Lawrence Business Magazine 2017 Q3 by Lawrence Business Magazine

2017 Q3

Publisher: Lawrence Business Magazine, LLC Editor-in-Chief: Ann Frame Hertzog Chief Photographer: Steven Hertzog

On the Cover - Left to Right: Sara Sidebottom, Jeff Long, José Muñoz, Candace Dunback, Willie Amison, and Natalia Bartnovskaya Price. Photo by Steven Hertzog, taken at the “Home of the Original Rules of Basketball”, the DeBruce Center. https://debrucecenter.ku.edu More about these athletes on page 9.

Featured Writers: Dr. Mike Anderson Steven Hertzog Craig Leener Bob Luder Emily Mulligan Patricia A. Michaelis, Ph.D. Tara Trenary Liz Weslander Copy Editor: Tara Trenary Contributing Writers: Sarah Bishop Hank Booth Nicole Corcoran B.J. Harris Billy Mills Tim Robisch Caroline Trowbridge

Contributing Photographers: Patrick Connor INQUIRIES & ADVERTISING INFORMATION CONTACT:

info@LawrenceBusinessMagazine.com www.LawrenceBusinessMagazine.com

Lawrence Business Magazine, LLC 3514 Clinton Parkway, Suite A-113 Lawrence, KS 66047 Lawrence Business Magazine, is published quarterly by Lawrence Business Magazine, LLC and is distributed by direct mail to over 4000 businesses in the Lawrence & Douglas County Community. It is also distributed at key retail locations throughout the area and mailed to individual subscribers. All rights reserved. No part of this publication can be reprinted or reproduced without the publisher’s permission. Lawrence Business Magazine, LLC assumes no responsibility for unsolicited materials. Statements and opinions printed in the Lawrence Business Magazine are the those of the author or advertiser and are not necessarily the opinion of Lawrence Business Magazine.

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2017 Q3

Contents Features: 9

The Cover

Non-Profit:

Running Strong

Title IX:

an Effective Tool for Support, Communication

Team Sports

Teaching Teamwork

The Impact of Sports A Vision of Enduring Success

Sports, Investment, Big Business

Local Economy

Game Day Cuisine

Business Hall of Fame

Radio & Sports

The Enduring Bond

The Many Faces of Dance

The Dance Athlete

Marketing, Fund-Raising, Community

Turning Sports Passion into Revenue

Junior Achievement 2017

Departments: 13

Lawrence in Perspective:

City of Lawrence

Lawrence Memorial Hospital

Professional Spotlight

Nicole Corcoran, KU Athletics

Local Scene

The Kansas Relays

77 Newsmakers Mission:

Lawrence Business Magazine: Telling the stories of people and businesses making a postive impact on Lawrence & Douglas County. /lawrencebusinessmagazine

@LawrenceBizMag

SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION: LawrenceBusinessMagazine.com/SUBSCRIPTIONSv

THE COVER by Steven Hertzog

You may not have heard of all six of the former University of Kansas student athletes gracing the cover of the Lawrence Business Magazine’s Impact of Sports issue. However, their stories about the significance sports have played in their lives are but a few of the hundreds that impact our community. These half-dozen are a small cross-section representing the diverse group of KU student athletes. As we are inundated with sports news and a 24/7 news cycle, it’s easy to become jaded about the realities facing student athletes. The focus is more on the “famous” athlete whose name is consistently in the news or on talk radio: the athlete who is the ‘star’ on the team, the All American or the athlete who opted to go pro after a year of college and sign that milliondollar contract. At the Lawrence Business Magazine, we would like to point out that for every headline star, there are hundreds of four-year student athletes who juggle academic and social demands with the challenges of competing on the collegiate level. They use their talents to graduate smarter and stronger, then go into the world and take on challenges and make a positive impact on our community.

Candace (Mason) Dunback is the Senior Director of K

Club and Traditions in the University of Kansas athletic department. As a student-athlete at KU, she was a five-time All-American and five-time conference champion in track and field, as well as an Academic All-American. Dunback still holds the Kansas school records in the heptathlon and pentathlon. She graduated from KU in 1999 and received her master’s degree in 2002. Dunback and her husband, Chris (also a Kansas track and field alum), have two boys, Conor and Caden. While a student athlete, Candace Dunback says she learned that there is “power in achieving goals with others — you don’t have to do it alone. Pushing yourself through the boundaries you perceive opens a multitude of possibilities.”

Left to Right: Sara Sidebottom, Jeff Long, Willie Amison, Natalia Bartnovskaya Price , James Naismith, Candace Dunback, José Muñoz

Dunback is forever reminding young athletes about the importance of putting back into the community. She tells students that no one has gotten to where they are in life alone. Adopting a mindset of gratitude for your blessings is contagious to others. It should be shared. A lifelong lesson Dunback learned from her experience as a student athlete and working with others from diverse backgrounds is that “people can change if they open their hearts to it — physically, mentally, emotionally and scholastically.” Dunback spends her life working with student athletes and has sage advice for them. “Embrace the journey. The destination will come. Be competitive in all aspects of life — it carries over to your sport. For example, if you procrastinate in studying for an exam, that carries over to your mental state in the starting blocks. If you leave room for insecurity and doubt in other aspects of life, it will seep into your confidence always. Choose to study. Choose to show up on time. Choose to do an extra rep.”

Willie Amison is a former KU football player and school principal. He is currently an educational consultant at KU’s Equal Opportunities Center as well as the president of Amison Consulting and the organizer of Lawrence’s “Can We Talk?” program.

Amison’s main takeaways from playing team sports were learning to work as a team and building quality, lasting relationships. “I am only as good as my ability to work with others, as people cannot solve problems in isolation. An individual has to gain a good understanding of true collaboration and teamwork,” Amison says. He feels that on the playing field of both sports and in life, if you work with a dedicated team approach and utilize the many talents you have on your team, it will ensure a more positive outcome. Amison believes strongly that the impact of becoming a young adult and learning from other team members, coaches, instructors and other adults played a major part in his 9

development. “My early college years with my new friends and teammates would turn out to be a major formative point in my life.” His advice to future college student athletes is straightforward: “It is important to work at all aspects of your improvement as a student athlete and a human being. Take time to truly see what is being asked of you and how it will make things better in other areas of your life. More students hopefully are entering college with hopes of getting a degree, but if this is not your first thought or focus, it certainly should be. As one attends classes and interacts with others, it becomes abundantly clear you have an opportunity to enhance your life.”

Jeff Long, a former member of the KU

baseball and football teams, is Director of Aviation Services for the University of Kansas. Long says he learned many things while competing in sports, but if he had to select one lesson, it would be “don’t give up.” He reminds us that in sports, we are taught that the game is not over until the whistle blows, the buzzer sounds or the fat lady sings. Long still remembers a number of games where his team was able to put that lesson into action and pull out a last-minute victory. “This lesson transferred to my military career as an officer, leader and bomber pilot, allowing completion of a project or mission when others would have hung it up.” Long thinks it’s important to give back to your community. He feels that those who have the chance to compete at the college level have a real opportunity impact others in a positive way. Acknowledging and being grateful for this should manifest itself in giving back to others who do not have that opportunity. His advice to today’s athletes is to “work hard and be grateful — one never knows when the talent might be taken away by injury or accident. Be humble and kind. It is very easy to set yourself apart as a college athlete if you will be truly humble and kind.”

Natalia Bartnovskaya Price was

born in Krasnoyarsk, Russia, where she was raised in an athletic family and dedicated herself to track and field. In 2010, 10

she came to the United States on a full track and field scholarship to Vincennes University in Indiana. After winning five individual national championships, setting an NJCAA record in pole vaulting and earning an Interior Design degree, Bartnovskaya Price was recruited on an athletic scholarship by the University of Kansas. As a Jayhawk, she became a three-time All-American and two-time National Champion. Bartnovskaya Price says that she “learned to be competitive not only during competitions, but also during every practice. Challenging teammates and myself at practice helped to push my limits and be comfortable outside of my comfort zone. I learned to carry a competitive yet supportive attitude in every aspect of my life, which helps me to grow as a person.” Bartnovskaya Price credits discipline and consistency as the key elements that helped her to stay organized and succeed in both academics and athletics. Her advice to student athletes is this: “Sometimes the fear of failure gets in the way of success. Therefore, I would advise setting high goals and be fearless and confident working towards them.”

José Muñoz is from Rio Rico, Arizona.

Muñoz aspires to become an athletic director and an agent of change. While at Kansas, Muñoz competed in cross country as a Jayhawk for three years before an injury cut short his career. He continued to be involved with the track and field program as team manager in 2013-2014. Muñoz is a Coordinator of Student-Athlete Development/Director of Operations (Row). Muñoz earned his master’s degree at the University of Kansas from the Higher Education Administration program. The University of Kansas awarded his undergraduate degree in Sports Management. “As a student-athlete, I learned how to deal with failure and disappointment,” Muñoz says. “My collegiate career was full of ups and downs — each one was a teachable moment, depending on how you look at it. Not only can you overcome any obstacle that life throws your way, but also, the knowledge that

you don’t have to do it alone.” Muñoz has coordinated community outreach programs for student-athletes aimed at changing lives by empowering the Lawrence community to realize its fullest potential through physical activity, education and leadership. His advice to young student athletes? “Have fun in the process. Pursue things that matter to you, sharing your unique gifts with the world and continually seeking to improve yourselves. Help make the world a better place, foster meaningful relationships, treat time as a most valuable resource and be grateful every day.”

Sara Sidebottom was born in Hutchin-

son, Kansas, and attended nearby Buhler High School. She played softball at KU before graduating in 2008. She says that believing in herself was a major takeaway from time spent as a student-athlete at Kansas. “Coming in as a walk-on, I felt a lot of pressure to prove myself and show not only the coaching staff, but those already on the team, that I was willing to work hard and earn a spot on the roster.” One of Sidebottom’s main lessons from being a competitive student athlete was time management — learning to balance practice and competition schedules with a full class load every semester. Some of her fondest memories as a KU student athlete were when the team was “out helping, whether it be serving food at the shelter or working with Habitat for Humanity. It shows the community that you are thankful for the opportunity to be here as well as thankful to those who support the athletic programs.” Sidebottom says her advice to student athletes who are about to dive into the realm of college athletics is to find a balance. “Being a student-athlete can be time and life consuming between practice, competition and schooling, but you have to be able to enjoy your time as a college student while remembering not to underestimate the importance of sleep!” p

LAWRENCE & DOUGLAS CO [IN PERSPECTIVE]

THE KANSAS RELAYS OLYMPIANS ON THE PLAINS Many of the greatest track and field Olympians got their start right here at the University of Kansas.

by Patricia A. Michaelis, Ph.D., Historical Research & Archival Consulting

What do a legendary basketball coach and a former KU football coach have to do with a track and field contest that became the premier spring sporting event in Kansas? They—Forrest C. “Phog” Allen and Dr. John Outland—collaborated to create the Kansas Relays. John Outland was born in Hesper, Kansas, and attended Penn College, in Oskaloosa, Iowa, and The University of Kansas (KU) in 1895 and 1896, where he played football and baseball. However, he went to the University of Pennsylvania to complete his medical training, where he was introduced to the Penn Relays. In 1920, he approached Dr. Allen, athletics director as well as basketball coach at KU, with the idea of starting a track and field meet at Kansas similar to the Pennsylvania version. As a result, Outland, Allen and KU track coach Karl Schlademan organized the first Kansas Relays in 1923, following the completion of Memorial Stadium with its quartermile track. From the beginning, the Relays attracted athletes who either were or would become Olympians. More than 600 athletes participated in the first Kansas Relays. Tom Woodson Poor, from Bismarck, Missouri, competing for Kansas won the inaugural high jump. He participated in the 1924 Olympics in Paris, France, where he placed

fourth in the high jump. Another early Olympian from Kansas was Jim Bausch, from Garden Plain, Kansas. A multisport athlete at KU, Bausch competed in the decathlon in the Olympics. At the 1932 games in Los Angeles, he set the world record for the decathlon at that time with 8,462 points. Glenn Cunningham, from Elkhart, Kansas, was probably the best known of the early Kansas Relays Olympians. Baby boomers who grew up in Kansas read about the tragic accident experienced by 8-year-old Glenn and his brother Floyd in their textbooks. A fire at their school killed Floyd and severely burned Glenn to the point that doctors discussed amputating his legs and said he may never walk normally again. He and his parents refused to believe this, and after intensive therapy for two years, Glenn took his first steps since the accident in 1920. His racing specialty was the mile and the 1500-meter run. Only 12 years later, Glenn competed in the 1932 Olympics, where he placed fourth in the 1500-meter race. He was honored with a Glenn Cunningham Day at the 1934 Kansas Relays. At the 1936 Olympics, in Berlin, Germany, Cunningham won a silver medal in the 1500-meter run. With world-class athletes competing in the Relays, its first decade paved the way for the Kansas 13

Relays to be a major event in track and field in the Midwest. With the retirement of Glenn Cunningham and the advent of World War II, the event was cancelled from 1943 to 1945, and the Relays lost some of its prominence. However, Harrison Dillard, of Baldwin-Wallace College, in Ohio, set a world record in 1948 in the 120 high hurdles. Bill Easton became KU track and field coach in 1948, helping KU build teams that dominated the Big 6 Athletic Conference and Midwestern track meets. One of the Olympians from this era was Al Oerter. Born in New York, he came to KU on a track scholarship in 1954 and competed in the discus, winning the NCAA discus championship in 1957 and 1958. Oerter began his Olympic career at the 1956 Summer Olympics, in Melbourne, where he threw a personal best to win gold and defeated his closest competitor by more than 5 inches. At the 1960 Olympics, in Rome, he won his second gold medal. Oerter continued his Olympic success with gold medals at the Tokyo (1964) and Mexico City (1968) games. He became the first Olympic athlete to win gold medals at four consecutive Olympic Games. A KU long distance runner won the 10,000-meter run at the Tokyo Olympics in 1964. Billy Mills, an Oglala Lakota (Sioux), received a KU track scholarship after attending Haskell Institute (now Haskell Indian Nations University). He was named an NCAA All-America cross-country runner three times, and, in 1960, he won the individual title in the Big Eight cross-country championship. He, of course, also competed in the KU Relays during his years on campus. After graduation, Mills entered the Marine Corps and was a first lieutenant in the Marine Corps Reserve when he competed in the 1964 Olympics. As a virtual unknown, Mills won the gold medal in the 10,000-meter run, a race that had not been won by an American until that year. In 1997, the Kansas Relays named the 10,000-meter run after 14

Mills. Another well-known Kansan who participated in the KU Relays and the Olympics was Jim Ryun, from Wichita. Ryun participated in the 1964, 1968 and 1972 Summer Olympics. In 1968, he won the silver medal in the 1,500-meter run in Mexico City, losing to Kip Keino, from Kenya, whose remarkable race remained the Olympic 1,500-meter record for 16 years. In the 1972 games in Munich, Germany, Ryun did not finish because he was tripped and fell during a 1,500-meter qualifying heat. The Kansas Relays decathlon attracted top talent in the early years. Five of the first seven decathlon winners became Olympians. To current readers, Bruce Jenner was probably the best-known Kansas Relays decathlon winner, setting a new meet record in 1974. Jenner then won the gold medal for the decathlon in the 1976 Olympics, in Montreal. One of the most poignant stories of the Kansas Relays and Olympians is that of Clifford Cushman. Cliff, from Grand Forks, North Dakota, attended the University of Kansas, where he broke and set many track records. In 1959, Cliff took second place in the 400-meter hurdles, providing Kansas with its backbone to reach its first NCAA championship. In the next year, he earned most outstanding performer honors at the Kansas Relays, as well as winning the national title in the 400-meter hurdles. He helped the Jayhawks earn NCAA championships in both 1959 and 1960. His biggest achievement during his college career was becoming an Olympian. He competed in the 1960 games, in Rome, and finished second in the 400-meter hurdles. Cushman also competed in the 1964 Olympic trials, but, after tripping on the fifth hurdle in the U.S. Olympic trials, he failed to make the U.S. team. After the trials, he wrote a letter to the young people in his hometown that was published in several newspapers. He urged the youth not to feel sorry for him. Don’t feel sorry for me. I feel sorry for some of you! You may have seen the U.S. Olympic Trials on

television September 13. If so, you watched me hit the fifth hurdle, fall and lie on the track in an inglorious heap of skinned elbows, bruised hips, torn knees, and injured pride, unsuccessful in my attempt to make the Olympic team for the second time. In a split second all the many years of training, pain, sweat, blisters, and agony of running were simply and irrevocably wiped out. But I tried. I would much rather fail knowing I had put forth an honest effort than never have tried at all. After graduating from KU, Cushman joined the U.S. Air Force. On Sept. 25, 1966, he was shot down during a combat mission over Vietnam. He was declared missing in action until after the war and was never found—a sad ending to a short but impactful life. In closing, Lawrence Business Magazine editor-in-chief Ann Frame Hertzog has a personal and family connection to the Kansas Relays. She was a student relays committee member for 4 years and one of the Tri-chairs her senior year. After working for the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Committee, Ann returned to KU and was the Meet Manager for the 60th Kansas Relays in 1985. Her father, Allen “Al” Frame, was a championship runner on the KU track and cross country teams. As a track and field runner, Frame won a total of six Big Seven Conference championships: four indoor and two outdoor. He placed 10th on the 1953 NCAA national cross country championship team, then claimed the individual championship title in 1954. Of course, he also participated in the Kansas Relays during his college career, placing first in several events, under KU coach Bill Easton. Frame was inducted into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame in 2017. p

Lawrence Sports Facilities – A Field of Dreams?

Athletes and tourists alike are flocking to Lawrence to utilize its state-of-the-art sports facilities. by BJ Harris, photos by Steven Hertzog

Has Lawrence become a field of dreams? While it’s not quite that simple, that has certainly been the case for sports facilities in Lawrence and Douglas County. The area’s premiere sports facilities, such as Rock Chalk Park, Rim Rock Farm and the Sports Pavilion Lawrence, are attracting youth and amateur athletes from across the nation. And those athletes and their families are contributing a great deal to the local economy. According to the National Association of Sports Commissions, estimated visitor spending associated with sports events was $9.45 billion in 2015. In Kansas, sports tourism has seen tremendous growth, as well, with the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association), NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) and NJCAA (National Junior College Athletic Association) committed to hosting 25 regional and national championships in the state during the next five years. Those events have an economic impact of more than $50 million and include the NCAA Cross Country Regional and NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Prelims, coming to Lawrence in 2020. Visitor spending includes money spent on entry fees, equipment and venue rental, but also accounts for meals, retail shopping, lodging and travel costs. And, the good news for communities such as Lawrence that have invested in sports tourism is that it’s growing.

The Hardwood Classic, held annually at Sports Pavilion Lawrence, brings in $2.5 million in visitor spending and more than $400,000 in local taxes. Not to mention national attention—some of the best basketball prospects will make their first, but hopefully not their last, trips to Lawrence. This past winter, Heart of America Volleyball tournaments, also held at Sports Pavilion Lawrence, totaled nearly $10 million in visitor spending during the course of 11 tournaments from January to April. That event shows the diversity of Sports Pavilion Lawrence as well as the diversity of potential events in Lawrence. In addition to the financial gains, a strong youth and amateur sports market can have a positive impact on the overall image of the community. Just as universities often view their athletic programs as the “welcome mat” to the college, sports events can offer a wonderful opportunity to showcase all of the great amenities in a community. During the Junior Olympics, organizations such as Downtown Lawrence, the Watkins Museum of History, eXplore Lawrence, The University of Kansas and more came together to create opportunities for thousands of visitors to get out and enjoy the community. These efforts not only create additional opportunities for economic impact but also can turn visitors into future marketers. A positive visitor experience can send participants back into the world spreading good news about all of the great things to see and do in Lawrence, Kansas.

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Likewise, sports events can add to a sense of community. Even the smallest events still require an immense amount of collaboration across the community. This can lead to new relationships, business partnerships and additional opportunities for nonprofit and for-profit organizations alike. In some cases, sports events have been credited with the development of new businesses, creating unique opportunities for enterprising entrepreneurs. Bringing together volunteers and businesses can create an emotional impact that will be evident long after the trophies have been lifted. With tremendous community support and the leap of faith made by community leaders to invest in worldclass facilities, Lawrence is positioned to become a major player in the sports tourism industry. The recent successes are proof that we have become a field of dreams for sporting events, but now that organizations have seen excellent event execution and a strong commitment by local leaders, volunteers, the university and community members, the goal is to entice them to continue coming back. p

Dr. Sheahon Zenger addresses the Junior Olympic athletes on opening night at Rock Chalk Park. Olympian and multiple Gold medal winner Carl Lewis encourages the young athletes to respect their competition. Two time Olympic Gold medalist Ashton Eaton was the keynote speaker at the opening ceremonies.

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Local Trainers Focus on Health of Community

LMH athletic trainers provide support to athletes at local schools as well as during community events. By Caroline Trowbridge, Marketing Communications Manager, Lawrence Memorial Hospital

If you’ve recently attended an area high school sporting event, it’s likely you’ve seen one of Lawrence Memorial Hospital’s (LMH) athletic trainers at work.

“They help prevent injuries, working with coaches to keep the environment safe,” Rolf says. “And, they react quickly if there is an injury to triage the situation.”

LMH Sports Care provides athletic training services for seven schools: both Lawrence high schools, as well as Eudora, Baldwin City, Tonganoxie, Basehor-Linwood and Leavenworth. Trainers also cover some events for PerryLecompton and McLouth high schools, and they staff Kansas Jayhawks rugby practices and games.

One Lawrence grandmother discovered just how prepared LMH athletic trainers are. Last February, Phyllis Wheeler suffered a heart attack minutes after she walked into Free State High School, where she had planned to watch her granddaughter play basketball.

“We cover all sports and give priority to the sports with the highest risks,” says Adam Rolf, LMH Sports Care rehab manager. “Football and soccer are tops.

Meghan Chaffin, the athletic trainer at Free State High, helped stabilize Wheeler until an ambulance arrived.

“We also want to be able to cover events in the community, such as the Brew to Brew run, which ends in Lawrence, and the hospital’s Summer Spray 5Ks, in Tonganoxie, Baldwin City and Eudora.” Rolf says LMH’s decision to take on the athletic trainer program last January from OrthoKansas shines a light on the hospital’s commitment to be a partner in the lifelong health of people in our communities. For many years, OrthoKansas has supported area schools’ athletic trainers, and OrthoKansas physicians continue to serve as medical directors for the program. Athletic trainers work with students after school and during practices and games. They assess athletes’ injuries and help with rehabilitation. Before games and practices, they tape athletes and encourage them to stretch, all while ensuring the student-athletes are thinking about hydration.

“I was going to get a program, and I just fell over,” she says.

“Everyone says it’s a miracle that I’m still alive, and had it not been for the trainer and being at Free State, I would not have been,” Wheeler says. The athletic trainer program at Free State has proved valuable, says Mike Hill, the school’s athletic director. “It’s worked extraordinarily well over the years, and it continues to be an asset for our school and our kids,” he says. “Coaches are not trained medical professionals. The trainers help identify and care for injuries. They provide communication between the student and the coach, and the family and physician and the coach. That allows our coaches to have more knowledge about what’s going on with athletes.” Trainers at Free State have developed good relationships with student-athletes, a helpful component when providing care. “We’ve been fortunate to have trainers here who our kids 21

feel good about confiding in,” Hill says. “Maybe they won’t share with a coach that their ankle is bothering them. But they will talk to the trainer.” Recent Free State graduate Zach Sanders says Chaffin often offered him advice about more than sports. “She was pushing me in the right direction, telling me what I need to do, helping me keep my head on right and being aware of what I need to do to be successful,” he says. “She does a good job of creating relationships with the athletes and not being a stranger to everyone.” And, Chaffin helped Zach fast-forward rehabilitation of a torn thumb ligament. Zach, a multisport high school athlete who will play football this fall at Missouri State University, in Springfield, says Chaffin is alert to athletes’ injuries. “If something doesn’t look right to her, she’s on it,” Zach says. “She does a really good job with first aid.” Athletic trainers always are alert, looking for indicators of injury and for opportunities to educate athletes and coaches. Because there’s no such thing as a typical day for a high school athletic trainer, the job is perfect for Mark Padfield, who is president of the Kansas Athletic Trainers Society. He thrives in the ever-changing landscape. “There’s a kid who walks through the door limping, and

I’ve got to figure out what’s wrong—from what a 14-year-old teenage boy tells me,” says Padfield, who teaches and is also the athletic trainer at Tonganoxie High School. “I like the challenge of it. I like the variety. The reason I wanted to get into athletic training is because I wanted to be able to figure out that puzzle.” As a track and field athlete at Kansas State University in the mid-1990s, Padfield understands firsthand the importance of his job. “We’re the first line of defense for the student-athlete,” he says. “Our job is a lot of prevention. And there’s a lot education involved.” That education extends out of the locker room and off the football field. As part of his role with the state trainers association, Padfield and others have been working with first responders to ensure they know, for example, how to team up with trainers to safely remove a helmet from an injured football player. Padfield and other LMH trainers also pass on their knowledge to students in training programs at The University of Kansas and Washburn University. One lesson is clear: “There’s no typical day,” he says. “You never know what you’re going to see. It’s a good day if you’re bored. But if something happens, we’re there.” p

PROFESSIONAL [ SPOTLIGHT ]

NICOLE CORCORAN KANSAS ATHLETICS

SENIOR ASSOCIATE ATHLETICS DIRECTOR SENIOR WOMAN ADMINISTRATOR

What prepared you for a career in college sports? I am competitive by nature and have always had the desire to work hard and win. Putting my hand up and participating also prepared me, whether in class or in the workplace; never sit in the back row. And when a volunteer is needed, step up. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s how leaders start.

How did you come to first work in the KU Athletic department? Interestingly enough, I did not pursue a position with Kansas Athletics; it pursued me. I was fortunate that when one door closed in my professional life, another opened. In my experience, life has a way of working out that way. I served as pres s secretary and communications director to then-Governor Kathleen Sebelius, who accepted the call to go to Washington, D.C. That was not the right move for me or my family; at the same time, I was approached by Kansas Athletics with an unexpected opportunity. I am now coming up on nine years with the department.

What do you consider your most important responsibility or service? Helping others grow in confidence and strength is something I love. I learned early on from a strong woman how to speak my mind in an effective and intelligent way, and how that translates into respect and getting things done. Finding lessons in life experiences and growing from the challenges life hands us is something I have worked hard to do, and help others with, as well. I am a glass-half-full person and strive to share that positive view and approach with others.

What are your most important priorities? FAMILY. FAITH. FRIENDS. are my most important priorities. Taking care of my family has always been and will always be of the utmost importance to me. Though I have been in demanding positions most of my working life, I have been fortunate to make the time I have with my family count. My family and friends know I am always here. My faith, faith in God, faith in humanity and in people doing the right thing are essential to who I am. Kindness matters.Â 23

What has been some of the most important aspects of your success? I work hard and also have fun at the same time. No matter the project big or small, if I say I am going to do something, people know they can count on me. I am a problem solver and love bringing common sense solutions into the equation. I am most proud of the fact that the person I am today is the same girl I was back when I started working in the real world. I’ve just got a few more amazing experiences under my belt. I have traveled the state of Kansas, visited multiple states and gone on international trips, and have been fortunate to actually meet four different presidents of the United States—Jimmy Carter, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. (Who would have thought a girl from Kansas would have that on my list?)

How many people do you work with, serve, interact with on a daily basis and are responsible to? Or for? I cross paths with so many different people each day. I love interacting with our student-athletes. No day is the same, and each presents a different challenge or issue for me to tackle. Around 50 people report to me here at KAI. I am very lucky to work with talented people here in the Athletic department, across campus and in the community. With my increase in responsibilities in July, I am working with folks across the Big 12 Conference more often, as well.

Do you feel the Athletics department makes a positive impact on the Lawrence community? In what way are you involved? What do you see as your responsibility to the community? I am so blessed to work for an organization that values community support and involvement. I serve on our Charitable Organization committee, which determines support of community initiatives. We obviously can’t say yes to everything, but we try to weigh the needs and impact, and move forward. I am very proud of our commitments, whether it’s serving meals at L.I.N.K. (Lawrence Interdenominational Nutrition Kitchen) Kitchen, financially supporting public events or even more quiet efforts behind the scenes. We also partner with different organizations throughout the year to help draw attention and raise funds. I serve as a member of the community advisory board of directors for Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) of Douglas County. Through my service on the board, I have also been involved with the BBBS Gingerbread Auction and continue working to support that initiative. My most important way that I believe I am making a positive impact, though, is serv-

ing as a “Big Sister” in the BBBS program. My Little and I have been “matched” since May 2015. We started as a “Bigs in Schools” match, which allowed me to have lunch with her at school once a week. At the end of our school year together, she asked if I would be a “Community Match” so we could spend time together outside of school. That has been a remarkable change for both of us. Kansas Athletics also supports the community with projects of development and growth. Rock Chalk Park has not only given our teams a beautiful, state-of-the-art place to compete but has infused the community with thousands of visitors who stay, shop, eat and explore. How awesome is that?

What would you change about doing business (or working with businesses) in Lawrence? We have great partners with businesses in the Lawrence community, and we’re fortunate to be in a community that loves and supports our university.

Why did you become involved? or What inspires you? Is there a specific thing, person or incident? I am inspired by those who give their time and talents to help others. I love watching people I admire to learn things I want to emulate.

What is the biggest challenge you feel the athletics/ sports industry faces? In college athletics, we are bringing together young people from very different backgrounds who are exposed to challenges some of us would have trouble surviving. It’s important to do all we can to give our student-athletes the tools and resources to thrive and succeed.

What do you foresee as being the biggest challenge for the future for your industry? And how are you addressing or preparing for it? There are evolving issues surrounding college athletes. Most recently, time-management regulations, which were introduced in part as a response to student-athlete leaders. It is becoming clear that adjustments need to be made based on specific sport needs and from feedback we’re getting from our student-athletes. The good news is our student-athlete leaders make their voices heard, so we should see some adjustments along the way that better serve teams. This is something many schools are dealing with, so together, I am sure we will find a common sense solution. p

NON- [ PROFIT ]

Billy Mills as a student athlete at Haskell 1957-58.

STILL RUNNING STRONG Gold Medal winner Billy Mills’ passion for helping Native young people starts a new program to help their dreams come true. by Billy Mills, photos courtesy Billy Mills/Running Stong

As a young teenager from the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, I ran my first race in jeans and sneakers. The race was on the School of Mines track, in Rapid City South Dakota. I placed last in the 440-yard dash, but I found a freedom I felt I had lost forever. My father had passed away a year before, when I was 12. He had told me that he hoped I’d try sports. So, I did. I tried football; it hurt. Boxing also hurt. I was not good at basketball. I also tried rodeo, but I was even worse at that than basketball. In the fall of 1953, I started high school at The Haskell Indian School, in Lawrence, Kansas. I was 5 feet 1½ inches tall and weighed 102 pounds. As a freshman, I was still no good at football and had gotten worse at basketball. Then, one day, my Haskell coach, Tony Coffin, suggested I run a distance race. I laced up my spikes and stepped out onto the track, and that was it. I knew I had found my sport. When I ran, I not only experienced the freedom I mentioned earlier, but I also felt a sacredness I could not describe. I needed that sacredness in my life. Shortly after my mother died, when I was just 8, my dad took me fishing. He said, “Son,

you have broken wings.” He told me to look down deep inside myself, “way down where the dreams lie. Find your dream. The pursuit of a dream will heal a broken soul.” He told me to bring my passion together with talent, because when passion meets talent, magical things happen. My passion for running blossomed at Haskell, where I started running track and cross-country competitively. By my sophomore year, I had won the unofficial state of Kansas Cross Country Championships. By my senior year, I had earned an athletic scholarship to The University of Kansas. But I still had broken wings. During my junior year, I came close to suicide. But, I felt my dad’s voice, saying: “Don’t.” I broke down in tears, took out a piece of paper and wrote: “Gold Medal, Olympic 10,000-Meter Run.” That was it. I had finally found the dream that would heal my broken soul. And it did. Three and a half years later, in 1964, I was standing on the award podium to receive my gold medal in the 10,000-meter race at the Tokyo Olympics. I had taken the virtues and values of my culture, traditions and spiritual27

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ity, and put them into my educational pursuits, my Olympic pursuits and my life dreams. They gave me the confidence, direction and clarity of mind to stay the course. Standing on that podium, I knew that the moment was a gift, and I wanted to give back. American Indian children grow up with some of the highest rates of poverty in America. In Pine Ridge, where I grew up, and in other communities, we’re dealing with unemployment, health problems and discrimination that goes back to the days of Columbus, and carries the legacy of violence and broken treaties. So, in 1986, I cofounded Running Strong for American Indian Youth with my friend Gene Krizek. Our idea was to tackle these problems by giving money, food and basic goods to the people who needed them. Running Strong started by providing water wells to Oglala Lakota (sometimes known as Sioux) families like mine on the Pine Ridge Reservation, and, since then, we’ve developed deep partnerships with Native communities all over the country. Our programs range from direct food and heat assistance, to projects that help Indian nations preserve traditional language and culture for future generations. Wherever we work, we bring local expertise together with the support of thousands of donors to create healthier, happier and more hopeful futures for American Indian youth. We’ve made a tremendous difference in the lives of countless Native young people. Fifty years after winning my gold medal and more than 25 years after starting Running Strong, I wanted to find a way to address another aspect of poverty: the poverty of dreams, which robs Native youth of their ability to imagine what the future might hold. So, on Oct. 14, 2014, the 50th anniversary of my gold medal win, we announced our new Dreamstarter program, which jump-starts dreams for Native youth. Starting in 2015, we’re choosing 10 talented young Dreamstarters each year to receive $10,000 grants for projects that help them bring their dreams to life. Each Dreamstarter partners with a nonprofit that provides mentorship and project-management support. In total, we’ll award 50 $10,000 grants over five years to celebrate the 50th anniversary of my 10,000-meter Olympic race. We’ve already named the first 30 Dreamstarters, and every year, I’m astounded and humbled by their vision, creativity, talent and strength to overcome the many challenges they face. I’m inspired by Dreamstarters such as Noah Blue Elk Hotchkiss, who was just 16 years old when he was named among our first-ever class of Dreamstarters. Noah is Southern Ute, Southern Cheyenne and Caddo, and grew up in New Mexico. When he was 11, he was involved in a car accident that left him paraplegic. As a Dreamstarter, Noah partnered with the Adaptive Sports Association to bring wheel-

above: Billy Mills with the 2017 Dreamstarters right: KU Coach Bill Easton, Tom Dotson, Billy Mills (1958-1962)

chair basketball to Native youth with disabilities who have very limited access to adaptive sports. And during his Dreamstarter year, Noah was named Junior Athlete of the Year by wheelchair basketball’s top magazine, becoming the first American Indian to win that title. I’m inspired by JoRee LaFrance, a Dreamstarter from the Crow Tribe in Montana and student at Dartmouth College. JoRee organized traditional storytelling events with Crow elders and schools, and then worked with local youth to capture and illustrate the stories. She’s now working to publish the first-ever children’s book of Crow stories, preserving precious cultural knowledge for future generations. And, I’m inspired by Caitlin Bordeaux, who is just starting her Dreamstarter project this year. Caitlin is a teacher at St. Francis Indian School, on the Rosebud Sioux reservation in South Dakota. When I met Caitlin at our Dreamstarter Academy training program, in Washington, D.C. this spring, she told me that only 5% of schools nationwide offer computer science courses, and in the schools that do, only 13% of the students they serve are students of color. Caitlin will start an after-school computer science program for Native elementary, middle and high school students. She hopes this will open the door for Native young people to join the tech workforce. This year, we expanded our program with a new companion project, Dreamstarter Teacher, which gives smaller grants to teachers serving Native students. We’ve already named close to 40 Dreamstarter Teachers, with students from kindergarten through high school in schools all over the country. It has been an incredible honor to meet and mentor these talented, passionate young people. These days, Native people and

our communities are largely absent from the public conversation; media outlets almost always focus on the challenges we face, but not on the many creative and powerful ways we are working to address those challenges. Our Dreamstarters give me hope for a strong future. I started Running Strong as my giveaway—my gift back to the communities that supported me and enabled me to achieve my dreams. But, my giveaway has become my passion, and it has healed more than just my own broken wings. To find out more about Running Strong, Dreamstarter and Dreamstarter Teacher, please visit indianyouth.org. Billy Mills is an Oglala Lakota (Sioux) runner and cofounder and spokesperson for Running Strong for American Indian Youth. He remains the only American to win the gold medal in the Olympic 10,000-meter event. p 29

Title IX: No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance. By Emily Mulligan, photos by Steven Hertzog

Most people outside of college athletics can rattle off a generalization about the law known as Title IX. “It allowed girls to participate in sports.” “Title IX made colleges cut and reduce men’s athletic programs.” “Men’s and women’s sports have to have the same amount of money in their budget.” “Programs for girls and boys in athletics have to be identical.” All of these statements are both true and not true. Title IX is a section of the federal Education Amendments Act of 1972 and applies to all educational institutions—public and private, K through 12 and university level—that receive federal funds. This is the law, in its entirety: “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, 30

be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.” Title IX’s intent was to be applied broadly to educational opportunities, and it has had an impact on all aspects of education, including course offerings, financial assistance and housing, to name a few. “When originally created, Title IX had influence over things well beyond sports,” explains Shane McCreery, director of institutional opportunity and access (IOA) at The University of Kansas. “Federal funds affected how schools implemented fields of study for both genders, but the law also applied to extracurricular activities, and that’s where sports came in. Sports were growing rapidly. Therefore, there was a demand and interest to enhance women’s opportunities to be equal to men’s.”

Title IX in KU Athletics

With 45 years under its belt, Title IX provides a well-established protocol in college athletics. KU Athletics employs an outside professional Title IX consultant to audit and analyze the University’s athletics programs on at least a biannual basis. Van Saun oversees the day-to-day and program-to-program Title IX elements of athletics, as needed, but she emphasizes that Title IX is by now as much a part of college athletics as practices and sweat. The thick binder of the law in all its detail is “institutionalized” at KU in a rigorous way, she explains. Often, Title IX is colloquially interpreted to provide “equal” opportunities and funding in athletics. In truth, the law is about prohibiting discrimination, so applying Title IX in a purely financial sense does not fulfill the scope. So, it is not purely about budgets and dollars, and it can be difficult for those outside of college athletics to find the right words of comparison between men’s and women’s athletics programs. Words like “parity” and “equitable treatment” come the closest to reflecting Title IX’s intent. Title IX at KU is best illustrated using the categories and aspects of college athletics where Title IX applies. All of these areas must refrain from discrimination on the basis of gender and provide the same opportunities to male and female student-athletes: facilities, roster management, coaching, sports medicine, travel, scholarships, equipment, housing, academic support and publicity.

KU Women’s volleyball season opener at Horejsi Family Center Athletics

Title IX’s effect on sports participation and opportunities for girls and women has afforded some of its most visible and public impacts. “If you talk to coaches from any university, when women’s sports were being formed, they were scrounging for any old T-shirts, for used uniforms and washing them themselves. Any female athlete now can’t relate to that,” says Jim Marchiony, associate athletics director, public affairs, with KU Athletics. “Now, fathers expect their daughters to have the same opportunities as their sons have.” 2017 marks the 45th anniversary of Title IX, and KU Athletics has its own related milestone to celebrate. “This is the 50th year for competition for women’s sports at KU. We have the oldest women’s sports rivalry in the Big 12, which is KU and Kansas State women’s basketball,” says Debbie Van Saun, senior associate athletics director at KU Athletics.

One of the most public and visible effects of Title IX can be seen in terms of KU Athletics facilities. The construction of Rock Chalk Park in 2014 was as much about Title IX as it was about the expansion of KU Athletics facilities for track and field, tennis, softball and soccer. The same goes for the construction under way at the former Alvamar Country Club, now called the Jayhawk Club, which will be home to the KU men’s and women’s golf teams. “Not too long ago, facilities for all those sports were not where they needed to be in terms of parity. Now they are. The thing I’ve been proud of is that we’ve had a plan,” Van Saun says. “We have made steps each and every year to track that plan. You can’t do every sport in one year—not everyone has a drawer full of money. The good news is now it’s not a situation where we’re starting from scratch.” At KU, tennis is a women’s sport only. Rock Chalk Park’s recently completed Jayhawk Tennis Center has six indoor courts and six outdoor courts exclusively for the KU Tennis team, as opposed to being shared with the public, as courts were in the past. And, the indoor competition courts may be the most notable addition. “Not too long ago, if it was raining, the tennis team would have to scramble and drive either to Topeka or Overland Park to host an indoor match,” Marchiony says. 31

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The law’s impact on prevention of gender discrimination is seen across nearly all aspects of women’s athletics.

KU Women’s Basketball Team - photo courtesy Jeff Jacobsen, KU Athletics

The Jayhawk Club will provide both golf teams with locker room and practice facilities that are in line with other Big 12 golf teams, Van Saun says. The teams will also have equal access to gathering space and an indoor practice range, in addition to an improved outdoor practice range. Prior to Rock Chalk Park and the Jayhawk Club, the 2008 construction of the Anderson Family Football Complex at Memorial Stadium also prompted some Title IX facility updates to the training room in Wagnon for female athletes. “We have people who come back for K-Club reunions who aren’t aware of all of our facilities. Before the Boathouse was built, the rowing facility was a porta-potty and a chain-link fence. The group rowing this fall have always known the Boathouse,” Marchiony says. One of Title IX’s aspects that takes the most administering year to year and sport to sport is roster management, Van Saun explains. The law requires the participation rates of female athletes and male athletes line up with the ratio of full-time undergraduate female students to male students enrolled at the University each year. So, Van Saun must analyze each sport’s roster numbers to make sure KU Athletics is fulfilling that obligation while also factoring in Title IX’s requirement that athletic scholarship dollars remain equal for both genders. Generally, the solution is the addition of (or subtraction of) walk-on participants, particularly in football, men’s and women’s track, and rowing. Van Saun’s other constant Title IX responsibility is maintaining equity among the coaching staffs of each sport. Title IX does not stipulate how many coaches of each gender must be employed; rather, the number of coaches for each sport must be proportionate, and the office space and courtesy cars, for example, must also be equitable.

Title IX’s Impact on Student-Athletes

Maintaining and enforcing Title IX in college athletics can no doubt be complicated, but the opportunities and experiences the law has afforded countless female athletes cannot be quantified. “The reality is, without female sports, there wouldn’t be male sports in the same way. It’s good for intercollegiate sports in general to have both genders in sports,” Van Saun says. “Frankly, our guys here expect to see both sexes in the weight room and on the field of play. That’s what they’ve grown up with.” Candace Dunback, a KU All-American and Academic AllAmerican in track and field, credits Title IX not just for her experiences in sport but also for helping her become who she is as a person. When she was a child in the small town of Nevada, Missouri, in 1986, Dunback (then Candace Mason) saw a flier for a track meet 1½ hours away and begged her mother to let her compete. That track meet led to Dunback joining a club team and, ultimately, competing all over the country before she graduated from high school. Because Title IX and women’s sports were well established, Dunback was the beneficiary of opportunities that even her older siblings had not had. “It opened up my world through sport. I came from a small town with a lack of diversity, and I became able to see people as people, not for their skin color or economic status or religion,” she says. “Having a full-ride scholarship to KU, I earned that, but I’m very thankful for it. My parents worked very hard, but my trajectory in my life would have been very different.” Even as well established as collegiate track and field competitions were by the late 1990s when Dunback was at KU, it wasn’t until her junior year at KU that pole vaulting became a women’s event. 33

KU women’s soccer coach Mark Francis talks with his team before start of play.

“I had always been aware of who came before me, and I didn’t have to fight for all that I had like women before me,” she explains. “So, with pole vaulting, being a part of something new and getting to see ladies jump onboard and pick it up was special.” Dunback holds the KU records for heptathlon and pentathlon, with previous records from the late 1980s. “When I came through and was breaking records, those records wouldn’t have been there if the women hadn’t had the opportunity to compete. The records wouldn’t have been so hard to break,” she says. Now, in her job as senior director of K Club and traditions for KU Athletics, Dunback gets to learn athletes’ stories and, often, meet the people from them.

KU Rowing Team - photo courtesy Jeff Jacobsen, KU Athletics

“I hear stories from before my time at KU, when students’ parents had station wagons so they could drive the kids to games, and of them packing lunches so the athletes would have something to eat. By the time I came in, we were flying everywhere to competitions and had different shoes for all the events,” she recalls. Dunback says today’s women’s track and field athletes are “hungry” for the old stories of what it took to get them where they are today. “I mentor the track team, both men and women. I really hear no difference between the celebrations and the stresses, and the haves and havenots between the genders,” she says. “I know that what they end up getting out of college athletics is much more than sports.”

Title IX Across the University

The interpretation of Title IX as a law took what could be called a “pivot” in 2011, when the United States Office of Civil Rights issued a memorandum about the law. Now called the “Dear Colleague” letter, the memo stated that sexual harassment, including sexual violence, is a form of sex discrimination prohibited by Title IX. “Dear Colleague” set national standards and procedures for educational institutions to adjudicate student-on-student sexual assault. “Title IX coordination existed prior to 2011, but it took on a whole new meaning after 2011,” IOA’s McCreery says. “Universities were tasked to find ways to do training to the student body on how to seek resources if they’ve been a victim of sexual violence or sexual misconduct, and also to be proactive on not assaulting or battering.” McCreery’s office implements the Title IX adjudication procedures and publicity and training about the University’s resources for both the victims and the accused. And, “Dear Colleague” required people in his position to take a different approach with students. “Prior to ‘Dear Colleague,’ we put the emphasis to the students on how not to put themselves in situations. So, this change required persons in my role to educate themselves on a topic that had previously been a police role,” McCreery says. The IOA must function in a neutral role for both victims and the accused in sexual harassment situations. McCreery reports directly to the chancellor, and IOA is not tied to any academic departments or Athletics. IOA investigators serve the role of fact-finders and work to adjudicate each case as prompted by its circumstances and victim’s desires. KU faculty, the Lawrence Police Department and Lawrence Memorial Hospital all are part of IOA’s information network to inform students, both victims and accused, that there is an on-campus department to provide them with resources and support. KU Athletics also must refer any sexualharassment claims from students to IOA. Because relatively few sexual-harassment victims report their attacks to any authority, IOA must also connect with students directly through training and traditional publicity. McCreery came to KU a year ago and has designed a KU Title IX logo, as well as fliers and posters around campus in student-centric locations, to get the word out about both IOA and what particular actions—such as stalking—qual-

photo courtesy Jeff Jacobsen, KU Athletics

ify as sexual harassment. “It has been challenging. A lot of people in the student body don’t know what Title IX is. And now, it’s more of a support system and communication system,” McCreery explains. KU Athletics has taken advantage of IOA’s resources extensively for its student-athletes. “We make sure we’re doing the best job we can. We have taken our programs to the NCAA, and they’ve said we’re a model for other institutions. We don’t just stop at athletics and academics; we want to make sure we have good citizens,” KU Athletics Van Saun says. p Right - top to bottom: KU Hall of Famer and senior Director of K Club and Traditions Candace Dunback Debbie Van Saun, Assistant to the Athletic Director works closely with student athletes. Shane McCreery, Director of Institutional Opportunity and Access @KU

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Free State football practices for their season opener. Below: FSH girls tennis practice as coach Aaron Clark speaks to the team.

t eea am m SPORTS sp or t s TEAM t each i n g TEAMWORK t ea m wor k TEACHING

Though economically they might not be the best business in town, high school school sports help prepare young people for the future.

Imagine for a moment you had the task of presenting a proposal to a venture capital (VC) group for the business of running the combined 56 individual sports programs that make up high school athletics in Lawrence. On the plus side of the ledger, there would be line-item funding from the district office, fees collected from student activity tickets, modest gate receipts, concessions, well-meaning grassroots fundraisers and intermittent monetary donations from parents. In the minus column, you would find uniform and equipment expenditures; field, gymnasium and swimming pool operating expenses; transportation costs; and wages for an array of coaches, referees, medical personnel, teachers, guidance counselors, custodians and administrators.

by Craig Leener, photos by Steven Hertzog

The likely response from the VC organization’s board of directors? “Don’t let the door hit you in the wallet on the way out, and we don’t validate parking.” Here’s the bottom line reality check: If Lawrence’s high school sports programs were run like small businesses, they would surely fail. But, thankfully, there’s a third column in the equation. It’s the collection of intangible, difficult-tomeasure benefits that are derived by students, parents, educational institutions and the local community. It’s an enterprise where everyone in this city of 90,000 people is a shareholder. “As the students benefit, so, too, do parents and the community,” Free State High School athletic director Mike Hill says. With 1,800 students, Free State 37

High is the city’s largest public high school. The school was built in 1997 in response to overcrowding at now-rival Lawrence High School. On a historical note, the school’s name originated from the term “Free State,” which referred to a U.S. state without slavery. Free-staters were settlers in the 1850s who successfully opposed the expansion of slavery into Kansas and did not want the state admitted to the Union as a slave state. Kansas became the 34th state in 1861. “We provide a venue for kids to grow,” says 48-year-old Hill, a lifelong resident of Lawrence who just completed his 20th season as the school’s head baseball coach. “That is a direct benefit to their parents and the community, whether you consider that from an economic perspective, meaning better workers and more consumers, or from the perspective of a more educated populace.” The Free State Firebirds compete in the Sunflower League and have notched 11 state championships. Hill believes that education-based athletics at Free State High provide an avenue for kids to have fun and create memories. “Everyone, parents, the community at-large and, most importantly, the kids themselves benefit from that,” he says. The city’s other public high school is Lawrence High. Established in 1857, when classes were originally held in the basement of a Unitarian church, the school is now home to 1,600 students. Lawrence High athletics programs have won over 100 state championships, more than any other high school in the state and one of the highest totals in the nation. The school collected its first state championship in 1914. The sport? What else—boys basketball. The Lawrence High faithful would argue it’s no coincidence the school’s basketball gym is a mere mile from Allen Fieldhouse, on the campus of the University of Kansas. Notable Lawrence High graduates include philanthropist and Booth Family Hall of Athletics founder David Booth, environmental activist Erin Brockovich and Danny Manning, who led KU’s basketball team to the NCAA title in 1988. Bill DeWitt is entering his fifth year as Lawrence High’s athletic director and assistant principal. DeWitt, 44, says the Chesty Lions compete in 22 sports programs within the Sunflower League, two fewer than Free State High. He says monetarily, the benefits are a blip on the overall school budget, as proceeds are put back into the programs for officials, entry fees and operating expenses. Left - Top to bottom: Eden Kingery of LHS performs a back flip on the balance bar as gymnists from both FSH and LHS cheer her on. Coach Stephanie Scarbrough speaks with her LHS varsity volleyball team. LHS soccer team run their drill called “keep away”. LHS head soccer coach Mike Murphy and assistant coach Stan Rasmussen talk with their team during practice.

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DeWitt believes in the importance of student-athletes having the humility to lend their talents to a sport where they may not be the star but can play a role in helping others who might be. “Educationally, the benefits are immeasurable, and lessons learned carry over into life experiences,” DeWitt says. “Learning how to win with excellence and lose with excellence are skills that are horribly lacking in society today. We try to run our programs with a philosophy that when we visit other schools, we play in a way that people respond by saying, “Look at those kids at LHS—good things must happen there.”

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Excellent stuff is also happening at Bishop Seabury Academy, a private, Episcopal middle school and high school with a total population of 210 students, 110 of whom are in grades 9 through 12. The school is named after Samuel Seabury, first bishop of the Episcopal Church in the U.S. and a British Loyalist during the American Revolution. Bishop Seabury student-athlete Chris Green is a shooting guard on the basketball team. He also competes in soccer in the fall and golf in the spring. “For my teammates and me, team sports is about building chemistry and learning how to cooperate with each other as we work toward a common goal,” the 17-year-old junior says. Eric Nelson, 52, has been Bishop Seabury’s athletic director for nine years. Unlike Hill and DeWitt, who both grew up in Kansas, Nelson found his way to Lawrence by way of Arizona, Colorado, Washington and the U.S. island territory of Guam in the Western Pacific. He then retraced his steps back to Colorado and Washington before setting deep roots in the Sunflower State. Nelson says the cornerstones of Bishop Seabury’s athletics program are working collectively to achieve a goal, striving for excellence and pushing beyond perceived limits and barriers. “All of these phenomena are life success skills that any employer would desire,” he says. Nelson believes athletics make the educational experience more personal by shrinking the school down, where deeper friendships can develop. He knows firsthand because he is the parent of two student-athletes at the school. “It’s meaningful to see my own children competing, learning and having fun in their sports,” Nelson says. “And the sports programs give the school’s parents a chance to bond, as well. It is a fun social event to go to a game and sit with the other parents. Without these opportunities, they may never cross paths.” Seabury also offers a unique opportunity to its student-athletes: It does not cut players in any sport. That means many kids get the opportunity to compete in sports that they are not committed to year-round. That doesn’t happen at the two larger high schools, where the number of roster spots on the varsity basketball team, for example, is finite at 12 players. And, in a college town where the sport of basketball is king, the school offers the chance for any aspiring round-baller to compete.

“Seabury adds opportunity for an additional number of kids, in many cases allowing a student to have a career who may not be able to compete for a 1,600-student high school,” Nelson says. “The school is perfect for the academic kid who also is competitive.”

Bishop Seabury Academy golf, volleyball, basketball and soccer in action from the 2016-17 seasons. Photos courtesy Bishop Seabury.

It’s one thing to get an administrator’s take on the power and value of the high school athletic experience. It’s quite another to hear it directly from a student-athlete who must strike a daily balance between his academic obligations and the needs of his team. But before you do, imagine again for a moment that the same student-athlete is one day working alongside you at the bank, the hospital, the car dealership or the university. “I’m working hard everyday trying to be a good leader for my teammates,” says 18-year-old Simon McCaffrey, senior point guard for the Free State High basketball team. “I’ve got to make sure I’ve got everyone’s back.” McCaffrey’s viewpoint is grounded in the essence of what high school sports programs are all about. It is the aforementioned intangible, difficult-to-measure benefits that boil down to one word—teamwork. Regardless of whether a student is the star quarterback, a third-string midfielder, a bruised and battered volleyball middle blocker, the assistant manager of the JV tennis team or simply a shy freshman sweeping up chalk dust after gymnastics practice, the takeaway is the same. High school team sports equip young people for the future by enabling them to carve out their own unique role in something greater than themselves. p 41

The Impact of

SPORTS From athletic events to finances to visitors to legacy, KU Athletics and the city of Lawrence come together to create an unmatched vision of enduring success. by Bob Luder, photos by Steven Hertzog

With a budget that measures short of nine figures, The University of Kansas (KU) Athletics department will never be confused in size with some of the state’s behemoth corporations like Cerner or Cessna. No one who follows KU athletics, whether from the outside looking in or helping operate from the inside, can fail to recognize its impact reaches far beyond dollars and cents. While those aforementioned giants of industry certainly leave their own distinctive and lasting marks, it can be argued that high-profile college athletics—notably the two main revenue producers, football and men’s basketball— have as great an impact in terms of regional and national visibility, publicity and community self-esteem, as any megacorporation. 42

The numbers might not pop like the billions of dollars earned annually by Cerner’s medical information technology or Cessna’s aerospace engineering, but make no mistake: KU athletics are big business. “A lot of people don’t want to recognize that we’re a corporation,” says KU athletics director Sheahon Zenger. “But we have one of the top 25 to 30 (college athletic) budgets in the country. We have the third-largest budget in the Big 12 Conference (trailing only Texas and Oklahoma).” In fact, the Jayhawks men’s basketball team recently brought attention to the U.S., Kansas, Lawrence and the University with a series of victories in exhibition games in Italy. Year in and year out, a majority of games played by the Jayhawks hoopsters are nationally televised, either on ESPN or CBS. ESPN’s flagship college program College

The KU Band performs on Tradition Night in Memorial Stadium.

The football program also has a list of luminaries—Gale Sayers, John Riggins, Pepper Rodgers, John Hadl—who have left lasting legacies. In non-revenue sports such as track and field, Jayhawk alumni have set world records or placed highly in national and international competition. Jim Ryun held the world record in the mile run for many years in t he 1960s and ’70s. Al Oerter unprecedentedly won gold medals in the discus at four consecutive Olympic Games. Much more recently, Mason Finley, a former Jayhawk discus thrower, earned a bronze medal at the IAAF World Track and Field Championships, in London. GameDay usually broadcasts at least once per season from Allen Field House. It seems the Jayhawks are always a high seed in the NCAA Tournament and a threat to make the Final Four. The football team, while struggling to win games in recent seasons, benefits from being part of the Big 12 Conference’s TV football package. All of its games are televised, at least regionally. And, the Jayhawks still pack tens of thousands into Memorial Stadium on home game days, contributing to filling local hotels, restaurants and other downtown and campus establishments. Then, there is the intangible impact of the legacy of KU sports. The history of the sport of basketball practically emanates from here, what with the game’s inventor being KU’s first basketball coach. The original rules of the game are housed in a building adjacent to Allen Field House, which happens to be named after Phog Allen, widely recognized as the “Father of Basketball Coaching.” One of the greatest players in history, college or pro: Wilt Chamberlain played here.

It’s not difficult to understand why a large chunk of Lawrence’s and KU’s civic pride emanates from the lasting success of the University’s athletics programs. “It’s safe to say that the majority of people here know that KU sports are an important part of our city’s identity,” says Porter Arneill, interim communications manager at the Lawrence City Manager’s Office. “It brings our community national attention and benevolently impacts the local economy.”

BY THE NUMBERS The annual budget for KU Athletics hovers around $90 million, explains Pat Kaufman, the department’s chief financial officer. Of that total, the University contributes $1.5 million. Students kick in about $300,000 from activities fees, which helps pay for student labor. “All other revenue comes from nongovernment sources,” Kaufman says. Those sources include ticket sales, corporate sponsorships, media contracts and private donations. Kaufman says the 43

department typically kicks back $2 to 2.5 million annually to the state of Kansas in sales taxes.

and marketing and, of course, athletic trainers and sports medicine.

“We feel we give back to the state more than we take,” he says.

And, that’s not counting all the various game-day event staff, concession vendors and the like, many of whom are contracted out through an outside company, Centerplate.

Kaufman went on to say that the Athletics department annually writes tuition checks totaling around $7.5 million. Add in housing costs and meals—room and board, in more general terms—and about $14 million of the annual budget goes directly to student-athletes’ scholarship costs. Revenue from trademark licenses, which generally is around $2 million, is split 50-50 with the university. In all, KU sponsors 18 sports—11 women’s, 7 men’s. About 500 student-athletes compete during a given school year (the football team alone lists more than 100 players on the roster). A sizeable majority of those student-athletes enjoy the benefits of some form of scholarship. The department enlists 230 full-time employees and another 250 who are part-time. In addition to coaching staff— football lists 30 assistant coaches and support staff, while men’s basketball has eight—and administrators, there are spirit squad coaches, academic support counselors, compliance and student services personnel, communications 44

“At most universities, football and men’s basketball subsidize the remaining sports,” Kaufman says. “Typically, the football team leads the way. With football, you have TV revenues. That generates more than just ticket revenues.” Kaufman says the annual budgeting process for KU Athletics is pretty typical of other NCAA Division I universities. Administrators gather and determine what the year’s revenue sources are going to be. They do the same with expenses. They project what all the various teams are going to need for upcoming seasons. Zenger sets priorities, then everyone goes about meeting their respective goals. “Overall, our budget is break-even typically; we operate within our means,” Kaufman says. “We have the ability to adjust when we need to.”

Top - Left to Right: Former football players from years past return to Lawrence to support head Coach David Beaty at the spring football game. Big Jay makes an entrance at the spring football game. Coaches Ray Bechard, David Beaty, Brandon Schneider and Bill Self share time together before speaking to the new students on Traditions Night.

THE IMPACT OF A HOME FOOTBALL GAME Michael Davidson, executive director of eXplore Lawrence, shared an economic impact report compiled by the organization that measured the dollars-and-cents impact of a KU home football game. The study was based on 25,000 attendees, with 40 percent of those being out-of-towners staying overnight. Dollar totals only take into account visitors’ expenditures and don’t account for game-day spending by locals.

which includes world-class track and field facilities, softball and soccer stadiums, a tennis complex and a city-owned and operated recreation center, hosted the USA Track and Field National Junior Olympic Track and Field meet in late July. “According to the city’s 2016 economic development report, last year, more than 52,000 people attended 47 KU sporting events held at Rock Chalk Park,” Arneill says. “These events often generate hotel stays, dining and retail activity that benefit the community and remind visitors of Lawrence’s unmistakable character.”

Key findings in the study showed that such a home game resulted in direct business sales in the city of $2.8 million, including nearly $1 million alone in revenue from hotel stays (estimated room demand, 6,275) and total business sales just greater than $4 million.

Not only do KU athletics bring treasure to the city’s coffers, they bring exposure to the university itself. Most times an event is shown on TV, there is a segment about the University’s academic reputation and images broadcast of campus and Mount Oread.

Local jobs directly supported were 2,888, with total supported jobs at 3,188. Income direct to the city in the form of local taxes were estimated at $145,271, with net direct tax return on investment of $133,756. Total visitor days spent in Lawrence: 21,335.

“KU’s athletic programs are indeed an asset to the University in terms of not only what they provide in scholarships and experiences for student-athletes, but also in the visibility they give KU on a national scale,” explains Erinn BarcombPeterson, director for news and media relations for the University. “When the university is named or the Jayhawk logo is shown to national audiences because of sports, that’s exposure to prospective students, alumni and donors, and

Simply put, big-time college athletics is a big deal to the cities that host them. And, that doesn’t just include football and men’s basketball. Rock Chalk Park, KU’s still-new complex,

otherwise would cost millions of dollars in paid advertising. “KU can stand alone on its academics and research, and those are accomplishments we tout consistently, including in national campaigns like the recently unveiled ‘Our Chant Rises,’” she continues. “Yet, our active Athletics program is often the gateway to reaching those audiences of prospective students, alumni and donors.”

MUCH MORE THAN MONEY Then, there are those the Athletics program impacts most, the studentathletes themselves. The NCAA prohibits college student-athletes from being paid directly, so they must reap benefits in other ways. High-profile football and basketball players have the opportunity to develop their games in the hopes of one day making big money in professional sports. KU’s latest high-profile athlete to do this was Jayhawk guard Josh Jackson, who was an NBA lottery pick with the Phoenix Suns after one season of college ball, and teammate Frank Mason III, who rode his consensus college player-ofthe-year performance his senior season to a second-round draft pick with the NBA’s Sacramento Kings. Of course, opportunities for college athletes like Jackson and Mason to cash in on their talents are few and far between. But there are other benefits for student-athletes to enjoy. It’s those perks that stoke the fires in Zenger and make him most proud of being KU’s athletics director. “It’s always about building the whole person,” he says. “I had a recent conversation with Hank Booth (longtime Lawrence radio personality and one-time public address announcer at KU football and basketball games), and we discussed how, in recent years, more student-athletes are becoming more about the academic side. We just set an all-time (gradepoint average) record between 3.1 and 3.2 for 500 student-athletes. “Student-athletes as a whole are goal-oriented young people,” he continues. “And, we have some great young people in this program.” One program Zenger takes particular pride in is KU Leads, a studentathlete development program focused on leadership training, community engagement, traditions and professional development. He says during the last few years, student-athletes have raised upwards of $3 million in the Lawrence community. And, even when they’re not directly involved in community service, KU student-athletes are omnipresent, attending local high school games or even walking the aisles of local supermarkets. “I think there’s a symbiotic tie between (KU athletics and Lawrence),” he says. “When one does well, the other does well. There’s just an energy in the community felt between the student-athletes in this community. It’s a special relationship.” While Zenger obviously takes great pride in Mason being named consensus men’s basketball national player of the year or Dorance Armstrong Jr. being named the Big 12’s preseason defensive player of the year, he equally likes to point to current or former KU student-athletes such as Cassie Wait, a former Jayhawks volleyball star who recently completed her first year of law school. Or, Rhavean King, who ran track and now is a commissioned officer in the U.S. Marine Corps. 46

“These people are why it is we do what we do,” Zenger says. “They’re shining examples of what makes the University of Kansas one of the great academic institutions in the country.” Zenger says he remembers a college president at Illinois State once referring to athletics as the “front porch” of a university, the part of a university that oftentimes gives it the greatest exposure to the outside. He said he invites his university, The University of Kansas, to “put its furniture on the front porch.” It’s a massive responsibility he, and the department as a whole, takes to heart and is eager to uphold. “I think it’s why we’re put on this earth,” he says. “To educate young people to be contributors to their community, the country and the world.” p

Left – Top to Bottom: Master of Ceremonies Dr. Mike Anderson welcomes “his best friend” coach Bill Self at Traditions Night Associate Athletic director Jim Marchiony speaking with KU staff before the start of the Women’s volleyball opener. Erinn Barcomb-Peterson-Director of News and Media KU Athletics Pat Kaufman CFO KU Athletic department Top: KU Athletic Director Dr. Sheahon Zenger watches the KU football home opener from the tunnel. Chancellor Douglas A. Girod and his wife Susan having fun at Traditions Night with MC Dr. Mike Anderson.

These days, college sports are no joke: They are big business. And, it’s no secret that big-time college sports programs make big money. In fact, as recently as 2015, the University of Kansas (KU) was No. 23 out of the 25 universities that made the most money in college sports, according to Business Insider. (KU has since been knocked out of that group, in which 24 out of 25 of the current top schools made more than $100 million per year as of 2016; KU Athletics currently has a $93-million budget.) “Money involved in college athletics reflects the vast interest in college athletics, for better or worse,” explains Jim Marchiony, KU associate athletics director, public affairs. “People love college athletics; they love 48

professional athletics. This is not new; the numbers are just bigger. We’re trying to compete with the best of the best, and with that, you need revenue.” So how does the KU Athletics department pull in the revenue it needs to be competitive in a market that nearly 50 percent of Americans follow and whose governing body (National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA) pulls in $1 billion a year?

Marketing

Sports marketing is a growing division of the marketing field that focuses on the business of sports and the use of sports as a marketing tool. In 2007, KU teamed up with IMG College (IMGC), the nation’s leading

collegiate sports-marketing agency. IMGC offers national, regional and local multiplatform marketing opportunities, and represents more than 200 of the nation’s top collegiate properties, explains Marc Tuttle, general manager for Jayhawk IMG Sports Marketing, part of IMG College, a division of WME IMG. Some of those properties include the NCAA and its 89 championships, major conferences and many of the most prestigious colleges and universities in the country. IMGC and KU Athletics are partners in a 13-year, multimillion-dollar agreement that grants IMGC the rights to manage all of KU Athletics corporate sponsorships. “IMGC connects small, medium and large partners with the power of the Jayhawk brand,” Tuttle says. It creates business development, employee appreciation, brand awareness and brand reinforcement, and helps bring partnership agreements to life by creating compelling Jayhawk content for Jayhawk fans locally, regionally and nationally. “Our singular focus is representing Kansas Athletics,” he continues. IMG produces nearly 35,000 hours of radio programming on the largest sports radio network in the country, manages nearly 5,000 hours of local television programming and is the leading publisher of collegesports publications and the largest manager of university athletics websites. Jayhawk IMG Sports Marketing manages all corporate partnerships for KU Athletics. Tuttle defines the relationship as “a working partnership to achieve shared objectives and goals. Our focus on a daily basis is to expand the Kansas Athletics brand locally, regionally and nationally.” IMG and KU Athletics work together to not only bring in money to the Athletics department but also to promote the University and draw the best and brightest student-athletes possible. “It’s long been said that athletics is the front porch of your university. We take that full stride,” says Matt Baty, associate athletics director, Williams Education Fund, marketing and sales. “With that, we highlight the University. Our student-athletes market our university.” Baty says that through marketing, he and his team (including IMG) are always aware they are bringing people on the campus and attracting future students and student-athletes. “It brings attention to the University as a whole, which can potentially increase and improve recruiting of athletics and the applicant pool of the student body,” he says. “Attention is important to us because it spreads the word.” Other Big 12 partners of IMG College include Baylor University, Texas Christian University, the University of Texas and West Virginia University.

Fans enjoying Hawk Zone and tailgating under the tents before a KU Football game.

Fund-Raising

The average cost to support a student-athlete at KU is $87,000 per year. If you think that sounds like a lot, you may be right. That money covers everything from scholarships to tutors to books to stipends to travel. “It includes everything related to student-athletes, both athletically and academically,” Baty says. That’s why The Williams Education Fund is such an important piece of the revenue puzzle, Marchiony explains. “It’s critically important to athletics because we don’t get a subsidy from the University,” he says. “Generally, at a private institution, the athletics budget is within the university budget. At public universities, much of the time, they are separate.” Which is the case at KU. Out of the Athletics department’s $90-million budget, less than 2 percent comes from the University. And, with one of the smallest student fees charged in the country, raising money from alumni, parents, friends and fans to support studentathletes and the Athletics department is crucial. “Part of the reason student fees are so low and the percentage from the University is so low is because we raise revenue ourselves,” Marchiony explains. “It allows us to have an athletics program that competes among the very best athletics programs in the country without being subsidized by the University.” Eventually named for the Williams family (Dick, Skipper and Odd), efforts to create an athletics scholarship fund began in 1949. Originally named the Outland Fund (named after Dr. John Outland, the “Father of the Kansas Relays”), $11,500 was raised from 115 members at $100 apiece in its first year. By 1968, the fund had reached $1 million and had contributors from 50

73 cities in Kansas and 10 other states. By 1970, the fund had reached $2 million; and in 1974, then-athletic director Clyde Walker announced that the fund would be renamed The Williams Educational Fund in honor of the Williams family’s efforts to raise money for KU Athletics. Today, about $30 million is raised each year by The Williams Fund to support its athletes. Most of its approximately 6,000 donors live in Kansas, but other Williams Fund supporters live all across the country. The Williams Fund’s staff of 12 spends its time overseeing relationships with donors and coordinating marketing and sales for the group. It’s hard to overstate the importance of The Williams Fund to Kansas Athletics. In 2015, 12 KU teams appeared in NCAA postseason play; seven student-athletes earned All-American honors; three KU coaches were named National Coach of the Year; KU studentathletes accounted for 21 Big 12 First-Team All-Conference selections; and many student-athletes received national, regional and conference academic awards. In 2016, KU Volleyball won the Big 12 Conference title for the first time in its history; KU Soccer reached the NCAA tournament for the second time in three years; and sophomore Sharon Lokedi finished fifth at the NCAA Cross Country Championships after winning the Big 12 title. At the same time, The DeBruce Center, home to the original rules of basketball, opened along with a new indoor/outdoor tennis facility at Rock Chalk Park. None of this would have been possible without the support of Williams Fund contributors.

Sponsorships

Another source of revenue for KU Athletics is sponsorships. Aside from IMG, KU Athletics holds one of the largest college-athletics partnerships in the country with Adidas, extended in 2013 until 2019 and worth an estimated $26 million in sponsorship and product. Adidas provides footwear, uniforms, apparel and accessories to each of the Jayhawks’ 18 intercollegiate athletics teams. “You want to be associated with big names, good brands,” Baty explains. “We are very cognizant of that.” Along with sponsorships, KU Athletics gets money from the Big 12 Conference for television rights and from the NCAA, which gives each school money based on how many sports the school supports to be used for academics. KU Athletics also administers a trademark-licensing program, the revenue of which is split with the University. In each of the past couple of years, the University and KU Athletics have split about $2 million from this program. “The Jayhawk is known as the second-most recognizable icon right behind Notre Dame,” Baty says.

Ticket Sales

Another important revenue base for KU Athletics is ticket sales, which brings in approximately $20 million per year. Among the largest sellers of tickets, men’s basketball and football combined bring in about $11 million. “It’s a lifeline along with The Williams Fund,” Baty says. “Without it, we wouldn’t be successful.” He says with KU competing at the Power 5 level, that puts the university in the top 25 of budgets, allowing it to provide first-class facilities and operations for its studentathletes. But because the Athletics department owes $10 to $12 million in scholarship costs annually to the University before a ball is bounced or a pass is thrown, “Ticket sales are critical to enable us to compete at this level in college athletics,” Marchiony adds.

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Community

When it comes to KU athletics and its effect on the Lawrence community, all you have to do is drive around town just before or after a football or basketball game to see how many people come to town to experience its exciting vibe. Obviously, having so many more people in town affects the Lawrence economy. Restaurants, hotels, bars, local events—nearly every business feels some sort of impact on these busy days and weekends. “The success or failure of KU major athletic teams has a psychological impact on guests, generating either a buoyant or dour mood,” says Chuck Magerl, owner of Free State Brewing Co., 636 Massachusetts St. Though he says fall Saturdays don’t have a huge impact on sales, since organizations have scheduled events around the KU football schedule so as not to compete with lodging in town, “Saturdays with home KU basketball games are typically 25 percent busier than non-game days in the same period.” He says other activities, such as KU women’s basketball, volleyball and softball, also have a modest impact on sales on days of home games. And, this increase in business can be felt throughout the Lawrence business community. “It [KU sports] has a very large impact on our business,” explains Nancy Longhurst, general manager, The Olivia Collection, the Eldridge (701 Massachusetts St.) and The Oread (1200 Oread Ave.) hotels. With football games being all-day events, guests usually stay a couple of nights, eat at the hotel restaurants and have drinks at the hotel bars. She explains that big athletic events boost sales about 20%, and fans tend to return year after year. With the influx of people in the hotels, restaurants and bars during football and basketball seasons comes “an explosion of business,” she says, “and we have a lot of fun with all the KU fans.” 52

KU Baseball - kids game - photo courtesy Jeff Jacobsen, KU Athletics

Not only does KU Athletics contribute to the Lawrence community’s bottom line, KU student-athletes also contribute to the Lawrence community through community programs. Some of those include: READ (read to classes at various elementary schools in Lawrence); Fun and Fitness (play games with elementary students during physical education classes); Habitat for Humanity (Team Builds); Humane Society (walk/ play with shelter animals); Special Olympics Golf Tournament Fund-Raiser; Riley’s Playground (play day for individuals with special needs); Salvation Army Bell Ringing (across Lawrence, student-athletes volunteer to be bell ringers for a day); Crimson and Boo (trick-or-treat night for kids in Booth Family Hall of Athletics); Hawks Cops and Kids (partnership with Big Brothers/Big Sisters and KUPD, Lawrence Police Department and Kansas Highway Patrol centered around teamwork, healthy choices and personal safety); Festival of Trees (fund-raising event for the Shelter Inc.); #lunchbag (student-athletes make lunch bags to give to homeless population at lunch); Girls and Boys Club visits/team events; Kansas Kids Fitness Day (volunteer to run active stations at the event, partnered with Lawrence Memorial Hospital); and Adopt-a-Family (donations and wrapping during the holidays for families in need). The University of Kansas is rich in tradition, and its athletics program has long been a major reason for that. And, this tradition helps when it comes to bringing fans to KU athletic events, the best and the brightest to study at the University and the funding needed to help it all succeed. “All of those names and all of those sports make alums feel they are part of a rich history,” Marchiony says. “It’s a big part of what brings fans to the arena.” “I’ve never been around one [tradition] as strong as this one. The pride you feel being a Jayhawk,” Baty says. “We are a blue-blood school.” p

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Local Economy:

Turning Sports Passion into Revenue Lawrence state-of-the-art sports facilities not only bring in premiere athletes and competitions, but also money from visitors to boost local economy. by Mike Anderson, photos by Steven Hertzog

200 players, coaches, parents and scouts recently watched a team from Missouri play a team from Iowa, all on a court in Kansas. And this was just one of the many games that took place at the Hardwood Classic from July 20 through 23 at the Lawrence Sports Pavilion. One of the parents watching the game was Shannon Harney. His son Tyson played for the 16-and-under team from Nebraska. This was their first time in Lawrence, and Harney was impressed by the Sports Pavilion. “This is state-of-the-art, best [facility] I’ve been to,” he says. This comment holds a fair amount of weight considering Harney and son have already been to nine similar tournaments around the country this year, and will hit a dozen before the season is finished. But, before you think this tournament is just filled with Midwestern teams, think again. While Harney and his son may be from Oakland, Nebraska, they’re not the only Oakland team being represented this weekend. The Oakland Soldiers, from California, were one of the favorites to win in the 17-and-under division. Their coach, Kris Weems, grew up in Kansas City before playing for Stanford University. He referred to the Sports Pavilion as the nicest they’ve played in and, more importantly, the safest. With extra room under the baskets, he doesn’t have to worry about his kids banging into a wall when going to save a ball or going up for an epic fast-break block. Jim Hart brought his team from Albany, New York. He calls our facility “second to none” and applauds it for its size and convenience. This tournament was particularly important to coach Hart because of the teams he gets to play. His team has a contract with Nike, which means, in the majority of tournaments in which they plays, they only play other teams sponsored by Nike. “You get to know the same teams 54

pretty well because you’re always playing them, but with this tournament, I also get to play teams from Under Armor and Adidas.” The stakes for these players at a tournament such as this cannot be understated. As New York’s star player, Isaiah Stewart, put it, “This is a business trip.” Top coaches like Tom Izzo, Shaka Smart, Patrick Ewing and Jim Boeheim come to scout this tournament. Chris Walker, an assistant for the University of California, Berkeley, basketball team, is glad to see a tournament like this in Kansas. “AAU [Amateur Athletic Union] tournaments are more celebrated than people think,” he explains. “And this tournament could really grow. Kansas is centrally located; they can all come to Kansas. The less money a team has to spend to travel the better.” University of Kansas (KU) fans might remember Walker as the head coach of the 2012-2013 Texas Tech University team. When asked what his last memory of Lawrence was, his answer came quickly: “A 30-point whoopin’.” Needless to say, this trip to Lawrence was a lot easier on his blood pressure. As a scout, Walker also applauded both the tournament and the facility. Chad Tower, facilities operation supervisor at Sports Pavilion Lawrence, says the Pavilion provided a meal component for all the scouts and coaches that included a hospitality room and three meals for all four days. This event was a prime example of how sporting events can bring visitors from all across the country and raise awareness about Lawrence to the nation. City of Lawrence director of arts and culture Porter Arneill, who has lived in various cities, knows how sport plays into the identity of Lawrence. “Culturally, sports are such an important aspect of the Lawrence community. It benefits the quality of life here. The city is very cognizant of those benefits,” he explains. But

another benefit is the economic influence these events can have on Lawrence and Douglas County. According to eXplore Lawrence, which provides information on Lawrence and Douglas County to its visitors, the Hardwood Classic brought in $4,751,980 in business sales from visitor spending. 1,414 jobs were supported because of the revenue of the event. The event included 5899 overnight attendees and 3176 day attendees. And, while widely successful, the Hardwood Classic was just the appetizer to the main course that was the USA Track and Field Junior Olympics, held July 24 through 30 at Rock Chalk Park. A representative for USA Track and Field says the Junior Olympics is its premier event. “This is where Olympic athletes get their start. It’s the most competitive and highest-level youth track meet in the country. This is a highly desired event,” the rep explains. Numerically, it’s also the biggest. This year saw 8129 athletes compete at Rock Chalk Park. In comparison, the Olympic trials have only 1,000 competing athletes.

Left: The Boo Williams team from Virginia celebrates a win in the Hardwood Classics at the Sports Pavilion Lawrence. Above: A map displays how far coaches travelled from across the country to scout players at the Hard Classic in Lawrence. Below: The San Antonio King Hoops from Texas pose outside the SPL.

Not surprisingly, the economic influence of this event was deafening. Michael Davidson, of eXplore Lawrence, says the Junior Olympics had a $17.5-million regional impact, and a $5-million local impact. Cristie Gunn, a server at the downtown restaurant 715, called the week of the Junior Olympics the busiest she’s ever seen. “It was crazy. Every day was like Friday night,” she says. Hotel business was no different. All the hotels in the area were booked. Some of the athletes were even forced to stay in hotels near the airport. Perhaps no one is happier to see this event than KU track and field assistant coach Wayne Pate. “You get kids on campus and give them a chance to see what Lawrence has to offer,” he says. “The football stadium didn’t meet the standards for an event like this. I want to have this (event) again, again, again.” Coach Pate might get his wish, as there’s reason to be optimistic about these events returning. Representatives for both the Hardwood Classic and USA Track and Field praised the facilities as “first rate” and the experience of the athletes as “first class.” When deciding on

a location, the USA Track and Field rep looks at four things: 1) facility, 2) local organization that is great to work with, 3) hotel base, and 4) ease of access. Lawrence scored highly on all. While Lawrence waits for the hopeful return of the Hardwood Classic and The Junior Olympics, the facilities will certainly be kept warm. Lawrence Sports Pavilion will continue to have local and regional tournaments through December. Sports Pavilion’s Tower says the volleyball tournaments will happen December through April, where 60 to 80 volleyball teams will play every Saturday and Sunday. Lawrence also still features the KU Relays, the Downtown Olympic Shot Put event and the Gravel Grinder National Championship in June, among other events. Let us not forget the countless sporting events charities put on to raise money. Not-for-profits commonly use golf events, 5K walk/runs, basketball tournaments and more as effective tools to fund-raise. For example, the Mario V. Chalmers Foundation annual golf event raises more than $25,000 for the Boys and Girls Club of Lawrence. Local nonprofit organization Cooper’s Cause Foundation uses a 5K run and golf tournament each year to raise close to $18,000 for pediatric health patients’ families. The most recent Rock Chalk Roundball Classic raised $57,000 for five local families fighting cancer. Event organizer Brian Hanni brings in Jayhawk basketball players from several decades to entertain a sold-out crowd. Only at this event will you get to see 56-year-old Darnell Valentine throw an alley-oop for 22-year-old Ben McLemore. “This event equips KU athletes with the knowledge of what they could do with that platform,” Hanni says. The Penny Jones Golf Tournament is the annual golf event that continually raises more than $100,000 for the Lawrence Memorial Hospital Endowment Association. Greg Dannevik, assistant golf operations supervisor, Eagle Bend Golf Course, says Eagle Bend hosts 50 to 60 fundraising events a year. Tiffany Hall, the Annual Giving Manager for the Lawrence Memorial Hospital Endowment, and her crew also use their Summer Spray 5K run/walk events to raise $5,000 for wellness grants distributed to programs or projects that effectively and resourcefully enhance local health and wellness. The impact of sports on our local economy cannot be denied. At a time when city leaders are looking to develop new sources of revenue, these numbers are surely to get noticed. This year from July 20 to 30, roughly 18,000 young athletes came to Lawrence, the vast majority for the first time. Each brings parents, family members and/or coaches with them. Not too bad for a 10-day stint in July. With the addition of events like the Hardwood Classic and the Junior Olympics, perhaps we’re starting to turn our passion into a profit. p 56

Video production for small business and local organizations.

GameDay Cuisine

Keeping KU fans happy during sporting events relies not only on the athletes but also those behind the refreshment stands. by Liz Weslander, photos by Steven Hertzog

Chanting, cheering and waving the wheat are all hard work, which is why the experience of rooting for the Jayhawks from the stands is just not complete without some refreshments to keep up the stamina. To learn more about this serious business, we took some time to get to know the people and companies that keep KU fans fed, hydrated and hyped up on game day. Centerplate, a national food and beverage concessionaire, based in Stamford, Connecticut, is the company responsible for The University of Kansas (KU) athletics’ concessions operations. The company also goes beyond slinging popcorn and soda by building relationships with local businesses and nonprofits, bringing positive impacts to the community. Centerplate has had its current contract with KU since 2009, when it signed a 10-year deal and replaced the locally based Mid-America Concessions Inc. KU extended Centerplate’s contract through 2024 in 2016. Brad Nachtigal, associate athletic director of operations and capital projects, says the advantage of KU’s partnering with a national vendor such as Centerplate comes down to selection and price. Centerplate has volume contracts with a number of national food companies, which means they can get a good variety of menu items at the best price points, he explains. Justin Thornton, general manager for Centerplate at KU, concurs.

“Whether it’s a hot dog, a drink, a bag of chips, we literally have partnerships for every item that we sell,” Thornton says. “When we get better costs, that helps us to have more fan-friendly pricing. For instance, a year ago, we lowered our bottled soda and water prices by 50 cents and a quarter.” Centerplate’s contract gives the company rights to sell concessions at all seven of the university’s athletic venues. In addition to Thornton, Centerplate’s local employees include two salaried managers, three full-time employees and 45 part-time concessions workers. Thornton says concessions for events at smaller venues like Anschutz, Hoglund and Horejsi are operated exclusively by Centerplate. However, for men’s and women’s basketball games at Allen Field House, football games at Memorial Stadium, and the Kansas Relays at Rock Chalk Park, Centerplate subcontracts with local, third-party vendors such as the Salty Iguana, Bigg’s Barbecue and Eileen’s Colossal Cookies to supplement its offerings. About 15 percent of the concession stands at men’s basketball and football games are local vendors, Thornton says. “Out of 70 points of sale in the field house, there will be usually 10 or so who are local vendors,” Thornton explains. Thornton says local subcontractors pay Centerplate a set 57

(left) Hungry fans line up at the Hawk Nosh inside the Allen Fieldhouse. (center) Memorial Stadium offer sports fans the usual bill of fare but also (right) local specialties like the Salty Iguana.

commission rate for access to a vending space. Centerplate also takes a percentage of the subcontractors’ sales at each event. These rates and percentages vary according to the venue and the event, but commission rates of anywhere between 15 and 40 percent of sales are the industry standard, he explains. “For men’s basketball in the Field House, we get 13,000 to 14,000 people regardless of who we are playing and how we are doing; so we take 35 to 40 percent of sales,” Thornton says. “For events that are outdoors, like the Kansas Relays or the Junior Olympics, we’ll lower it a little bit because of weather, and it’s a different kind of event. For football, attendance has struggled over the years, so I’ve really had to lower the rates to keep some of the vendors interested in coming back.” Thornton says Centerplate’s five top-selling items at KU athletic events in order are bottled water, bottled soda, hot dogs, draft soda and popcorn, with bottled drinks accounting for 50 percent of sales. One of the advantages of having vendors from the community in the mix is the variety they bring to the concession offerings at basketball and football games. One unique concession stand that is the result of a collaboration among Centerplate, KU Athletics and the Rohr Chabad Center for Jewish Life at KU is a kosher deli called Hawks Nosh, which offers kosher hot dogs, corned-beef sandwiches, knishes and pretzels during weekday men’s basketball games at Allen Field House. Hawks Nosh, which started operating at the Field House in 2011, was spearheaded by Rabbi Zalman Tiechtel, director of Chabad at KU, with strong support from Jewish students and alumni. The kosher deli was the first of its kind at a collegiate sporting venue, and other universities have since adapted the idea, Zalman says. “One thing that everyone is very about passionate here in Jayhawk country is KU basketball. Some would even say that Jayhawk basketball is a religion,” Zalman says. “We are 58

always looking for ways of promoting Jewish culture, and this was a great way to merge those two worlds together. A lot of alumni come from all across the region, and to have kosher food at a basketball game is exhilarating for them.” Operating a Kosher deli is a complex undertaking that is not just about the procurement of kosher ingredients, Zalman explains. It also involves adhering to strict preparation and serving processes. For this reason, Hawks Nosh has specially dedicated kosher preparation equipment and always has a trained kosher supervisor present to help staff the stand. Zalman says keeping Kosher is a broad concept, which means Hawks Nosh caters to a broad spectrum of people— some follow a strict kosher diet, some prefer to only eat kosher meats and some just like the taste of kosher food. As one of only three places in Kansas where one can buy a kosher sandwich, Zalman thinks people come to Hawks Nosh for both the experience and the food. “Kosher hot dogs are way better than non-kosher because they do not have a lot of the junk that the non-kosher hot dogs do,” Zalman says. “I’m not going to say they are healthy, but kosher food is known to have a really good taste.” Thornton says he gets a lot of positive feedback about Hawks Nosh from the KU community, including Williams Fund donors, and is happy that Zalman brought the concept of a kosher deli to the table. “There is no question that Centerplate and KU Athletics get a lot of credit for making this happen,” Zalman says. “It was less of business decision for them and more of a servicingthe-community decision, and we are very appreciative of them taking these bold steps.” In addition to partnering with local businesses to add variety to concession offerings, Centerplate has also established relationships with a number of local nonprofit organizations, which provide staff for some of the concession stands at Allen Field House and Memorial Stadium. The nonprofits,

which include churches, civic groups, Greek organizations, clubs and traveling sports teams, receive 10 percent of sales in exchange for staffing a stand, or a minimum of $50 per worker. Thornton says the most experienced groups make between $400 and $500 on a good night in Allen Field House, and between $700 and $800 at Memorial Stadium. “We have some groups that are trained to manage a stand from open to close and top to bottom,” Thornton explains. “From checking in and getting the money, to counting all the inventory, to slinging hot dogs and nachos, to balancing the inventories with cash at the end. Of course, we run into the groups who are not capable of that, so I’ll put a couple of my staffers in to help guide and manage their stand. The group will do registers and prep the food, but Centerplate people will handle the money and the inventory.” While nonprofit groups benefit from working with Centerplate, Thornton says these groups can also be invaluable to the concessions operations. “I have a couple of really good groups that are running my ships, and every time I need help, they have 20 people or more at the drop of a hat,” he says. He cited Spring Hill Parents for Kids as an example of a group that has worked with the company throughout its entire time at KU. “They are really experienced and organized; they know exactly what we want of them.” Carmen Haynes is in her fourth season working with the KU football and basketball games for Spring Hill Parents for Kids, and says working sporting events with her kids has provided them a way to earn money for activities they want to be a part of, such as softball, Boy Scouts, school trips and even KU tuition. “I have always been a KU fan, so I enjoy the atmosphere and being around all the fans who attend the games,” Haynes says. “I have made lifelong friends with the Centerplate staff and with the people who I work with at the concession stands each month, which is what really keeps my family returning to work the games.” p 59

THE LAWRENCE

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Larry McElwain, Mike Amyx, Jean Milstead Miles Schnaer

Junior Achievement

Business Hall of Fame Class of 2017 by Hank Booth, photos by Steven Hertzog

The Junior Achievement ( JA) purpose is very clearly stated: “JA inspires and prepares young people to succeed in a global economy.” JA is supported by three pillars on which its education model is based: financial literacy, workforce development and entrepreneurship. With this background, thousands of Lawrence-area students have learned about the world of business right in the classroom. JA first and foremost is a partnership between the school district and the local business community. The classrooms, primarily first through eighth grade, are visited each semester by volunteer teachers who bring grade-appropriate curriculum for the students to learn. It is blended into the social studies portion of the school day. For the volunteers, there is never a boring moment; for the students, it’s a chance to learn firsthand from men and women who are now an important part of the Lawrence workforce. The personal experiences of the volunteers are always welcome. Most of the new teachers want to go back again and again for the experience. The Junior Achievement Lawrence Business Hall of Fame first class was named in 2010. Each year since then, four business leaders have been added to the Hall of Fame wall, now located in a special section of the Lawrence Public Library. The Class of 2017 includes civic leaders from a wide variety of business institutions—barbershop, bank, car dealership and funeral home. They will officially be inducted

at the annual banquet on Oct. 4 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel. Each has a very different and interesting background, and each has added hours of volunteer time and financial resources in addition to building strong businesses during their careers.

Mike Amyx

“I have a hard time using the word ‘I’ when working on our community’s business.” Those words summarize very well the attitude of a man who has served as the Lawrence mayor for six years and twice as chairman of the Douglas County Commission during nearly three decades as an elected official in Lawrence and Douglas County. While serving all those years in four different decades since the 1980s, Mike has been involved in hundreds of votes and has worked with many different fellow commissioners and a half-dozen city and county administrators. In a community where many elected commissioners choose not to seek reelection after a single twoyear term because of the stress and strain, it speaks highly of his willingness and ability to communicate, and work out problems and find solutions to very difficult issues. Using the word “I” to describe how the work got done doesn’t fit Mike Amyx in any way. Mike is perhaps the most accessible city or county official who’s ever been elected. At least five days a week, all you 61

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have to do to tell Mike how you feel about something on the agenda is walk in the door of the Tom Amyx Barber Shop, near the busy corner of Ninth and Massachusetts streets downtown. When he begins cutting hair shortly after 6 a.m. daily, he’s standing in almost the exact same place his grandfather stood when he first opened the barbershop in 1942. His father stood in the same spot and cut hair after that. Mike doesn’t miss many days of work but does take an occasional afternoon off under the orders of his wife of 42 years, Marilyn. Marilyn and Mike first met at Lawrence High School, where they both graduated in 1971. They married in 1975 and have one son, Chris, who now lives in Pratt, Kansas, with his wife, Brandy. Chris is an information technology specialist. When Mike participated in the opening ceremony of the South Lawrence Trafficway earlier this year, it marked the completion of something he worked hard to get finished on the city and county commissions during so many years. Another roadway project also stands out for Mike as one of the most important during his career: The extension of 15th Street, from the city’s west boundary to the Trafficway, is also in his top group of accomplishments. Mike also lists the upcoming completion of the Wastewater Treatment Plan, on Lawrence’s southeast corner, as very important to his hometown’s future. Now, at the age of 63, Mike has decided not to run for reelection to the city commission; but, don’t rule out another elected position in his plans for the future. In the meantime, stop by the shop, get a good haircut and share a few stories. That, along with his wife, is what he loves the most.

Larry McElwain

Writing about the business career of Hall of Fame inductee Larry McElwain really deserves two separate articles. There are two very distinct and different jobs in this brief history. Larry started the first shortly after graduation from The University of Kansas with a bachelor’s degree in public personnel administration in 1970 and from San Francisco College of Mortuary Science a year later. He returned to Kansas and started his first job in the funeral business in Emporia. Within a year, the McElwains felt the pull back to Lawrence, where Larry went to work for Bill Warren at Warren Mortuary. Ironically, a year later, Warren started working on a plan for Larry to buy the mortuary in case of his death. He died five days later, and that began the McElwain family’s ownership of the Warren-McElwain Mortuary. 63

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• Current business expansion & retention • Encouraging entrepreneurship • Vocational & technical training • Stronger focus on mental health

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Larry’s dad and mom joined him in Lawrence in 1973, and another close friend and partner Phil Paden also joined the ownership group. Phil and Larry worked together as partners for 27 years. When the new group took over in the mid-1970s, the funeral home did about 17% of the funerals in Lawrence. When it sold in 2013, Warren-McElwain conducted nearly 65% of the funerals in this area. Larry also developed a very successful pre-need funeral program in 1988 with bank trust and life insurance funding programs. When sold with the funeral business in 2013, the pre-need program managed more than 2,000 prearranged and prefinanced funerals in Lawrence and Eudora. When asked about his original choice of career, Larry’s caring for people in the most difficult situations is evident. Simply put, “I was in a very high-touch business in a very high-tech world. Making that work for people during a troubling time was always rewarding,” he says. Throughout his ownership of Warren-McElwain, Larry has lived by a credo of public service in Lawrence, the state of Kansas and nationally with the National Funeral Directors Association. Much of that volunteer time was spent with the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce, spending several terms on the board of directors; he was the chair in 2003 and 2004. That familiarity with the work of the Chamber in the community was, in large part, what led him to Career No. 2. In 2014, Larry was named president and CEO of the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce, a job he still holds and thoroughly loves. Larry says the reason for his passion for the new career is simple: “I love what I’m doing. I’ve loved this town since I first got here.” Larry’s ability to work, oftentimes with feuding community groups with a variety of opinions on difficult issues, was evident in many duties he fulfilled doing various volunteer jobs. Larry has helped raised two families while developing the funeral business and his volunteer work. His own children with his wife, Jan, are daughter Erin Hellmuth, of Coppell, Texas, who owns a volleyball academy with 300 young women participating; son, Davis, who is a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army, now stationed in Korea and in charge of military communications for the entire Korean peninsula; and daughter Anna, who, with her husband and two boys, live in Forth Worth, Texas. He’s also helped to raise, with his second wife, Susan, her two daughters since they were 5 and 6 years old. Susan and Larry have been married nearly 20 years. Their daughters are Kirsten Long, who works with her husband at the Cerner Corp.; and Rebecca Stack, who 65

is with Waddell and Reed. A final thought about Larry McElwain’s chamber work perhaps says it best: “I’m working every day, all day to create jobs. Good jobs help hold families together. All of my work is really about meaningful employment for our residents,” he says.

Jean Milstead

After researching Business Hall of Fame inductee Jean Milstead and talking with her about her life, I can come to only one conclusion: Jean is a remarkable woman. Most of her friends and people she’s worked with through the years in Lawrence probably don’t know she’s a farm kid who grew up on a small, 100-acre farm near the northern Illinois town of Decatur. She and her identical twin sister, Janet, had an older brother and a younger sister who tended to all the chores with the hogs and chickens. Their father grew corn and wheat, and her mom took care of them all. She attended small rural schools, and it was her high school principal who recognized her math skills and recommended her to the local banker at the Marengo State Bank. The bank needed someone to help with the transition when assigning checking account numbers to its customers. She had a wonderful supervisor at that bank who not only taught her accounting and the rules of banking, but also why things were done in a precise manner. Jean’s future in banking was secure. Her next banking job was in Dallas, where her new husband went to college. She was working in Dallas when President Kennedy was assassinated, and she remembers the year following his death like living in a history book as the nation came to grips with the events that followed. After her husband’s graduation, the couple moved to Lawrence for his planned graduate school work; and, in the fall of 1966, Jean went to work for what was then The Douglas County State Bank. She started as an assistant cashier but moved quickly up the ladder and, ultimately, became a senior vice president. During her nearly 34-year career, she hired, trained and supervised just about all personnel in the bank. She supervised the first ATM installations in Lawrence. Later, she would manage the operational aspects of building the main bank location at Ninth and Kentucky in two phases; she also served as the liaison with the architect and builder for the 31st and Iowa facility construction. To top it all off, she 66

kept track of the numbers, developing and maintaining the accrual accounting system for the bank. When the bank reached $25 million in assets, she supervised the full computerization of the general ledger and commercial loan portfolio. Even with the heavy workload at the bank, Jean volunteered for many local organizations during four decades. Listing all of them would take a full singlespaced page and another filled with the awards she’s received in recognition of her volunteer services. She also spent several years serving interim terms for the chamber of commerce, including president and CEO in 2002 and 2003. When asked which of the boards and committees she’s worked with stands out and meant the most to her, she says there were two: “The Bert Nash Mental Health Center Board of Governors (member for 10 years), because we worked together to make mental issues something people in the community could better understand and accept. I also served two terms on the Lawrence Douglas County Planning Commission. Much of that time we were working on Horizon 2020 and had nearly 4000 people from every segment of the city and county involved. I’ve always liked to work on the big picture and long-term, longrange planning because of its effect on the future.” The award that stands out for her is the Lawrence Chamber Citizen of the Years she received in 2015. Jean and her husband of 33 years, Monte Milstead, are enjoying more free time now, but she still does volunteer work for United Way, sings in her church choir and is president of the Tennola Club (she can explain that one to you). She does look back at many people who have influenced her life, career and happiness during the more than 50 years she’s lived here. “I have truly lived a blessed life here in Lawrence and in my work,” she says.

Miles Schnaer

There are two very specific ideals Miles Schnaer remembers well that guided his career in the automobile business and led to being named to this year’s class of the Junior Achievement Lawrence Business Hall of Fame. The first was, “You can’t be just a small part of the community owning a successful dealership.” The second was much more specific, and Miles remembers it came from his wife, Paula, his college sweetheart, and his two daughters when he was contemplating adding more dealerships and perhaps moving away from their home: “If you want to move, plan on going on

your own.” That fixed the game plan, and Crown Automotive grew into one of the most successful dealerships in the Midwest. Instead of heading out of town, Miles expanded his local Toyota dealership, adding Volkswagen to the flock and building one of the largest indoor showrooms in the Midwest. Now known as Crown Automotive, the dealership employed about 50 people when Miles first put together the local Toyota and Chevrolet franchises. Today, about 110 employees live by the philosophy of the owner, “Our customer service is what we sell. We work hard to exceed our customers’ expectations in every facet of our business.” Crown has been a Toyota President’s Award Winner for 10 of the last 12 years and, in 1985 and 2001, winners of the Time Magazine “Dealer of the Year” award for Illinois and Kansas. The Illinois recognition was awarded to the first dealership Miles owned in Decatur, Illinois. Locally, the dealership was named the Lawrence Chamber Business of the Year in 2013 and Best Place to Buy a New Car in the Best of Lawrence competition since its inception. Miles has certainly lived up to the admonition of not just being a “small part of the community.” He has served on the board of the chamber of commerce twice, serves on the board of trustees of Cottonwood Inc. and also as a director of Bill Self’s Assists Foundation. In addition, Miles and several fishing friends started the Crown Casting Club, which helped more than 200 young people get outdoors and learn how to catch the big ones (and some little fish, too). Every year, the club puts on a “Fishing Derby,” and every kiddo who wets a line wins a prize. Miles and his business have also provided financial support for many local groups, including the Lied Center, The Boys and Girls Club, the American Red Cross, Cottonwood Inc., Van Go, Visiting Nurses, the Lawrence Public Library, the Lawrence Schools Foundation and … . The list goes on and on, and every year, it seems to grow. The Miles Schnaer philosophy, taught to him by his parents as he grew up, is very simple: “Treat people right, both customers and fellow employees, and do the right thing, and you will be successful. You have to be committed to excellence and believe you can be successful, and you will be,” he says. p 68

Honoring Outstanding Lawrence Business Leaders

Mike Amyx

Larry McElwain

The 2017 Hall of Fame Class

Jean Milstead

Miles Schnaer

Wednesday, October 4, 2017 DoubleTree by Hilton

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2017 HALL OF FAME SPONSORS

Listening to sports on the radio has long been and continues to be a favorite American pastime.

Hall of Famers and KU Radio Legends: Max Falkenstien and Bob Davis circa 1984

The Enduring Bond of Radio and Sports by Tim Robisch, General Manager KISS-FM, The Bull and KLWN New FM & 1320, photos by Steven Hertzog

Each of us has a special relationship with “our favorite teams” that we follow with endless devotion and passion. That relationship is not just passionately listening or watching that team, or buying tickets to see them play. Our primary team is the Jayhawks, and we know about the passion for them wherever they play. That passion extends to the Lions, Firebirds, Royals and Chiefs. The deep relationship with a fan and his or her team has a significant economic impact. Fans not only love to follow and support their favorite teams, they are attracted to anything related to them and will support advertisers who sponsor them. The 1912 the radio broadcast of a boxing match became the first radio play-by-play broadcast of a sporting event and the sport-fan relationship moved beyond simply attending a live sporting event to bringing it to the audience wherever they lived. For Lawrence and the Jayhawk Nation, that deep connection started in the 1950s, when KLWN AM signed on

and started to broadcast play-by-plays of KU athletic teams. Some wonder why there is such a deep relationship and connection between radio and sports. Why so many people follow their favorite teams on radio. Why so many fans listen to the games or events on the radio in the stands. It’s the connection exists the excitement and detail of every shot and play can be heard anywhere regardless of what the listener is doing. Only need a radio—no special equipment, subscriptions or “connections.” Additionally, the ability for the spoken word to work like an artist with a brush, painting vivid, dynamic pictures demonstrating to the audience every move on the field or court, and the ability to tell that story has become an artform in its own right. We have many masters in our midst with “artists” like Max Falkenstien, Bob Davis and Brian Hanni behind the microphone—or should we say brush? These connections and the passion of sports fans have a

“A wild ride and read!” —Bob Davis, Hall of Fame Sportscaster, University of Kansas

A young player’s journey to the home of basketball to save the game he loves.

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significant economic impact through advertising and marketing, but well beyond revenue generated for advertising and marketing programs. The ability to follow every play and support a team beyond a seat in the arena greatly expands the size of the fan base. An ad executive once said, “Win on Sunday, Sell on Monday.” Those sales can be fan gear, brands associated with a team and even local establishments that have benefitted from fans wanting to celebrate or share the experience of the game with a group. The local sports scene has fans just as passionate as those of major college and professional teams. High school sports, for example football, and what is called “Friday Night Lights” has steadily grown. Beyond being a vehicle to support community teams and its participants, high school sports have significant value to student-athletes, families and fans in the community. KLWN AM-FM broadcasts nearly 100 games annually for Lawrence and Free State high schools.

Brian Hanni and David Lawrence calling the KU football game from their radio booth in Memorial Stadium. Libby Ross, Matt Llewellyn and Hank Booth call the football games for the Lawrence High Lions.

Earlier this year, a survey conducted by OfficeTeam, a national staffing service, found that 66% of workers found workplace morale improved when big sporting events were incorporated into the workplace. Another 21% said their productivity improved the day after a big event. Whether it’s the Jayhawks going to the Final Four, a state championship title game or the Royals making another postseason run, the impact of sports is strong to us on a personal level, within our community and all across northwest Kansas. p

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THE MANY FACES

OF DANCE LAC’s School of Dance director proves being passionate about dance isn’t just for girls. By Sarah Bishop, Chief Communications Officer, the Lawrence Arts Center

The Lawrence Arts Center might not be the first place you’d look for athletes. But, in fact, it’s got plenty. And some of them are wearing pointe shoes. The man in charge of these artist-athletes is Hanan Misko, director of the Lawrence Arts Center’s School of Dance. Growing up in a Missouri farming community, Misko started out like most young boys, playing T-ball then moving on to baseball, horseback riding and, when available, skiing. He got his start in dance when his mother suggested he try gymnastics in order to build strength, flexibility and balance. Soon, Misko was stuffing his ballet shoes into his backpack right next to his catcher’s mitt. “Growing up in rural Missouri, some sports were not an option,” Misko says. “We didn’t have swimming or soccer, but we did have dance. It was in the dance studio that I learned about flexibility, balance, strength training and momentum, and this helped me in all the other sports I was involved in at 72

the time. I could run faster, jump higher, because of dance.” Eventually, Misko would decide his passion was dance, going on to pursue a degree in dance at The Juilliard School, in New York. Misko’s training led to opportunities to dance with internationally renowned dance companies, including Ballet Hispanico, Martha Graham Dance Company and Nimbus Dance Works, as well as to perform with wellknown organizations such as Störling Dance Theater, Mark Morris Dance Group, Jessica Lang Dance and even The Metropolitan Opera. In 2014, Misko stopped dancing professionally full-time and moved back to the Midwest to share his passion for dance education and training with others. As the director of the School of Dance at the Lawrence Arts Center, Misko oversees classes in ballet, jazz, tap, modern, contemporary, hiphop and cultural dance for students of all ages. For Misko, dance has just as much to offer students in terms of health and strength training as any other sport; and sometimes, he

says, it has special benefits. “One of the most important things about dance is that, unlike some team sports, it seldom results in a loss. In some sports, if you win, you’re excited, but if you lose, you might feel bad for a little while. In dance, we hope it’s different,” Misko explains. “The curtain goes up, and the curtain is going to go down no matter what. You get out there, you perform, and even if you fall, you come back at the end of the show, take a bow and feel proud of what you have accomplished. That is success in dance. You just hope that the audience has a good time, and you focus on doing your best.” It’s this sense of community and collaboration that makes Misko so motivated to ensure dance is accessible to all ages, races, genders and income levels. “Our goal at the Arts Center,” he says, “is to illuminate multiple pathways for each student. Not all students are going to want to pursue dance in college or become professional dancers. We’re trying to balance pre-professional training with an environment conducive to anyone who wants to find simple joys and a healthy lifestyle through dance.” Misko is especially committed to ensuring that boys know dance is a viable athletic activity—both a great way to build strength, flexibility and hand-eye coordination, and a practice that can help students succeed in other sports. Aware of the stigma sometimes associated with boys taking dance classes, Misko acknowledges that boys can sometimes feel like they shouldn’t dance or don’t fit in at the dance studio. Misko believes that stigma is lifting as the athleticism of dance receives increasing attention in mainstream culture. “More and more,” Misko says, “people are recognizing that the athleticism of dance is equal to that required by other sports. Dance gets you doing cardio, building strength, muscles, coordination and flexibility. And, it can be a great way to cross-train for sports like football, basketball and soccer.” With money from a Bill Self’s Assists Foundation grant in 2015, Misko started the Lawrence Arts Center’s scholarship program for boys with financial need who show both interest and promise in dance. For Misko, dance is a sport, and the dancers at the Lawrence Arts Center, both men and women, are real athletes, training just as hard as any football or basketball player. “The only real difference between sports and dance,” Misko laughs, “is you’re probably not throwing a ball—instead, you’re throwing a ballerina. I’ve done a lot of that.” p

Left: Lawrence Arts Center school of dance performing in the Nutcracker. Top two: LAC school of dance students. Bottom: Hanan Misko as the Nutcracker Prince. Photos courtesy of Ann Dean

ROUND BALL CLASSIC 2017 photos by Patrick Connor

THE LOCAL

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NEWS [MAKERS] PEOPLE ON THE MOVE Kate White Receives Envista’s Community Involvement Award Kate White, branch manager for Envista Credit Union in Lawrence, received the Ken Norton Community Involvement Award for displaying outstanding dedication and commitment to community involvement and volunteerism. Kate serves on numerous committees throughout the year including: Lawrence Board of Realtors Community Relations Committee & the Education Committee, Lawrence Memorial Hospital Endowment Association Marketing Co-Chair for the Rock the Block Event, Rotary Philanthropy Committee, Chamber of Commerce ENVOY Committee, United Way CU Save Program Committee, Welcome Club “Nosh with the Newbies” Committee. Her volunteer activities also include participating in phone drives for Kansas Public Radio, leading financial literacy classes for United Way CU Save Program, assisting Toys for Tots with toy pickup and delivery, and helping with multiple charity golf tournaments in the Lawrence area.

Michael Lee Earns Solar Industry’s Most Prestigious Certification Michael Lee, Lead Solar Designer and Operations Manager of Good Energy Solutions has earned the solar industry’s leading recognition of installation expertise from the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP®), and is now a NABCEP Certified PV Installation ProfessionalTM. NABCEP is the most highly respected and well established national certification organization for renewable energy professionals. Designation as a NABCEP PV Installation Professional is widely recognized to be the most important and meaningful certification of its kind in the solar industry.

Award-Winning Wine at The Eldridge & The Oread TEN restaurant, inside the Eldridge Hotel, and Bird Dog Bar/Five 21, inside The Oread, have earned the 2017 Wine Spectator Award of Excellence, which gives wine lovers reason to feel confident in their wine choices at these two elegant locales. The two restaurants are the only Wine Spectator winners in Lawrence. It’s the fifth win for The Oread. TEN, inside the historic Eldridge Hotel, earned the award from 2007 through 2015.

Hoke Ley Architects Celebrate One year of Business in Lawrence Founded in 2016, Hoke Ley is an architecture and design firm based in Lawrence, Kansas. The firm’s founders, all originally from the Midwest , relocated from Seattle, Washington after 13+ years of professional practice. Our return to the Midwest, specifically Lawrence, reflects our desire to engage with the vibrant local community and create lasting local relationships.

Katie Hoke

Jared Hoke

Roy Ley

Please meet the team and join us for our one-year celebration and ribbon cutting ceremony on September 28, 2017, 4pm – 7pm at our office in the fabulous Poultry building in East Lawrence, 832 Pennsylvania St.

Explore Lawrence Hires B.J. Harris as Sales Mgr for Sports B.J. Harris joined the team as Sales Manager for Sports, September 2. In his role, Harris will promote and sell the city of Lawrence as a premier destination for sporting events. Harris comes to eXplore Lawrence after serving the past six years as the Executive Director of the Crawford County Convention & Visitors Bureau in Pittsburg. While at the Crawford County CVB, Harris helped increase overall tourism revenue by more than twenty percent. He also helped develop a strong sports tourism market in Pittsburg. 77

Is your business growing? Are you adding jobs? You could be one of our Businesses of the Year. For the last four years, the Lawrence Business Magazine & Cadre Lawrence have been honoring our local job creators. If you are a Douglas County, locally-owned or franchised business, in business a minimum of 3 years and will show growth in employment by 20% or 20 employees from Jan 1 to Dec 31, 2017, we want to honor you at the

Fifth Annual Foundation Awards.

Watch for the Lawrence Business Magazine 4th Quarter Issue for applications and more information about the 2018 Awards.

SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE 78

www.LawrenceBusinessMagazine.com/Foundation2018

WH OSE D ESK? Be the first to correctly guess which local business figure works behind this desk. Winner receives a $50 gift card to 23rd Street Brewery. facebook.com/lawrencebusinessmagazine

Life goals…and the physicians who help you achieve them. Meet Dr. Scarbrough and Dr. Ghose. You may know them as experts on our medical team, but to these kids, they are simply “Coach.” That’s because they, like all our physicians, serve as your partners for lifelong health. They care for and about you - encouraging healthy habits and good decisions today and for a lifetime. Start your healthy future today at lmh.org/partner.

Marc Scarbrough, MD, FACP, Hospitalist Tapas Ghose, MD, FACC, Cardiologist

A Partner for Lifelong Health