STAR JOURNAL REPORT

John Margitan of Minocqua was awarded the Wisconsin Society of Land Surveyors (WSLS) Lifetime Achievement Award for his contributions to the higher education of land surveying in Wisconsin and other contributions to the profession.

John attended Michigan Technological College in Houghton, Mich., graduating in 1962 with a B.S. in Civil Engineering.  After graduation, he served with the Marines from 1962 to 1965 where he attended engineering school at Camp LeJeune. John was commissioned an officer and spent three years in the Marine Corps in charge of the surveying and design of and Engineering Battalion.

After the Marine Corp., John worked several jobs throughout the country, returning to Wisconsin in 1968, where he went to work for Boldt Construction Company of Appleton. Much of his work experience involved construction and land surveying. John received his Wisconsin license to practice Land Surveying in 1970.  In 1971, John returned to the Minocqua area, where he opened his own surveying company, Voyageur Land Surveys.

He began teaching a Land Surveying Technician program, a two-year associate degree, at Nicolet College in Rhinelander in 1975.  John remained at Nicolet until his retirement in 2002 and over the years built a state and national reputation for a quality land surveying program.  He made a difference in the lives of well over 200 graduates during that time.  John has unselfishly shared his knowledge, skills, and passion for the land surveying profession with his students and associates.

He is a founding member of the WSLS Foundation, a past president and past director serving on the WSLS Board of Directors, as well as past president for both the Northern Lake Chapter of the WSLS and the Nicolet Area Technical College Faculty Association.  John was also appointed by the Governor to serve on the Examining Board of the Wisconsin Architects, Engineers, and Land Surveyors.