“One City was a unique opportunity because I was on their board before I started working there,” Dantzler said. “It has really been helpful having all of these connections and being on these other boards and meeting people. Now we can bring in some of those resources and help to guide the scholars at One City the best way possible.”

One of Dantzler’s first forays into public service was as a member of the Madison College board.

“Frances Huntley-Cooper, a mentor of mine, and Dr. Floyd Rose encouraged me to run for the board,” Dantzler said. “I served a year with Frances before she left the board. And then the following two years, I was the board chair and led the search for Dr. Jennifer Berne when Dr. Daniels was leaving.”

And Dantzler’s service led to other leadership opportunities within the technical college system

“I serve as a board member for our DBA, which is the District Board Association,” Dantzler said. “And that is basically the board that all of our 16 technical colleges come together on and meet and talk about different issues that the colleges have and work with the executive director to make sure everyone’s needs are being met as the trustees of these colleges. And then last year, I got elected to the ACCT Board, the Association of Community College Trustees. It’s the national organization that most of the community and technical colleges in the U.S. belong to. I got elected to serve on the national board to represent Madison College. It’s been fun.”

Dantzler is a genuinely affable person for whom networking comes naturally. And it was through his networks that he ended up living in Fitchburg.

“I began meeting different folks in the community, making different connections and doing things that kept me here,” Dantzler said. “Finally I found my way to Fitchburg. I was living on the west side of Madison and was just looking for a different place to move. I knew one of the old property managers from when I lived in Menominee Falls for a while. He told me about a new development that they had in Fitchburg. I moved there and that’s how I got into politics. Joe Maldonado and I were in college at the same time and we were both in fraternities. He started telling me about opportunities available in Fitchburg. Before I ran for the city council, I served on the Police and Fire Commission for a year.”

Dantzler was elected to be alder of District 3 in Fitchburg, a sprawling district that covers much of the east side of Fitchburg.

“There are a few apartment buildings that I represent over behind the UW Credit Union,” Dantzler said. “But primarily, it’s south of Lacy Road. If you made a left on Nobel Drive, I represent that area and all of the new construction to the east. I represent the Swan Creek area and also the part that used to be the Town of Madison, the Southdale neighborhood. It’s a far-reaching district. That’s one of the biggest things with the city growing like that and having such disjointed pockets that don’t all touch, transportation has been a big thing for us, trying to make sure that if folks don’t have a vehicle that they can have some sort of access to public transportation that can get them around to different parts of the city.”

Part of Dantzler’s district is almost like a hidden city. The fast growing subdivisions and commercial areas are not visible from the main roads that go through Fitchburg.

“Normally what you would see with cities, they would start at city hall and build out,” Dantzler said. “With the introduction of Terravessa, folks didn’t want that structure because it was so far out and they felt that we were pushing the urban service areas too far. But it was actually a great project because now all of the development is coming back in. It is kinda near city hall. Now we have to find a way to connect folks and bring in some other businesses to fill in those gaps with a lot of the housing that we are building and growing the city with it.”

On April 7, Dantzler took a step up in the political world when he was elected Dane County supervisor for District 33. He will simultaneously be a Dane County supervisor and a Fitchburg alder.

“I did have aspirations of growing politically,” Dantzler said. “So when this opportunity came about, it worked perfectly. The district basically overlaps with my council district. I already have relationships with many individuals in the district. Now I have to meet some of the residents and get more familiar with District 4, which kind of touches us and also touches a little bit of District 2. But it primarily overlaps with the district I have been representing. It’s really added another meeting to the schedule plus any committees that I will be assigned to. I look forward to serving with the supervisors and doing some work at the county level.”