Introducing Energize Wichita, A New Chamber Program

For almost 15 years, the Chamber has convened community and business leaders for City-to City Leadership Visits. These leadership visits give insight to what our peer cities are doing well and help Wichitans find best practices then customize them for Wichita and our region.

But what about Wichita? How is Wichita being innovative? What do we want outsiders to know about our community? More importantly, what should Wichitans know about our community?

With our new Strategic Plan, the Chamber has implemented a goal to accelerate the engagement of talent in the region. One of the primary strategies to accomplish this goal is connecting young professionals to local issues. Our affiliate W, has been doing this for years through a variety of different programming. Through these efforts the Chamber has found that more than ever young professionals are looking for opportunities to be involved with their communities and impact change.

That’s why we’ve launched Energize Wichita. Sponsored by Evergy, Energize Wichita is a program that works to intentionally connect regional business leaders, young professionals and other community leaders to learn about issues that will transform the Wichita region. Throughout the year, the Chamber will host three, day-long tours of Wichita. Limited to 50 participants, these tours will replicate our City-to-City Leadership Visit format and each tour will focus on a specific area of interest. Tour topics include: Education/Workforce (Feb. 25), Economic Development and Quality of Place.

Save the date for Feb. 25 to join us as we focus on Education/Workforce. This tour will feature visits to Wichita West High School and WSU Tech. In addition to these visits we will also hear from industry experts on how the Wichita community is working to create thriving and sustainable education and industry partnerships. We will end the trip by discussing how individuals can be involved in ongoing conversations to continue to move forward.

Event registration opens on Jan. 24 to Chamber and W members who are interested in participating in one or all three of the tours. Each tour will cost $100 individually or $225 for all three purchased as a package. If you are interested in applying for one of the ten $50 scholarships that have been allocated for the first tour, please click here for the application form. The deadline for these scholarships is Friday, February 14.

For more information, contact Jonathan Long, jlong@wichitachamber.org.

UPDATED February 7, 2020