A large piece of property donated to Fox Valley Technical College is expanding hands-on learning opportunities for students, April 21, 2026. (Photo courtesy: FVTC)
APPLETON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — A large piece of property recently donated to Fox Valley Technical College is expanding hands-on learning opportunities.
In January, a person who asked to remain anonymous gifted FVTC with a 160-acre property near Hortonville, approximately 15 miles from the college’s Appleton campus. The donor asked that the site be named “Z Place” and expressed a desire for the land to be preserved and used as a living classroom focused on conservation and natural resource management.
As a result, the land will be repurposed as an outdoor learning space for students in the Natural Resources Technician and Wildland Firefighter programs. Starting this semester, students began using the property for select field-based classes.
“This large contiguous block of habitat contains diverse cover types, which will be ideal for hosting lab fieldwork for a wide variety of natural resources and wildland fire courses,” said Paul Groell, Natural Resources department chair at FVTC, in a news release. “There are forested areas, prairie, shrub-carr, wooded wetlands, multiple ponds and a perennial stream. It’s uniquely suited for immersive, hands-on learning experiences.”
FVTC said it is working to develop a comprehensive management plan to guide both short-term and long-term use of the site. Future instructional opportunities may include forestry, wildlife and fisheries management, surveying, water quality, soil conservation, recreational facilities maintenance, plant identification, horticulture and wildland fire. The site may also support student-led habitat restoration projects, from planning through implementation. FVTC may even consider relocating the Natural Resources and Wildland Fire programs to the site on a full-time basis.
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