Campus Connection

December grad shares how Jungbluth Scholarships helped shape her future

Rarely does opening an email spark genuine excitement. 

But Alissa St. Louis remembers how it felt receiving that message four years ago, telling her she had been selected as a recipient of the Eric & Kristin Jungbluth Scholarship in the College of Business Administration. 

“It felt surreal that someone who hardly knew me believed I was worthy enough to receive this incredible scholarship,” says St. Louis, who is graduating in December with a bachelor’s degree in accountancy. “When I received the Jungbluth scholarship, it was like a weight was lifted off my shoulders. It was extremely motivating knowing someone had confidence in me and wanted to help support me financially through four years of college. I am extremely grateful to receive this scholarship that has shaped the person I am today.” 

Support from donors like Eric and Kristen Jungbluth allowed St. Louis to forgo a full-time job and focus on her education. 

Having additional time to study, participate in clubs and activities, and meet new people was hugely beneficial to St. Louis’ college experience. It allowed her to excel in UWL’s Kwik Trip Integrated Core Program, in which students take courses in core business functions (finance, management and marketing) and apply their skills to solve real-world problems for area businesses. 

After graduation, St. Louis will begin working at CliftonLarsonAllen, a public accounting firm, where she will focus on state and local government as part of the CLA Assurance team. 

“Because of everything UWL has offered me over the past 4.5 years,” St. Louis says, “I am confident that I will succeed in my professional career.” 

Helping students like St. Louis is important to Eric and Kirstin, who view education “as the building block for so many other things in life.” 

Eric, ’85, remembers the challenge of pursuing a degree in finance from UWL while working full time to pay his way. It’s a burden he hopes to relieve from current and future students. 

“We both came from small-town Wisconsin and families that didn’t have much money,” Eric says. “We worked really hard to pay our way through college, and now, we’re really trying to focus on students who have that challenge. While UWL still offers a high-quality education, and the cost is reasonable, it’s very difficult for someone today to pay their way through college working full time. By giving back, we wanted to help students come out of school without too much debt or too heavy of a burden.” 

Eric, retired CEO of Springs Window Fashions, and Kirstin not only established a scholarship within the College of Business Administration — they also decided to fund scholarships within UWL’s School of Education. 

Early Childhood Education Major Allison Schreurs, a future teacher set to graduate in spring 2025, says support from the Jungbluths and others created a strong financial foundation for her education. 

“The scholarship helped ease a lot of financial stressors for me,” Schreurs says. “I grew up in a lower-income family, and had worried ever since the beginning of high school how I would pay for college. This scholarship, along with others, has helped me pay for my bachelor’s degree in early childhood education.” 

By boosting tomorrow’s educators, Eric and Kirstin hope they will create a ripple effect, with those educators going on to make a positive difference in the lives of countless students. 

“Just the fact that we’re making an impact not only for future teachers, but also for all the lives they’ll touch throughout their careers, is really exciting for us,” Kristin says. “We support teachers so they can support their students. It’s our way of giving back and supporting education from the ground up.” 

The Jungbluth Scholarship Fund is also special in that it isn’t a one-time award — students can reapply for the scholarship each year.  

In turn, Eric and Kirstin make a simple request of their scholarship recipients: to one day give back to the Jungbluth Scholarship Fund or another scholarship fund, if their financial situation allows for it. 

It’s a pledge some students are already planning to fulfill. 

“One day,” St. Louis says, “I hope to support other students the way the Jungbluth Scholarship supported me.”