Inspired by a Kansas Sampler Foundation informe, the Office of Rural Prosperity, in collaboration with the Patterson Family Foundation, created the Rural Champions program as a way for rural communities to move the needle in areas where a lack of capital or other resources hinders necessary progress. The Rural Champions program provides a one-year stipend to communities and pairs them with a team that will provide training and resources, as well as an implementation grant to accomplish a critical community project.
“The first round of Rural Champions provided a great opportunity for progress and impact in the communities and organization. We again received many outstanding applications — making the selection of these 14 very competitive projects,” En palabras de Trisha Purdon, Directora de la Oficina para la Prosperidad Rural. “We are excited to continue development of the program and adding to our network of learning with the new group of Rural Champions.”
The purpose of Wetmore’s Rural Champion program is to 1) develop a sustainable business model to fund operation of the former public-school building and 2) establish a lean and agile operating model that will enable the newly established community foundation to manage community revitalization and economic development needs for the region over the long term.
This project was born out of necessity after the local public school was closed in May 2023. The City Council took formal ownership of the school building in July 2023, but was quickly overwhelmed due to the amount of time, financial resources, and entrepreneurial ingenuity that would be required to transform the building into a useful community resource that would be sustainable for the city government to manage over the long term.
The Cardinal Community Foundation (501-c-3) was established in October 2023 to assume financial responsibility for the facility, but a Rural Champion is needed to spearhead the development of a sustainable business plan that can maintain the facility and keep the community united over the long term. The Foundation was established first, to ensure that the school building would remain open and available to the public for generations to come.
Analyssa has spent the majority of her career helping Fortune 500 companies solve complex operational challenges while driving large scale transformation and change and is excited to bring her experiences home to support Kansas communities with a broad range of economic revitalization, community development, and small business expansion efforts.
Cheyenne County, like most of Northwest Kansas, has a housing shortage. This shortage is causing issues in our workforce. We can’t recruit good Doctors, Nurses, or Teachers if there is no place for them to live. Our project will be on housing. Our goal for this project is to do the following:
Our champion will be working step by step on our goals. Working with other local organizations to make these goals feasible.
Fixing our housing issues will have a positive impact on our workforce, our small businesses, and entrepreneurs. We hope that it will have a positive impact on our declining population. We also think it will impact the overall quality of life here in Cheyenne County. We are very excited at the opportunity this grant is offering our County, our Communities, and our organization.
For many years, Herington has been in a sort of rut. A dozen or so residents seem to be the volunteers, movers, and shakers of this community, but without a cohesive plan to continue progress and growth for our small rural way of life. With the loss of the Rock Island Railroad, many businesses, and the hospital, the city faces the same challenges as many small rural towns, including economic and demographic changes, vacant and deteriorating buildings, and declining community pride.
Determined younger residents and an influx of new residents have reignited the spark of community improvement. A renewed Convention and Visitor Bureau has been established for the past few years to fulfill the tourism piece of development. The non-profit group, Herington Revitalization Committee, was brought about through some dedicated citizens to make Herington a better community through clean-up efforts and beautification. As these initiatives have been put together, a woeful awareness of silos has become evident among our organizations, businesses, schools, and even families.
During the development of the Herington Tomorrow Comprehensive Plan 2024, the Rural Champion Program was discovered and the benefits were obvious. A dedicated person to assist in the daily drive towards community development would best suit Herington’s situation. The first accomplishment planned for Herington is to become a Main Street Designated Community. The program’s framework will fit perfectly to achieve economic development, downtown revitalization, and tourism promotion. This alongside the creation of a community development organization can maintain Herington’s growth into the future.
This vision for regional collaboration and capacity building, led by a Regional Rural Champion, offers Comanche County and its neighboring areas a transformative opportunity to strengthen economic development. By focusing on grant acquisition, training, and fostering partnerships, this initiative aims to address shared challenges and create sustainable growth. Through regular community meetings and multi-county forums as well as a coalition of Economic Development Directors, the region can align goals, share resources, and maximize impact.
Key strategies include establishing systems to track and secure grant funding, providing training in grant writing and economic development, and mentoring local leaders to build long-term capacity. Prioritizing locally impactful projects and initiatives like water, infrastructure, business development, and childcare the counties are looking forward to making measurable progress. With Julie’s expertise and a data-driven approach, this initiative is poised to increase funding, empower local leaders, and create a thriving network dedicated to regional success.
After watching our town slowly lose its businesses and professional offices, a group of community members decided to work on finding a solution; one that would not only bring those businesses back to our town, but also draw families back into our small community and keep those who chose to move home to raise their families.
Our project’s mission is to create a central hub that fosters a sense of community, belonging, and connection among its residents. “The HeadQuarters” will transform our town into a captivating destination for visitors, current residents, and young families yearning to return home. By strengthening the bonds within our community, we will encourage residents to establish permanent roots and share this inviting atmosphere with others.
The Rural Champion project presents an opportunity to realize this vision through the establishment of a thoughtfully designed community center. This center will prioritize the youth, offer health and wellness resources, support local businesses, and provide a dedicated space for community gatherings and events. Our vision includes a comprehensive space that will accommodate various facilities under one roof. Depending on size and space capacity, “The HeadQuarters” has the opportunity to house our public library, medical clinic or any satellite healthcare clinics, attorney offices, daycare or afterschool programs, the relocation of our fitness center and a meeting space for people to gather. Grinnell’s Champion will not only help to facilitate and organize the project, but also be the project’s point of contact throughout the process. While organizing community meetings, gaining insight from key players, sharing information and keeping all project related information available she will be visible in our community while working out of our Senior Center on a regular basis.
Harvey County Childcare Task Force began working to address childcare challenges in our community in the fall of 2023. Despite this coordinated effort, the Task Force faced significant challenges due to lack of any one organization’s ability to spearhead to this initiative. Through the Rural Champion program, our champion will be able to dedicate time and efforts to the goals and tasks at hand.
One of the ongoing issues for our area childcare providers remains retention, recruitment, and wages. To address these gaps, our team has conducted independent surveys and has utilized resources such as United for ALICE (Asset Limited, Income, Constrained, Employed) and our local CHIP (community health improvement plan) to gather insight into sustainable staffing strategies.
Our objective is to close the wage gap and support sustainable salaries for early childhood educators. By investing in our existing childcare facilities and providers, we aim to create viability in a career path for childcare professionals that benefits both early childhood educators and families- ensuring providers can earn a sustainable income without increasing the financial burden on families. By organizing this project we can create more childcare openings, encourage career paths, and retain staffing.
The City of Bronson Community Park was selected for improvements due to its central role in the community. It hosts numerous events and activities catering to diverse interests and ages year-round. The Bronson Pride Committee, a dedicated group of community volunteers, has organized various events here, as has The Bronson Ball Association, The Bronson Ruritan, and many churches, organizations, and locals. The Community gathers here for its parade, Easter egg hunt and the annual Bronson Day celebration, which recently marked its 50th event. The site also hosts horseshoe tournaments, which Bronson is famous for hosting the world’s first horseshoe in 1909.
The Rural Champion will continue to gather feedback through multiple channels for park improvements. Community members have been encouraged to participate in surveys, town hall meetings, and focus groups to voice their opinions and suggestions. The feedback has highlighted a strong desire for upgraded playground equipment, improved lighting for evening activities, more picnic areas, and walking paths. There have also been suggestions for creating a dedicated space for community gardens and adding more public art installations that reflect the town’s history and culture.
Furthermore, the Rural Champion is exploring partnerships with local businesses and organizations to secure funding and resources for these improvements. By incorporating community feedback into the planning and development process, the goal is to create a park that truly reflects the needs and aspirations of all residents. We want to encourage the community members to participate in this and realize that everyone can be a part of creating and giving back. The hope is to continue building community pride while making positive changes together.
Hodgeman County is proud to announce Michelle Walters as our Rural Champion, leading critical housing initiatives over the next year. With our housing demand outpacing supply, Michelle will focus on ensuring our community has the resources and infrastructure to grow and thrive.
Her efforts will center on administering existing housing incentives, helping current residents and prospective newcomers access support to find their ideal homes. Beyond this, Michelle will pursue grant opportunities to fund new housing programs, including renovations, tear-downs, and new builds.
Hodgeman County’s housing goals align with our vision of fostering a vibrant, welcoming community. As new projects emerge locally and in surrounding areas, we aim to meet regional housing needs by offering options that reduce commute times while providing the comforts of a “forever home.” With Michelle’s leadership, we are confident we can move the needle forward and make Hodgeman County an even more appealing place to call home.
This initiative reflects our commitment to creating a brighter future—one home at a time.
Lane County and surrounding residents have faced significant challenges in terms of access to a fully stocked grocery store in recent years. These challenges increased when the only grocery store in the county burned down in January of 2024. In response, Lane County Community Foundation began exploring if their organization could be of service. Partnering with local officials, including the Lane County Economic Development, a plan was put in place to build a new store.
Our Rural Champion will be active in the fundraising efforts to make the store a reality. Local fiscal support is crucial to the success of this vital service, providing food access to our county residents.
K-State Research and Extension, in partnership with RISE Cowley and Legacy Regional Community Foundation, have identified a critical need to strengthen our local food systems, as highlighted by data from County Health Rankings. Food insecurity in Cowley County stands at 14.2%, which is higher than the state average of 13.0% and the South-Central Kansas Rural Norm of 11.1%. To address this issue, our teams have successfully implemented several Policy, Systems, and Environmental (PSE) changes. Notably, we have supported local farmers’ markets to accept SNAP-EBT and Double Up Food Bucks, making fresh, nutritious food more accessible to low-income families.
The Winfield Correctional Facility has partnered with K-State Research and Extension Master Gardeners to establish a gardening program. This initiative, called the Grow WCF Garden Club, has provided inmates with valuable skills, such as goal setting, planning and implementation, as well as horticulture therapy benefits. The majority of the produce is donated to the Winfield Food Pantry and local churches, helping those in need receive healthy access to meals.
Our Rural Champion- an Extension Master Gardener with a passion for horticultural therapy – is dedicated to conducting a comprehensive food systems assessment in Cowley County. This assessment will identify gaps and opportunities, such as discovering new producers and supporting community members in growing their own food. By combining food systems with mental health support, we aim to foster holistic community wellness. This integrated approach not only addresses food security but also promotes mental health, creating a more resilient and healthy community. Our ongoing efforts reflect our commitment to making meaningful, sustainable changes in Cowley County’s food systems and overall well-being.
The Rooks County Healthcare Workforce (RCHW) initiative will develop a recruitment and retention plan for health care entities in Rooks County. The Rural Champion will develop a multi-faceted plan for recruiting healthcare professionals to Rooks County. The strategy will include creating a marketing plan, focusing on multiple target markets, including high school students, technical education students, college students, individuals seeking a career change, and current healthcare professionals who are interested in relocating to Rooks County. This approach will help create a pipeline of healthcare workers who are dedicated to practice in a rural community/area. The Champion will promote Rooks County as a “healthcare hub” which provides a wide range of healthcare services and a medical community which practices team-based patient care. The recruitment and retention of healthcare workers at all levels of health care is a vital part of a healthy community.
Rooks County is a designated Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) (Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services) in the primary care, dental care and behavioral health care categories. The HPSA designation demonstrates the need for the RCHW initiative and a dedicated Rural Champion to promote Rooks County as a desirable location to live and work. The Rural Champion has the potential to impact the county by bringing new healthcare professionals to the area and ensuring adequate healthcare is available in rural areas, thereby reducing health disparities and improving overall population health.
We have identified Childcare as our focus area for Rural Champions. According to statistics collected by Child Care Aware earlier this year, our county only has 7 childcare providers which only supplies slots for 37% of the potentially needed slots. This statistic is shocking, but more shocking is that 2 of those childcare providers have closed since those statistics.
Two of the cities in our county with the greatest need are Stafford and St. John. We completed a modular building in St. John last year. This modular building provides two childcare providers with rental space. The City of Stafford recently was awarded a HEAL grant to renovate a downtown building that they plan to do childcare in. This project needs additional funding and support to be able to be completed over the next year and half. In Macksville our organization has received a pledge of a lot of land in the downtown area between the library and the fire station. We would like to do something similar in that space that we did in St. John.
We are currently putting plans together to support the Stafford renovation as well as a solution for Macksville. Sarah Hampton, our Rural Champion has been starting to put plans together to hold some community events early next year to get support for some of these initiatives. She is also going to visit each of our licensed childcare providers and see how we can support them. Not only do we need to open new licensed spaced, but we need to make sure that those that are licensed get the support that they need.
The vision for The Building Community’s (TBC) use of the Rural Champions Grant in Fredonia is to launch and refine initiatives centered on community and economic development through the creation of a technology hub, expansion of the high school’s academy programs and revitalization of the downtown area. Over the years, there has been a growing recognition of the need to not only enhance our community spaces but also to expand and diversify our economic base. To this end, the Rural Champion, Beth Ann Falstad, will spearhead the establishment of a technology hub for job training and certification, aimed at boosting career readiness and local business capabilities. This hub will also serve as a focal point for community engagement and the development of new economic opportunities. The Rural Champion will also be instrumental in driving downtown revitalization efforts, assessing structures for long-term sustainability of these initiatives, and exploring additional funding avenues. Key areas of focus will include enhancing local career opportunities, stimulating business growth, and fostering a more cohesive and proactive community environment, ensuring that these efforts continue to benefit Fredonia well beyond the twelve-month timeline of the project.
Emporia, Kansas, like many rural communities, is facing an increasing number of individuals and families lacking stable housing. In response to this urgent issue, the Emporia City Commission established the Homelessness Advisory Board (HAB) in 2023. The board is made up of people with lived experience of homelessness and professionals from organizations that support this population.
Following the closure of Plumb Place, a long-term women’s shelter, and the challenges presented by the Covid-19 pandemic, the community has seen a significant rise in homelessness. This presence has placed additional strain on already limited local resources and services. As a result, there is an urgent need for coordinated, long-term solutions to address these systemic issues.
To support these efforts, the Rural Champion will play a critical role in conducting a comprehensive needs assessment to better understand the scale and nature of homelessness in Emporia. This assessment will focus on identifying current resources and gaps in services.
Additionally, the Rural Champion will work to establish partnerships with key stakeholder groups, such as the Homelessness Advisory Board and the Healthier Lyon County Coalition, to create a unified approach to tackling homelessness. Data gathered from the needs assessment, along with input from stakeholders and individuals with lived experience, will help shape a strategic plan to address gaps within current services provided.
The Rural Champion’s work will also involve addressing the need for ongoing investment in housing security, ensuring that solutions to homelessness are sustainable and focused on long-term housing stability.
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