University affiliation focused on strengthening rural communities

Story by RAEGAN NEUFELD Photos by ALICIA FEYERHERM

Tiger Media Network

Building a sense of community was the main goal on Thursday at the Hays Downtown Pavilion, where Fort Hays State University, FHSU Tech North Central and FHSU Tech Northwest celebrated their affiliation. 

North Central and Northwest – formerly known as North Central Kansas Technical College and Northwest Kansas Technical College – joined the affiliation with FHSU in an effort to better serve students and the rural communities. Due to population decreases in western Kansas in recent decades, the presidents of the three institutions want to prioritize keeping graduates in the area.

One way the affiliation allows for this is through common programs at each school. Northwest President Ben Schears gave construction as an example.

“How can we then have those conversations with (tech school graduates) to say ‘Hey, you may not be ready at the end of two years to go out and start building new homes, but let’s get you on the pathway to (FHSU) to consider the construction management program’,” he said.

Once students graduate, Schears said they are “laser focused” on getting them connected with economic development officers and employers in the surrounding counties. However, according to FHSU President Tisa Mason, the hope is for graduates to impact communities in other ways in addition to the workforce and economy.

“The real why of this was about the population decline,” Mason told Tiger Media Network. “Finding ways we can get our students educated and then engaged and living in the rural communities. Raising their family, being a part of the city, volunteer roles, PTAs, city and county government. It’s really a bigger picture of community.”

The event on Thursday reflected this sentiment. Attendees not only heard from the three presidents, but also had the chance to interact with organizations and members from the Hays community. Local food trucks, the FHSU Makerspace van, the Hays Public Library Bookmobile and admissions representatives from each school were all at the event. So was the FHSU pep band, cheerleaders and Victor E. mascot. There were two additional Victor E. mascots, who represented the two tech schools.

North Central President Eric Burks told attendees that the Downtown Pavilion was the perfect place for the event, because its construction was a collaboration between FHSU and North Central students.

“It just shows when we work together what we can create together and what we can build,” he said. “That’s what I’m excited about.”

A similar event took place in Goodland, the home of Northwest, on Tuesday, and another will be in Beloit, the home of North Central, on Saturday. Building a sense of community with businesses and organizations will again be the focus in Beloit. 

“As we build the relationships, it’s easier to innovate,” Mason said. “It’s easier to see pathways, have conversations, solve problems and think about the future.”

All three presidents emphasized the fact that the affiliation comes from a point of strengths, not weaknesses, as they did at an open forum in February 2023.

“We are all strong and we know we’ll be stronger together,” Burks said. “We want to work with you to strengthen our communities, businesses and students.”