly successful recipients are inspiring the next generation of leaders and creating a better Milwaukee business community in the process.
As a first-generation college student turned 9-year college president at MATC, Dr. Vicki Martin has been a trailblazer in her own path and has paved a way for many others as a champion for access to education and careers. She has set an example with her own education with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, master’s degrees from the University of North Dakota and Cardinal Stritch University and a doctorate degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Throughout her career, Dr. Martin has mentored more than 100 individuals, led the creation of Wisconsin’s first free-tuition Promise program, served on numerous boards, and co-founded the M3 initiative, which brings together MATC, Milwaukee Public Schools and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee to transform the region through education. Adding to accolades such as The State’s Most Influential Business Leaders (BizTimes), Power Brokers (Milwaukee Business Journal) and TEMPO Mentor Award, the Professional Dimensions Imprint Award is Dr. Martin’s well-deserved newest honor.
Catrina Crane is a community connector and catalyst for progress. Having grown up in Wisconsin, Crane received her Bachelor’s degree from UW Whitewater and Master’s degree from Cardinal Stritch and has spent her professional career as an advocate and leader in the Milwaukee area. Crane is a dynamic economic development professional that has been impacting the Milwaukee community over the past 16 years. In her current role Crane provides support to over 100 businesses and over 8,000 employees by building connections between employers and workforce development entities, educational institutions, government, and neighborhood partners to support the economic vitality of the area. Reflecting her desire to leave a lasting mark for the future of Milwaukee, Crane has served on numerous boards and developed youth support offerings including a youth engagement program introducing over 300 students to careers in a variety of pathways and a Young Women in STEM program for local high schoolers. Through her passion for the community, mentorship and impact, Crane is a natural fit for the Imprint Award.
Per Professional Dimensions tradition, each year a Wisconsin-based female artist is selected to design that year’s Imprint Award. May Klisch has been selected to create the custom Imprint Award piece for 2024. Klisch’s design will be made into three pieces with two given to Crane and Martin at the April 18thImprint Awards event and the third will live in the Imprint Gallery at Alverno College along with past award art pieces. May Klisch is a Singapore-born American professional artist who works with a variety of media in contemporary art expression. Her works can be found throughout the Milwaukee area in museums and galleries such as the MARN Art + Culture Hub in the third ward and the Museum of Wisconsin Art (MOWA) in West Bend beyond her own namesake studio in Shorewood. Klisch’s art reflects her passions and life’s journey, including pieces that celebrate bold and impactful women.
The celebration of these women at the 2024 Imprint Award will also serve as a fundraiser for the Professional Dimensions Charitable Fund (PDCF), which is dedicated to advancing the self-sufficiency of women and girls. The funds raised through PDCF and prior Imprint Award events have totaled over $1.6M dollars to date, making a lasting imprint on the lives of women and girls throughout Milwaukee. [Link to new Imprint Awards page on PD website]
About Professional Dimensions
Professional Dimensions is a leading women’s professional association in the Milwaukee area whose mission is to unite women leaders in the relentless pursuit of better. We create opportunities for our members to network, collaborate, learn, and lead, inspiring women to reach for more in all aspects of their lives. Our organization is intentionally inclusive across career experiences and personal identities, maximizing our ability to innovate and elevate those around us. Professional Dimensions challenges leaders to blaze trails in their companies and communities. Our driving ambition is to expand what is possible for women and the world they influence.
Professional Dimensions’ Imprint award was created in 2021 to recognize two women who are making a lasting mark in their career, community, and collaborations, following a year-long reimagining of PD’s longstanding Sacajawea award. These women are both successful and supportive. Their accomplishments are celebrated with a custom award created by a local female artist whose quality, experience and art design align with the Imprint Award. Professional Dimensions is honored to celebrate the lasting impacts of these women.
