Tommy G. Thompson Center on Public Leadership

What Tommy G. Thompson Center on Public Leadership does

The Tommy G. Thompson Center on Public Leadership is a nonpartisan policy institute within the University of Wisconsin System, established in 2017 by act of the Wisconsin State Legislature and based at UW-Madison at 445 Henry Mall. The Center's mission is to foster and facilitate effective public leadership in Wisconsin and across the nation through research, teaching, public events, and related activities, named after former Wisconsin Governor Tommy G. Thompson (served 1987-2001, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services 2001-2005). It operates across all 13 University of Wisconsin System four-year campuses — UW-Eau Claire, UW-Green Bay, UW-La Crosse, UW-Madison, UW-Milwaukee, UW-Oshkosh, UW-Parkside, UW-Platteville, UW-River Falls, UW-Stevens Point, UW-Stout, UW-Superior, and UW-Whitewater — and has cumulatively held 238 events and awarded 142 scholarships along with over $1 million in faculty research grants.

The Center's product portfolio is programmatic rather than technology-based. Core offerings include: the Tommy G. Thompson Leadership Scholarships ($3,000 per student, one per UW System campus annually); Research Grants and Speaker Grants (each with up to $500,000 in allocated funding supporting faculty research and speaker events on public leadership and policy); the Distinguished Public Leadership Award (annual recognition of Wisconsin public servants, inaugurated 2022); the Bridging the Divide civil discourse program launched in December 2023; free public events across UW System campuses with recordings; and a Faculty Survey initiative producing research reports on academic climate. The Center does not develop or sell proprietary technology; its digital surface is limited to a content website, email newsletter, and press relations.

The Center is funded through state appropriations as a unit of the UW System, with program delivery costs (scholarships, grants, events) distributed through the existing UW administrative infrastructure. It is not a commercial entity and has no equity funding, revenue from product sales, or customers in the traditional sense; its "customers" are the UW System students, faculty, and Wisconsin public servants who participate in its programs. The Center is governed by a Public Leadership Board and Faculty Advisory Committee, and is led by Director Alexander Tahk (appointed June 2021), with a small staff of 7 employees.

Name

Tommy G. Thompson Center on Public Leadership

Legal name

Tommy G. Thompson Center on Public Leadership

Website

https://thompsoncenter.wisc.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Tommy G. Thompson Center on Public Leadership is a nonpartisan policy institute within the University of Wisconsin System, established in 2017 by the Wisconsin State Legislature, that delivers leadership scholarships, research and speaker grants, public events, civil discourse programming, and a public leadership award across all 13 UW System campuses.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Policy Leadership Institute

NAICS

Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Think Tanks, Policy Research & Public Policy Institutes (BPAGAFAO)

akta.pro secondary industry

Education Policy Research Institutes & Think Tanks (EDADADAA)

Keywords

• Public leadership institute
• Nonpartisan policy research
• Civil discourse programs
• Leadership scholarship programs
• Faculty research grants

Headquarters

HQ city

Madison

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. State Legislative Funding: The Thompson Center was established in 2017 by act of the Wisconsin State Legislature. As a nonpartisan institute within the University of Wisconsin System, it receives state funding to facilitate research, teaching, outreach, and policy reforms regarding effective public leadership.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Tommy G. Thompson Center on Public Leadership is a nonpartisan institute within the University of Wisconsin System that facilitates research, teaching, outreach, and policy reforms on effective public leadership. It delivers a portfolio of programs across all 13 UW System four-year campuses, including $3,000 Leadership Scholarships for undergraduates, faculty Research Grants and Speaker Grants (each up to $500,000 in allocated funding), the Bridging the Divide civil discourse program, the annual Distinguished Public Leadership Award, free public events, and faculty surveys on campus climate.

Product overview

The Tommy G. Thompson Center on Public Leadership is a nonpartisan institute within the University of Wisconsin System established in 2017. Rather than offering a technology product, it provides a portfolio of programs to foster effective public leadership: the Bridging the Divide civil discourse program for students across 13 UW campuses; Tommy G. Thompson Leadership Scholarships ($3,000 awards for 13 students annually); Research Grants and Speaker Grants (each with up to $500,000 in allocated funding); the Distinguished Public Leadership Award for Wisconsin public servants; Public Events featuring free talks and lectures across UW campuses with recorded content; and the Faculty Survey initiative producing research reports on academic freedom and campus climate.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bridging the Divide A civil discourse program that brings together students with different political perspectives for regular small group conversations about current political issues, aimed at increasing engagement and understanding between people with different opinions rather than reaching consensus. Targeted at students across the 13 UW System campuses.
• Tommy G. Thompson Leadership Scholarships Thirteen scholarships of $3,000 awarded annually to undergraduate students at each of the 13 University of Wisconsin System four-year campuses who have demonstrated public leadership reflecting Governor Thompson's legacy of bringing people together to develop common sense solutions. Distributed through campus Financial Aid Offices.
• Research Grants

Quantifiable outcome

• 238 events held across UW System campuses
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• University of Wisconsin SystemcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Thompson Center is a nonpartisan institute within the University of Wisconsin System. It was established in 2017 by act of the Wisconsin Legislature to facilitate research, teaching, outreach, and needed policy reforms regarding effective public leadership. The center works with all 13 UW System campuses for scholarships, grants, and events.
• University of Wisconsin OshkoshcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUW Oshkosh partners with the Thompson Center for events such as the Future of Education discussion with Betsy DeVos and Howard Fuller at the Culver Family Welcome Center.
• UW-La Crosse Political Science and Public Administration DepartmentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Thompson Center and UW-La Crosse Political Science and Public Administration Department co-hosted Ambassador Gary Locke to address U.S. foreign policy at Graff Main Hall.
• University of Wisconsin Naval ROTCcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Thompson Center and UW Naval ROTC co-presented Admiral James Stavridis to speak on Leadership and Geopolitics at UW-Madison.
• UW-Oshkosh Whitburn Center for Governance and Policy ResearchcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Whitburn Center for Governance and Policy Research released a research report on Wisconsin's local government workforce, co-authored by Michael R. Ford and Lisa M. Lewis, supported by Thompson Center funding.
• UW-Milwaukee at WaukeshacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUW-Milwaukee at Waukesha partnered with the Thompson Center to host former Florida Governor Jeb Bush at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• National Conference of State Legislatures: A nonpartisan organization serving all U.S. state legislatures with research, training, and convening. It is comparable because the Thompson Center's policy and leadership work frequently engages state-level governance, including the Wisconsin Legislature that funds it.
• Bipartisan Policy Center: A Washington, D.C.-based think tank that promotes bipartisan solutions across a wide policy portfolio. It is comparable to the Thompson Center in mission (bipartisan governance and civil discourse) but operates at a national scale and on a much broader issue set.
• Center for Public Leadership at Harvard Kennedy School: A university-based leadership research and development center that studies and teaches public leadership at the graduate and executive levels. It shares the Thompson Center's public-leadership focus but is a much larger, more established, and elite-institution peer.

Direct peers

• La Follette School of Public Affairs: Located at the same UW-Madison campus as the Thompson Center, the La Follette School trains students in public policy and administration and conducts policy-relevant research. It is a natural peer because the Thompson Center's founder Ryan Owens held an affiliate faculty role there and the two share an overlapping policy research mandate and audience.
• The Lugar Center: Founded by former U.S. Senator Richard Lugar, the Lugar Center advances bipartisan governance and principled public service. It mirrors the Thompson Center's mission of recognizing public servants (via its Distinguished Public Leadership Award) and producing bipartisan policy research.
• Whitburn Center for Governance and Policy Research at UW-Oshkosh: A UW System-based governance and policy research center that has co-produced research funded by the Thompson Center. Its local-government workforce research mirrors the Thompson Center's focus on Wisconsin governance challenges and makes it a directly comparable campus-level policy research unit.
• Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress: A nonpartisan organization dedicated to studying and strengthening presidential and congressional leadership. Its focus on leadership development across the political spectrum mirrors the Thompson Center's public leadership and policy mandate.
• Volcker Alliance: A nonpartisan organization founded by former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker that works to improve public administration and rebuild trust in government. It overlaps closely with the Thompson Center's mission of promoting effective public leadership and policy reform.
• McCourtney Institute for Democracy at Penn State: A university-based institute that conducts research and convenes programming on democracy, civic engagement, and political polarization. It is highly comparable to the Thompson Center in being a state-university-affiliated institute working on civic discourse and political leadership.
• National Institute for Civil Discourse: A nonpartisan organization founded after the Tucson shooting that promotes civil discourse and reducing partisan polarization, which is precisely the mission of the Thompson Center's Bridging the Divide program. Its focus on structured political conversation makes it a directly comparable peer.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/thompson-center

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Tommy G. Thompson Center on Public Leadership