Building Amenities and Services
The Markee Pioneer Student Center is the “student union” for the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. You will find social, practical, and enrichment services and activities. We want you to feel at home, and well served, when you visit “the Markee."
“The union provides services and conveniences that members of the college community need in their daily lives...”
- The Role of the College Union, Association of College Unions International
Added assets of the Markee also include important artistic and cultural features symbolizing the past, present, and future of UW-Platteville.
Services
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ATM
An ATM is located in the south entrance vestibule on the first floor.
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Bike Repair Stand
Located outside the north entrance of the Markee Pioneer Student Center, the bike repair stand is a great resource to maintain your bike while visiting the UW-Platteville campus. Tools included are:
- Phillips screwdriver
- Slotted screwdriver
- Allen wrenches in 2.5, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 8 mm sizes
- Headset wrench
- Pedal wrench
- Open wrenches in 8, 9, 10, and 11 mm sizes
- Tire lever
- Adjustable wrench
The stand includes a QR code to scan with your smartphone for instructions on how to use the tools.
Located near the bike stand is a pneumatic air dispenser with both Presta and Schrader valve head and pressure gauge.
Visit the UW-Platteville Transportation Bicycling website for more information on cycling on campus and in the Platteville community.
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Information Center
The Information Center offers information pertaining to university services and events, serving as the university’s switchboard, and providing convenient copy and collating services. We also provide posting approval for the Markee bulletin boards and Markee lost and found.
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Meeting Rooms
Whatever your requirements, the meeting rooms at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville’s Markee Pioneer Student Center provide the latest in amenities to make your meeting productive and enjoyable.
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Vending Machines
All vending machines including two beverage machines and one snack vending machine are located on the first floor
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Lactation Pod
We at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville and the Markee support you and your family. If you are a parent working to balance school and career with having a baby or a member of the community visiting campus, the Markee hosts a lactation pod located on the second level of the Markee, outside of the Bear’s Den.
This space can be unlocked using the MAMAVA App. Download the MAMAVA App to confirm availability and unlock the pod door.
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Massage Chair
The best help for Pioneers who want to develop calm and focused minds is a chance to slow down. University Counseling Services has provided the Markee with a massage chair located on the second level outside the University Rooms.
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Building Tenants
The Markee is the home to several campus departments.
Important Features of the Markee
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International Flags
The Markee is proud to celebrate the nationalities of our international students that attend UW-Platteville. The Heritage Hall International Flags are routinely adjusted in collaboration with our International Students and Scholar Services as a means of welcoming our international students to the campus community.
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Peace Pole
Dedicated by the International Student Club during the grand opening of the Markee in 2002, in memory of the September 11 tragedy, the Peace Pole proclaims the message "May Peace Prevail on Earth" in twelve languages. The Peace Pole Project started in Japan in 1955, in response to the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The Markee Peace Pole connects our community to communities worldwide in a spirit of peace.
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The Old Normal Bell
Cast for the State Normal School-Platteville, the Old Normal Bell first hung in the bell tower of Wisconsin's first Normal School building. According to the first catalog of the Normal School, the bell ruled campus life.
Manufactured in 1870 in Troy, New York, the Old Normal Bell weighs 1,390 pounds. In 2002, through a generous gift from the UW-Platteville Alumni Association, the Old Normal Bell was restored and given a new "voice" and home at the Markee. The bell rings on the hour Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., as a reminder of its role ruling the life of the campus.
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The Heritage Hall University Seal
A nineteen-foot round seal of the university was created in expanded metal and prominently placed in Heritage Hall as part of the construction of the Markee Pioneer Student Center. The university seal displays two symbols rooted in the school's beginning, the bell of the Platteville Normal School and the "M" from the Wisconsin Mining School.
A tradition and featured ceremony at UW-Platteville is the lighting of the world’s largest “M” built a few miles east of town by mining school students in 1936. That tradition is honored at the student center by the lighting of the university seal.
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The Heritage Hall Mural
Completed in June 2005 by River City Murals of Dubuque, the Heritage Hall Mural depicts six celebrated buildings, three historic seals, and the momentous "M" mound of the university.
The "M", Old Main, the Platteville Academy, the State Normal School and Wisconsin Mining School Building, Ullrich Hall, and Ullsvik Hall (as the former student center), along with the State Teacher College seal, the Wisconsin Mining School Emblem, and UW-Platteville's seal can be viewed in the north lobby of Heritage Hall.
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The Wisconsin Sesquincentennial Portfolio
The Wisconsin Sesquicentennial Portfolio features 19 prints in total, including the project description prints and Wisconsin Sesquicentennial Project prints. Fifteen artists with significant ties to Wisconsin were commissioned to create the etchings in celebration of Wisconsin’s 150th anniversary.
Their works are dynamic statements on the Wisconsin experience, and reveal the diversity found in the state’s history. Additionally, the prints offer an array of artistic techniques and styles: from realism to satire, impressionism, and expressionism. The Markee owns a complete set of the limited edition and is one of the few locations where the portfolio can be viewed in its entirety.
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The Strategem
Located between the Markee and Boebel Hall, the Strategem represents the three colleges of UW-Platteville, and the decision-making process students go through during their college career.
Often referred to as "The Chess Pieces", the sculpture's artist, Scott Wallace, intentionally produced the large-scale sculpture in 2006 to replicate chess pieces in movement on a chess board. The Strategem is often used as a gathering place for individuals and groups who wish to exercise their First Amendment right to freedom of speech.
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The Watergarden
Affirming the ideal of a college union helping students to balance course work and free time, the Markee Watergarden was designed by Horticulture Club students in the spring of 2004.
University grounds crews completed the installation of the Watergarden including the nearby flowerbed that summer and have been maintaining the "pond" ever since. The Watergarden has become a popular destination on campus for photos.
