LOCAL 'EQUITY VETERAN.' Caitlin Mai Chong Lee has spent decades as part of the UW-Eau Claire campus community, from student to director of Multicultural Services. She was recently highlighted by the Madison-based publication, Madison365.  (Photo from UWEC)

From Caitlin Mai Chong Lee’s time as a UW-Eau Claire student to her nearly two decades as an equal opportunity specialist in the Affirmative Action Office and various leadership positions on committees and in programs, to her current role as director of Multicultural Student Services, it is clear she has deep roots in the Chippewa Valley and that her impact has been felt just as deeply.

So it may come as no surprise that Lee was highlighted by Madison365 in its fourth annual roundup of prominent Asian American leaders, “Wisconsin’s 40 Most Influential Asian American Leaders.”

“I WANT KIDS HERE IN WISCONSIN TO SEE ROLE MODELS OF PEOPLE WHO ARE SUCCEEDING, TO KNOW IT’S POSSIBLE FOR PEOPLE OF COLOR TO ACHIEVE GREAT THINGS HERE.”

HENRY SANDERS

CEO OF MADISON365

Lee graduated from UWEC in 2003 with a political science and world politics degree. The article noted Lee’s work both inside and outside the university. “A 2003 graduate of UW-EC, she co-founded and chaired the Employee of Color Resource Group in 2021; co-founded and chaired the Hmong Women Summit: The Authenticity Project from 2015 through 2019, serves on the Eau Claire Area School District Equity Steering Committee and Family Advisory Committee; and on the Eau Claire Area Chamber of Commerce’s Diversity Inclusion Task Force.”

Madison365 CEO, Henry Sanders, explained the importance of its annual leadership highlight. “Every year, with every list, I’ve intended to highlight the beauty of the diversity across our state. I want kids here in Wisconsin to see role models of people who are succeeding, to know that it’s possible for people of color to achieve great things here,” Sanders stated. 

Called a “campus equity veteran” by UW-Eau Claire, Lee has also been awarded the Women Who Inspire Award from Central Wisconsin Hmong Professionals in 2022, Beloved Community Leadership Award from Uniting Bridges in 2020, and the UW-Eau Claire Outstanding Woman of Color in Education Award from the UW System in 2010.

Lee said she is honored to have been highlighted by Madison365.

Madison365’s “Wisconsin’s 40 Most Influential Asian American Leaders” round-up is split into five parts, with Lee included in part two.