Some forty years ago, Northeast Wisconsin was feeling the impact of the religious changes that began with Vatican II. Many different people, from all walks of life, searched for a way to reach a deeper sense of unity. They sought to design a place that would bring them together and offer a more open, more global concept of community. It was out of this desire that the Ecumenical Center was born.

Forty years later, this dream, conceived by many, has grown into something big, something unique, and something they all hoped for.

Among these many men and women who carried the banner of unity, one of them, in particular, found the courage to lead this change forward. He dared to experiment with an ecumenical vision. And he was encouraged to do so on a university campus, where thousands of young people found their sense of belonging within the walls of this nationally recognized Ecumenical Center.

This person was Fr. Richard Mauthe.

In 1960, Richard Mauthe was only a freshly ordained priest when he was appointed by the Bishop of Green Bay to form a Newman Center at the then-Extension Center of the University of Wisconsin. Guided with Fr. Mauthe’s passion, a dream of a small Newman Center got a life of its own, and with the help of many, many community giants the Newman Center on Hurtung Street grew into the Ecumenical Center – first of its kind in the United States. And so the legacy began.

In 1968, the Brown County Pastors Association, representing major Protestant denominations, and the Brown County Council of Churches, composed mostly of Protestant lay people, the Diocese of Green Bay and other groups and individuals, met to explore the possibility of an Ecumenical dimension to Ministry at the University.

A year later, in 1969, The Committee for Campus Ministry emerged, a Board of Directors was set, and a Statement of Purpose drawn. The Newman Center on Hartung Street became the UWGB Ecumenical Center.

Fr. Mauthe and the Rev. David Steffenson, a United Methodist Campus Minister were called to serve as Chaplains.

In 1980, The Board sought to obtain a site more in the mainstream of campus activity, knowing that with a new site, a new building would be needed.

In 1981, The Arlene B. Walter Trust provided a grant to underwrite the construction of the new Ecumenical Center. And on October 2, 1982 the new Ecumenical Center building was dedicated and began serving the campus community from its more central location.

Rev. Steffenson left the Center in 1985, pursuing other opportunities, and Fr. Mauthe, too, retired in 1991. He was succeed by Rev. Charles Macco who served the Center throughout the 1990s.

On November 2, 2010, the Ecumenical Center Board of Directors announced that it would change the name of the organization to honor our founder, the Rev. Richard Mauthe, and the Ecumenical Center became The Richard Mauthe Center for Faith, Spirituality, and Social Justice.
Today, the Mauthe Center plays an important role in the lives of hundreds of UWGB students and members of the local community. With over 800 programs, activities, and meetings annually, the Center offers a myriad of innovative and engaging activities for both the students and the community.