Laura Kelly is the 48th Governor of Kansas. She has made it her life’s mission to fight for Kansas children and families on the job, in her community, as a four-term state senator and as governor.
Kelly has prioritized fully funding public schools, expanding affordable healthcare, reforming the child welfare system and growing the Kansas economy – especially in rural communities – as Governor.
Kelly is ready to bring people together and lead Kansas into the next chapter.
David Toland is the 52nd Lieutenant Governor of the State of Kansas and also serves as Secretary of the Kansas Department of Commerce. A seventh-generation Kansan, Toland was appointed Secretary of Commerce by Governor Laura Kelly in January 2019 and Lieutenant Governor in January 2021.
As Secretary of Commerce Toland has led Governor Kelly’s efforts to transform the state’s economy, directing a top-to-bottom overhaul of the Kansas Department of Commerce. His efforts at Commerce have included rebuilding its in-state, domestic and international business recruitment teams; launching the state’s Office of Broadband Development; re-establishing the Kansas Main Street Program; revitalizing the state’s Registered Apprenticeship program; designing and implementing the Kansas Framework for Growth strategic plan; and shepherding passage of the APEX Megaproject Bill, which gives Kansas one of the most aggressive economic development incentives in the country. Toland also led Governor Kelly’s successful recruitment of the largest private sector investment in Kansas history, Panasonic Energy’s $4 billion Electric Vehicle Battery plant in De Soto.
These efforts have resulted in back-to-back record-breaking years for Kansas economic growth—including 2021, when Kansas had the most private sector investment of any state in the nation on a per capita basis.
Toland has extensive experience in urban and rural economic development, having worked at the local level in both Washington D.C. and in his hometown in Allen County, Kansas. He holds both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the University of Kansas.
Chief Counsel
Bob North serves as Chief Counsel for the Kansas Department of Commerce. Bob is responsible for Commerce operations and has served as Chief Counsel for Commerce since 2004. He has extensive experience in public financing, bond-funded economic development programs and other economic development incentives. Prior to joining Commerce, he was in private practice.
Deputy Secretary for Business Development
Paul Hughes is the Deputy Secretary for Business Development. In this role, Paul directs efforts to drive the growth of existing businesses in Kansas and recruit new businesses into the state, with oversight of the Business, Community and International development divisions at the Department of Commerce.
Paul previously served as the Executive Vice President at the Arizona Commerce Authority and oversaw Arizona’s business development team including workforce development, business attraction, international trade, and rural markets. Paul also has experience in the start-up world having developed a seed-company into a high-growth, publicly traded company. He holds an MBA from Arizona State University and an Entrepreneurial Development Program certificate from Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management. He also is a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps.
Assistant Secretary of Commerce
Mike Beene serves as the Assistant Secretary of Commerce, overseeing Workforce Services, Human Resources, Building Services and Workforce AID for the Kansas Department of Commerce. Beene started with the agency in January 2007 as a Regional Director in Southeast Kansas (Workforce Services Division). His duties include oversight of all federal workforce programs and grants, in addition to the 23 workforce centers located across the state.
Beene received a Master’s degree in Education from Kansas State University. Prior to his career with the Department of Commerce, he was an educator and administrator in both secondary and postsecondary institutions in Kansas.
Director
Bridgette Jobe is the Director of the Kansas Tourism Division at the Kansas Department of Commerce where she leads a dedicated staff of tourism professionals whose mission is to inspire travel to and throughout Kansas. As Director, she oversees the state’s marketing to visitors, the publication of KANSAS! Magazine, the Kansas Agritourism program, and the Kansas Byways program.
Bridgette joined Kansas Tourism in 2019. Previously, she spent over twenty-one years with the Kansas City Kansas Convention & Visitors Bureau. She is a past president of the Travel Industry Association of Kansas and served as chairman of the Kansas Governor’s Council on Travel and Tourism. Bridgette is a life-long Kansan and an Original Dotte.
Chief of Staff Lieutenant Governor/Secretary of Commerce David Toland
Works earned a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture from Kansas State University, majoring in Food Science and Industry with a minor in Business Administration. She also received a master’s degree in Advanced European and International Studies from Centre International de Formation Européenne. Prior to beginning work at the Department of Commerce, Works was an Agribusiness Development Coordinator at the Kansas Department of Agriculture.
Director of Human Resources
Sandy Brown joined the Department of Commerce in 2004 as a Human Resource Professional.
Before joining Kansas Commerce, she served as a Human Resource Professional with Kansas Department of Human Resources. Previously, she served as JTPA Case Manager in Emporia. She studied business at Wichita State University.
Director of Performance and Programming
Matt Godinez is the Director of Performance and Programming. In this role, Matt takes an organization-wide view to improve and streamline programs throughout the Department of Commerce, develop metrics to gauge the results of programming and engage with external stakeholders. He assists in continual development and monitoring of the department’s strategic plan, process improvement, customer service and agency priority goals.
Matt previously served as the Executive Director of the Chanute Regional Development Authority and the Southeast Kansas Regional Planning Commission. Matt has been named one of the Top 50 Economic Developers in North America, Top 40 under 40 in Economic Development and Leadership Kansas Class of 2019. In 2022, Matt received his Master Economic Development Practitioner designation from the University of Southern Mississippi.
Chief Information Officer
Jim Haugh joined Commerce in December of 2016 as the Chief Information Officer. Prior to Commerce, Haugh was a Cloud Services Architect for the State of Kansas.
Haugh spent more than seven years at the Kansas Department of Transportation beginning as a System Software Analyst and leaving KDOT as the Enterprise Platform Support Supervisor. In 1992, Haugh earned his B.S. in Computer Information Systems from Missouri Western University.
Assistant Secretary
Nadira Hazim-Patrick serves as the Assistant Secretary for the Department of Commerce. She manages the recruitment team and in-state business teams within the Business Development Division. Nadira directs and aligns teams to recruit new businesses to Kansas while continuing the growth and retention of existing business.
Nadira joined the Commerce team in 2002 as field staff for the Community Development Block Grant Program and has over 30 years of experience in state government. Most recently, Nadira led the Business Finance Team which includes oversight and compliance of our statewide incentive programs.
Nadira holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Kansas State University.
Director of Marketing and Communications
Patrick Lowry joined the Department of Commerce team in June 2022. He helps promote the best Kansas has to offer with the purpose of enticing new businesses into the state and retaining existing businesses.
A long-time newspaper editor and publisher, Lowry also has led marketing/communications efforts at the Kansas Health Institute and the Community Care Network of Kansas. He earned his bachelor’s in Journalism and Political Science from Indiana University and an Executive MBA from Benedictine College.
Director of the Office of Broadband Development
Jade Piros de Carvalho was appointed Director of the Kansas Office of Broadband Development (KOBD) in June 2022. The mission of KOBD is to facilitate affordable and reliable high-speed internet service to every Kansan home and business.
Prior to joining the Kansas Department of Commerce, Jade worked in advocacy for rural broadband expansion policy for a private Kansas internet service provider. She also served on the Hutchinson City Council for 10 years, including three terms as Mayor. Jade earned a bachelor’s degree in Philosophy from Wichita State University and a Master’s degree in Public Affairs (MPA) from the University of Missouri.
Director, Office of Rural Prosperity
Trisha joined Commerce in 2021 as the Director of the Office of Rural Prosperity. Trisha previously held rural economic developer leadership roles in both city and county-levels for over a decade.
She earned a bachelor’s degree in Social Welfare, focusing on public policy, from the University of Kansas (KU). She also earned a master’s degree in Public Administration from KU, concentrating on local government management as a part of the Kansas University City Managers and Trainees Alumni Organization program. A native of Kansas, she grew up in the small town of Kiowa.
Chief Fiscal Officer
Sherry Rentfro joined Commerce in June of 2014 as Fiscal Analyst and became the Chief Fiscal Officer in February 2018.
Prior to Commerce, she worked for over 10 years managing the accounting and finances of a non-profit association that serves the telecommunications industry in Kansas. She earned a BBA in Finance from Washburn University and MBA from Baker University.
Director, Community Development Division
Kayla Savage is Director of the Community Development Division at the Kansas Department of Commerce. She provides direction for the following Community Development programs: Kansas Main Street, Kansas Creative Arts Industries Commission, Rural Opportunity Zones, Kansas Angels, Community Service Tax Credits and Community Development Block Grants. She represents Commerce on the Kansas Water Authority and Kansas State Fair Board.
Before coming to Commerce, Kayla spent 14 years in nonprofit management and community development. She earned her BFA in Communications-Public Relations from Emporia State University and Master of Science in Community Development from Kansas State University.
Executive Assistant to Lieutenant Governor/Secretary of Commerce David Toland
Leisa has been with Commerce since 2019 and oversees scheduling and administrative functions for Lt. Governor/Commerce Secretary Toland. Prior to joining Commerce, she held various administrative roles with prominent Topeka employers including Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas and Stormont-Vail Regional Health Center. She also has several years of executive-level administrative experience with an association management/lobbying firm and just prior to joining Commerce, with Topeka Metro. Leisa studied business management at Washburn University and is a proud lifelong Kansan.
Director, International Division
Jeff Willis serves as the Director of the International Division for the Kansas Department of Commerce. As director, Willis is leading efforts to grow Kansas exports and attract more foreign direct investment into Kansas.
Willis is a former commercial officer with the U.S. Commercial Service and held positions at the U.S. Embassies in Kuala Lumpur and Beijing as well as the U.S. Consulate in Shanghai. He left the diplomatic service in 1992 to return to the U.S. where he directed the Asian international marketing program for the State of Kansas. In addition to public service, Willis has a wide array of private sector experience, especially as it relates to strategic planning, partner selection, problem resolution and many other aspects of Asia-related business. Willis is a current and long-standing member of the Kansas International Trade Coordinating Council, a past president of the International Trade Council of Greater Kansas City and past Chair of the U.S. Department of Commerce Mid-America District Export Council.
Willis graduated from the University of Kansas with bachelor’s degrees in both French and philosophy and also earned his Master of Arts in East Asian languages and cultures from KU.
Director of Legislative Affairs
Rachel Willis earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Washburn University, majoring in Political Science with a minor in Communications. She also received a master’s degree in Public Administration with a focus in non-profit leadership from the University of Kansas. Rachel has over a decade of experience in educational nonprofit management and most recently was a lobbyist advocating for a variety of interests at small public affairs firm in Topeka.
Special Assistant to Lieutenant Governor Toland
Ryan Wills is the Special Assistant to the Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of Commerce, David Toland. Wills previously served as the Manager of Constituent Services and Hospitality Industry Liaison for the Kansas Department of Commerce. He was also a project coordinator on the Back to Business Team where he helped with the administration of Small Business Working Capital Grants. Previous to Commerce, Wills held various management roles within the hospitality, restaurant, and music industries.
