The 16 southeast Kansans charged with leading the state’s poorest region to prosperity and the four senators spearheading the economic improvement initiative will meet in Iola Friday.
The gathering is the first meeting for the steering committee, created after the Nov. 17 economic summit in Iola, and is made up of community and business leaders throughout the 17-county region in southeast Kansas.
Because regionalizing the effort to spur development and improve conditions as opposed to existing local efforts is key to progress — a concept reiterated time and time again since the initiative’s inception — the four senators, with guidance from their constituents, selected members based on an ability to gauge region conditions as well as geographic placement.
“At the economic summit in Iola, there was a consensus the four senators should appoint the steering committee just as a way to get this off the ground quickly,” said state Sen. Jeff King. “People wanted this steering committee to consist of a broad cross section of people in southeast Kansas.”
People with different experiences both geographically and professionally and were willing to dedicate the time were chosen, he said.
The Independence Republican said the committee, with a focus on area health care and economy, will strategize to develop a broad-based, sustainable program that promotes leadership within the communities of southeast Kansas to make progress.
King said although the committee alignment indicates one county is without representation — a 16-member committee overseeing a 17-county region — every county in southeast Kansas will be represented throughout what is expected to be a long-term process of revitalizing the economy.
“The 16-member committee is just a small number of the folks we hope to get involved,” King said. “There will be a county without direct representation on the working group.”
Allen County’s lone voice on the steering committee: David Toland of Thrive Allen County. Though it’s still very early, Toland applauded the senators for selecting a diverse group of professional to steer the effort.
“The committee has a nice cross section of state staff, local staff and community leaders,” he said. “It really cuts across sectors and geographic boundaries within the region.”
Toland’s work with Thrive should serve him well. As Thrive’s executive director, he’s spent several years getting individual communities within Allen County to think of themselves as Allen Countians, not just residents of Iola, Moran or Humboldt.
“I hope my experience working to get residents of individual towns to think of themselves as Allen Countians will be helpful as we work to get counties to think of themselves as southeast Kansans,” Toland said.
Getting people in Miami County and Chautauqua County to coalesce could be challenging, Toland said, citing a history of competitiveness among townships and cities as well as natural geographic disparity.
“But it can be done,” he said.
Toland and the 15 other committee members are expected to serve two-year terms.
