Exit Interview Video with Patrick Molzahn of Madison College

Patrick Molzahn’s days at Madison College’s Cabinetmaking & Millwork program are numbered.

Molzahn’s 25-plus years teaching career at the college will officially come to an end Dec. 31 when he retires. He has already turned over the program director’s reins of one of the nation’s most prestigious postsecondary woodworking programs to Lizzy Conley, one of the more than 400 students he taught.

In addition to his storied career at Madison College, Molzahn was a founding member of the Woodwork Career Alliance Board of Directors. He was instrumental in helping shape the WCA’s mission to develop and grow a skilled woodworking workforce by creating a credentialing system that career pathways to professional woodworkers. In addition, Molzahn helped craft the WCA Skill Standards and created numerous videos in the Training Resources that are available to EDUcation and MANufacturing members.

Molzahn was the first person ever to earn the WCA’s Diamond Credential. (Lizzy Conley, under Molzhan’s tutelage was the second.) He also authored the 5th and 6th editions of Modern Cabinetry, a textbook that thoroughly covers the how-to of woodworking.

In the accompanying video, Molzahn reflects on his time with the college and the Cabinetmaking program with Bryan Woodhouse, Dean of Technology & Trades. He also discusses his retirement plans, including lots of traveling, beginning with an adventure to Antarctica.