KU Alumni Association announces 2016-2017 Kansas City Network officers, board members

LAWRENCE — The Alumni Association’s Greater Kansas City Network has elected its officers and six new board members for the 2016-2017 term.

Kansas City is the nation’s largest community of Jayhawks, with more than 94,000 alumni. Lindsay Hare, who earned her bachelor’s degree from the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences in 2002 and her law degree in 2005, lives in Leawood and will lead the board as president. She is an attorney and partner at Norton Hare.

Jessica Nelson, a 2011 graduate of the School of Journalism and managing director of TeamKC, Kansas City Area Development Council, lives in Olathe and is executive vice president. Another Olathe resident, Sheri Hart, who earned her bachelor’s degree in fine arts in 1993 and manages compliance at Adknowledge, is secretary.

Executive committee members include Jace McClasky and Andrew Wank. McClasky, who earned his bachelor’s degree from the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences in 1995 and his law degree in 2001, lives in Prairie Village and is principal attorney at Burke McClasky Stevens. Wank, a 2009 graduate of the School of Business and enterprise relationship manager at blooom, lives in Leawood.

Six alumni who join the existing board members are:

• Sasha Flores Boulware, Fairway, a 1998 and 2000 graduate and owner of Esbee
• Bobby Burch, Kansas City, a 2011 graduate and editor in chief of Startland News
• Kimberly Hobbs, Kansas City, a 1994 graduate and vice president of partnerships and premium sales at AEG Worldwide/Sprint Center
• Billy Marshall, Prairie Village, a 2000 graduate and territory sales manager at Straumann, USA
• Todd Moore, Kansas City, a 1996 graduate and project director at KU Medical Center
• Melissa Thomson, Overland Park, a 2001 graduate and business development manager at TREKK Design Group

“We have six exceptional new additions to our board membership that will, without a doubt, be incredible assets to the network,” Hare said. “We cannot wait to get to work and further develop our local alumni programs and outreach to the Kansas City community over the next year.”

Hare succeeds Matthew Taylor, a senior wealth adviser at Frontier Wealth Management. Taylor served as executive vice president from 2014 to 2015 before becoming president last year. He also led the membership committee for two years and will now serve as ex-officio president.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in business in 1998 and a master’s of business administration in 2003. He has hosted and helped organize several Kansas City area alumni events, including the Jayhawk Career Networking Series, and he has served on the committee for the Rock Chalk Ball, the Alumni Association’s largest fundraiser. For his commitment and service to the Kansas City Network, Taylor received the 2016 Dick Wintermote Volunteer of the Year Award.

Nine additional board members will continue their service on various committees, including membership, community awareness, student recruitment and the Rock Chalk Ball. They are:

• Jake Ballard, Leawood, a 2001 graduate and senior vice president and unit manager of Lockton Companies
• Jason Booker, Olathe, a 1999 graduate and senior director of corporate sponsorship and broadcast sales for the Kansas City Royals
• Scott Fiss, Leawood, a 1987 graduate and principal at Johnston Fiss Insurance Agency
• Mallory Hammersmith Hannah, Kansas City, a 2008 graduate and strategic marketing consultant at Mallory Hannah Inc.
• Christina Stephenson Hopkins, a 2010 graduate and clinical research coordinator at the University of Kansas Cancer Center
• Grant Kollman, Prairie Village, a 2010 graduate and associate director of Berkadia
• Susan Anderson Leonard, Fairway, a 1996 and 2007 graduate and associate principal at Shawnee Mission East High School
• Joe Mulvihill, Overland Park, a 2006 graduate and director of inbound marketing at Keypath Education
• Mark Van Blaricum, Lee’s Summit, Missouri, a 1999, 2002 and 2008 graduate and owner/operator of Pita For Good food truck.

“The growth in the quality of programming offered in Kansas City — in addition to volunteer opportunities, student recruitment, legacy relations and the impact KU makes in community — is directly tied to the strength in leadership on our Kansas City Network board,” said Betsy Winetroub, the Alumni Association’s director of Kansas City programs. “Each year our leadership gets stronger, and I couldn’t be more excited to work with Lindsay and the rest of our new officer team.”

About the KU Alumni Association

Through the support of members and donors, the KU Alumni Association advocates for the University of Kansas, communicates with Jayhawks in all media, recruits students and volunteers, serves the KU community and unites Jayhawks. For more information, visit kualumni.org.