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PITTSBURG —
Somewhere Wednesday at Pitsco, the future governor of Kansas could have been building a model airplane. Or maybe he or she was crafting a solar car.
This hands-on example of technology in action at Pitsco was just one of a series of stops that the 40 members of Leadership Kansas made this week as part of a visit to Pittsburg for the program.
Leadership Kansas, described as the second oldest state leadership program in the country, behind Georgia, does not go about identifying the state’s emerging leaders, according to executive director John Federico. Instead, the group’s purpose is to brief leaders about important issues and topics that are facing the state at this time.
“Leadership Kansas often has the expectation that it is a leadership development program,” Federico said. “Often, it’s not. The mission is to identify 40 leaders. They’ve already proven themselves at the community and job level. We invest tremendous resources to explore, discuss and expose the issues that are most pressing to the state. All we ask is they go back and apply what they’ve learned in hope they make employment better and make the state better.”
While there is no end project or specific duty the 40 individuals must complete as part of Leadership Kansas, the group does have a number of trips and informational sessions.
Each year, those chosen for Leadership Kansas make six visits to various cities around the state. Four cities (Garden City, Topeka, Wichita and the Kansas City metropolitan area) are included every year. The other two cities rotate every other year. This year, Leadership Kansas is making its visit to Pittsburg and the Colby/Goodland area. In off years, the group travels to Hays and Manhattan.
The visit to Pittsburg is full of panels and presentations, tours and activities. Take Leadership Kansas’ Thursday schedule, for example. The day started with a session on social services at the Family Resource Center before heading to Miller’s Professional Imaging for a tour and a session on small businesses in Kansas.
From there, the group headed to Pitsco, where they heard a presentation and took part in activities that displayed Pitsco’s materials. Later, the group swung by Pittsburg State’s Tyler Research Center and Kansas Technology Center, before hearing a presentation on the future of higher education in Kansas. That’s just one day of the visit, which began on Wednesday and ends on Friday.
Somewhere Wednesday at Pitsco, the future governor of Kansas could have been building a model airplane. Or maybe he or she was crafting a solar car.
This hands-on example of technology in action at Pitsco was just one of a series of stops that the 40 members of Leadership Kansas made this week as part of a visit to Pittsburg for the program.
Leadership Kansas, described as the second oldest state leadership program in the country, behind Georgia, does not go about identifying the state’s emerging leaders, according to executive director John Federico. Instead, the group’s purpose is to brief leaders about important issues and topics that are facing the state at this time.
“Leadership Kansas often has the expectation that it is a leadership development program,” Federico said. “Often, it’s not. The mission is to identify 40 leaders. They’ve already proven themselves at the community and job level. We invest tremendous resources to explore, discuss and expose the issues that are most pressing to the state. All we ask is they go back and apply what they’ve learned in hope they make employment better and make the state better.”
While there is no end project or specific duty the 40 individuals must complete as part of Leadership Kansas, the group does have a number of trips and informational sessions.
Each year, those chosen for Leadership Kansas make six visits to various cities around the state. Four cities (Garden City, Topeka, Wichita and the Kansas City metropolitan area) are included every year. The other two cities rotate every other year. This year, Leadership Kansas is making its visit to Pittsburg and the Colby/Goodland area. In off years, the group travels to Hays and Manhattan.
The visit to Pittsburg is full of panels and presentations, tours and activities. Take Leadership Kansas’ Thursday schedule, for example. The day started with a session on social services at the Family Resource Center before heading to Miller’s Professional Imaging for a tour and a session on small businesses in Kansas.
From there, the group headed to Pitsco, where they heard a presentation and took part in activities that displayed Pitsco’s materials. Later, the group swung by Pittsburg State’s Tyler Research Center and Kansas Technology Center, before hearing a presentation on the future of higher education in Kansas. That’s just one day of the visit, which began on Wednesday and ends on Friday.
Today’s itinerary includes a conversation about transportation. Federico said the program’s visit to Pittsburg is a good example of the larger goal of Leadership Kansas.
“The whole goal, ultimately, is to pick the topics that are the most pressing and most important in the state,” he said. “We set the goal of if the next governor were to come out of this group, what do they need to know? That can be tax policy, water issues, immigration ... Leadership Kansas absolutely is making Kansas a better state. They can’t help but go back to home and show what they have learned.”
Andrew Nash can be reached at andrew.nash@morningsun.net or by calling 231-2600 ext. 140.
