Director of Tourism / Age 30
City of Manitowoc/Visit Manitowoc
It’s hard to imagine someone better positioned to promote tourism in Manitowoc: For one, Courtney Hansen was Miss Wisconsin 2016, the first job she held after graduating from UW-Madison with a communications degree. That year, she says, she made “almost 200 appearances and logged 35,000 miles traveling to promote my service platform focused on literacy. I visited 31 schools and distributed thousands of books to students throughout Wisconsin.”
Hansen also served as an alderwoman on the Manitowoc City Council from 2019-2021, starting when she was 25 years old.
In her role as director of tourism, Hansen established the new destination marketing organization, Visit Manitowoc, in just over two years. The city saw a record-breaking 2022. “Total economic impact in Manitowoc County was $216 million, and direct visitor spending increased to over $127 million,” Hansen says.
Hansen continues to volunteer and mentor young women within the Miss America Organization, and she and her husband, Max, enjoy spending time with their Bernese Mountain Dog, Loki.
