A decades-long career in teaching
When asked about his 37-year teaching career at UW-Eau Claire, Foust replies that “being a college professor is simply the best job in the world,” one which he says kept him energized by the curiosity and growth of 18- to 22-year-olds.
“Every fall semester I taught a 100-level class on economic geography,” Foust says. “I will tell you, there was no better joy than to watch these freshman students begin to examine and understand the world around them in new ways.”
From the budding minds of first-year students to accompanying junior-level research students to annual conferences where he says their impressive research was often mistaken for that of Ph.D. candidates, Foust says the paybacks of his teaching career were a gift that keeps on giving.
“In all my years, I can recall just one student who came to UWEC knowing they wanted to major in geography,” he says. “But countless students said to me, ‘I changed my major because of you.’ That’s a gift.”
As one nomination letter for academy fellow states, Foust’s dedication to his students’ growth extended far beyond the classroom.
“Perhaps it is natural for a geographer to see all human activities as essentially interconnected, but Dr. Foust has a way of representing this as a personal commitment to be shared widely,” wrote Dr. Marty Wood, professor emeritus of English at UW-Eau Claire.
Giving back in major ways
In addition to his nearly 40 years of teaching, Foust and his wife, Jeanne, both have been extremely successful in business, reaching a level of financial success that has led to substantial philanthropy on campus and in the Eau Claire community.
As the CEO of the UW-Eau Claire Foundation, Kimera Way wholeheartedly congratulates Foust on becoming an academy fellow, an honor she says is well deserved.
“I have known Brady for more than 20 years and count him as one of our most impressive, enthusiastic and committed leaders focused on the promotion of the sciences, arts and letters,” Way wrote to the academy in January 2024.
Way points specifically to the Fousts’ 2021 gift of $1 million to the Foundation to endow a scholarship for students double majoring in geospatial analysis and technology, along with their simultaneous $1 million gift to Pablo Center at the Confluence and Foust’s subsequent role as chair of the Confluence Council.
“Hundreds of Brady’s former students have jobs in geographic information systems (GIS) thanks to his mentorship and commitment to his students’ success,” Way says. “He has been a staunch supporter of the liberal arts and especially of the pursuit of multifaceted research and study.”
Foust is both proud and humbled by the opportunities his family has had to give back in these ways.
“The scholarships provide two new double major students each year with a renewable scholarship of $10,000 for four years,” he explains. “We focused on the dual degree because it uniquely positions these students for career success in a growing and fascinating field that we have loved.”
About the Pablo gift, Foust is happy to have helped the regional arts center become a shining example of a public arts project that has thrived.
“Pablo has anchored the revitalization of downtown Eau Claire, and many people have cited it in their decision to move here,” Foust says. “We the people of Eau Claire built that amazing facility, and the debt is nearly paid off. That’s very rare in the realm of performing arts centers.”
Read the 2021 story for more detail about the Foust endowed scholarship and Pablo Center gift.
