Leadership Wichita Class of 2025 Announced

The Wichita Regional Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce the 2025 class of its Leadership Wichita program, featuring 34 dynamic leaders ready to make a significant impact in their community.

As one of the Chamber’s longest-running and most respected programs, Leadership Wichita has helped shape generations of local leaders.

“Leadership Wichita equips driven professionals with the insight, network and courage to tackle our community’s toughest challenges,” said John Rolfe, Wichita Regional Chamber of Commerce President and CEO and Leadership Wichita alumn. “Every year the class raises the bar, and 2025 is no exception. I can’t wait to see the collaborative solutions this group will champion.”

Leadership Wichita is more than just a leadership course - it's an immersive, hands-on experience. Over the course of five months, participants will shadow a school principal to gain insight into local education, ride along with first responders and engage in firearm simulations to better understand crisis decision-making and meet directly with elected officials to discuss policy challenges and opportunities. They'll also analyze economic trends with leading economists and sit down with local media for candid conversations about transparency and the role of storytelling in community leadership.

Each participant was chosen from a pool of highly competitive nominees. The Board of Trustees placed a strong emphasis on diversity, recognizing the importance of including leaders from various backgrounds, industries and perspectives.

Since its inception in 1983, Leadership Wichita has graduated more than 1,000 leaders from various sectors, including business, community, government and military. These graduates have emerged as stronger leaders, committed to making a difference in Wichita and beyond.

Leadership Wichita Class of 2025

• Savannah Ball, Wichita Public Library
• ShaQiyla Banks, Equity Initiative, Inc.
• Leigh Bellinger, US Air Force, 22d Air Refueling Wing
• Neva Benton, Exploration Place Inc.
• Kenny Bui, Yum Mi Express
• Becca Carson, INTRUST Bank
• Lance Carter, Mirror, Inc.
• Brent Castillo, Dondlinger Construction
• Brent Chesnut, Baughman Company
• Niki Childers. The Pando Initiative
• Steve Couvillion, Textron Aviation
• Prophet N Anyanwu Cox, We Rise Coalition
• Amisha Daniels, McCownGordon Construction
• Brianna Deas, Valley Center Public Schools, USD 262
• Toni Gaston, Gardner Design
• Loren Hatfield, Wichita Public Schools, USD 259
• Becky Hesse, Kansas Legal Services
• Col. Chris Hogan, 184th Wing, Kansas Air National Guard
• Christopher Leonard, Wichita State University
• Sarah Lopez-Lewis, HumanKind Ministries
• Chad Maness Spirit Aerosystems
• LaRae Mansch, Fidelity Bank
• Andy McFayden, WSU Tech
• Makala Navarro, Heartspring
• Toni Porter, Wichita Regional Chamber of Commerce
• Aileen Rueda-DaCosta, Kansas Coalition for Common Sense
• Felicia Saunders, Wichita Habitat for Humanity Inc.
• Matthew Schippers, Triplett Woolf Garretson, LLC
• Jess Sojka, Commerce Bank
• Nigel Soria, Public Policy and Management Center at Wichita State University
• Tim Storhoff, Wichita Symphony Orchestra
• Holly Terrill, Bike Walk Wichita
• Jenny Venn, StudioJenVenn
• Josh Villa, Wichita State Community Engagement Institute