Come to our Lunch and Learn with Kevin Hooper

Join us for an Access Lunch and Learn with Kevin Hooper, the field manager of the Wichita Wingnuts. He will talk about how he has ended up where he is and the road blocks and successes he has had along the way. He will also touch on where the Wingnuts stand and the values that he’s stuck with to turn the organization into such a success. The cost to attend is $10 for YPW Members and $20 for non members. Lunch is included in the price.

As a rookie manager in 2009, Hooper piloted the Wingnuts to the American Association's best record at 58-38 (.604) which included the North Division's first half title. He was honored as the American Association's 2009 Manager of the Year.

Visit ypwichita.org to register!

This Lunch and Learn Hosted by:

Volunteer for the NCAA Tournament

The NCAA tournament is March 20-22 (with 3 games being played – 2 on Sunday and 1 on Tuesday). Mike Ross with the Department of Sport Management at Wichita State University is coordinating volunteers to help the tournament run smoothly.

They have a variety of games management functions on the media side that they need volunteers for such as: Stewards for photojournalists and teams at the locker room area, volunteers that can type quotes during press conferences, escorts for coaches and players from interviews to the locker rooms, score reporting assistants and more.

Anyone interested can contact Mike directly by calling (316)978.5980 or emailing mike.ross@wichita.edu. Two things to keep in mind: NCAA requires professional dress in backstage areas and they will need some folks in certain positions on the off days as well, Saturday and Monday, if possible.

TKAAM is Launching a New Networking Group

While you are out and about this Friday for Final Friday, you might want to stop by the Kansas African American Museum for the launch of their new young professional group, T-Net.

T-Net is a vibrant group of adults 21 to 45 who come together for special events & activities that provide an environment to broaden their network of friends while supporting the museum's mission. Every Final Friday is "Young Friend Friday" at the museum where T-Net members enjoy great music, food, and networking.

Join them this month for an evening of Comedy & Culture featuring the exhibit "Not Without Laughter: The History of Black Comedy," hosted by comedian Lamont James.

Prizes include: Kevin Hart tickets, Looney Bin tickets, Music Theatre tickets & Much More!

Free Admission

Attire - Business Casual

WDDC Announces 2011 Annual Lecture

The Wichita Downtown Development Corporation is pleased to invite you to the 2011 Annual Lecture. Join them March 10 at the historic Orpheum Theatre, 200 N. Broadway, to hear Ms. Carol Coletta. Opening reception will begin at 6:00 pm, lecture immediately follows at 7:00 pm.

Carol Coletta has served as president and CEO of CEOs for Cities since 2005. Previously, she served as president of Coletta & Company in Memphis. In addition, she served as executive director of the Mayors' Institute on City Design, a partnership of the National Endowment for the Arts, U.S. Conference of Mayors and American Architectural Foundation. For ten years, she was the host and producer of the nationally syndicated public radio show Smart City.

Carol was a Knight Fellow in Community Building for 2003 at the University of Miami School of Architecture. In 2010, she was named Honorary Senior Fellow of the Design Futures Council. She is a highly sought after speaker on the success formula for cities and creative communities and is frequently interviewed as an expert on urban issues by national media.

In 2008 she was named one of the world's 50 most important urban experts by a leading European think tank. Most recently, she was named the recipient of the Lambda Alpha International 2009 International Journalism Award for her work with CEOs for Cities and Smart City Radio, and as one of the top 50 urban thinkers of all time by readers of PLANetizen.com.

More information regarding the lecture will be available in the coming weeks at downtownwichita.org

Political Awareness January Update

In 2010, YPW began a series of events that bring awareness to the importance of our local and state government. Our goals are to educate our members on the roles of city, county and state officials, create knowledgeable YPs who will get out and vote, and provide a non-partisan view on local issues that affect YPs and the Wichita community.


A new political season kicked off last Monday in Topeka. All statewide, state level officers were sworn in as well as all 125 Members of the Kansas House of Representatives and even a few new State Senators. With a new conservative governor and a much more conservative House the political climate has dramatically changed. It’s not just those elected to office that influence state government. Arguably, those appointed to manage state agencies have even more day to day influence on the political atmosphere and those faces were changing fast this week.

The legislature did little more than swear in and start the process of getting acquainted with one another. This is no easy task with the large number of new members. Most committees met briefly for bill introductions and to distribute committee rules. The pace should pick up a bit next week, but look for it to be week three before serious work begins on bills. It takes time to get bills written and formally introduced and the hopper is empty.

The highlight of the week was Wednesday’s State of the State address by Governor Brownback and the formal release of his budget on Thursday morning. The Governor proclaimed several times in his speech that the era of ever expanding government is over and he backed up that proclamation with the release of his budget. Governor Brownback cut $876.4 million from the All Funds Budget and eliminated eight state agencies. He also eliminated 2000 state jobs, although most of these jobs have gone unfilled for years.

Budget and South-Central Kansas
The Governor’s budget does fund critical south-central Kansas programs such as the National Institute for Aviation Research at WSU, the National Center for Aviation Training and the Affordable Airfares Program; all at $5 million per year. The key here is that the Governor included these in the base budget which will help ensure their funding in future years. In addition the Equus Beds ASR will receive $652,141 from the State Water Plan Fund for FY 2012.

The Governor also included savings of $9.2 million by eliminating or consolidating the following state agencies:
• Kansas Inc.
• Kansas Technology Enterprise Corp.
• Kansas Commission on Disability Concerns
• Human Rights Commission
• Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research
• Kansas Arts Commission
• Kansas Health Policy Authority
• Kansas Parole Board
• Animal Health Department
• State Conservation Commission

While the All Funds Budget (which includes federal dollars, tax dollars and assessment fees) decreased, the State General Fund (which is the fund the legislature has the most control over and is funded primarily with your tax dollars) increased by $346 million or 6%. Most of the increases are attributed to Medicaid and restoring corrections and public safety budgets.

Adding Value to You and Your Firm

Join SMPS Wichita for the keynote speech explaining the theories of personal branding and how to use your brand to bring business and value to your firm.
Thank you to our Lunch Sponsor: Terracon

Extended Workshop (1:00pm-4:00pm) Stay for the extended workshop and get details on tactics such as networking, working with the media, writing articles, public speaking, social media, and more!

Objectives
•How to get better results from your networking efforts.
•How to build relationships with prospective clients.
•How to stand out in a loud and crowded marketplace.
•How every employee can use his or her personal brand to help the company do more business.

About the Speaker Jeff Beals, is the author of the award winning book Self Marketing Power: Branding Yourself as a Business of One. www.selfmarketingpower.com

Jeff Beals’ uniquely diverse career makes him the ideal person to reveal and explain the secrets of effective self marketing. As a commercial real estate executive, radio and television talk show host, former newspaper columnist and part-time college professor, Beals understands how to synthesize wide-ranging experiences into one very successful career.

Jeff Beals currently serves as Vice President of Coldwell Banker Commercial World Group, a commercial real estate company, which provides brokerage and property management services to clients in Nebraska and Iowa.

Location
Farm Credit Union Building, 245 N. Waco St (3rd and Waco), Wichita, Kansas 67202

Parking
Please park in the Central Church of Christ parking lot located south of the Farm Credit building using only the parking spaces on the concrete section of the parking lot located behind the church (west end). All asphalted/numbered parking stalls on either the north or south side of the church are assigned and paid for monthly by either church personnel and/or various tenants for businesses within Farm Credit. The same issue applies to parking in the front lot of Farm Credit. Again, these spots are assigned and utilized daily by tenants of Farm Credit businesses.

South of the Central Church of Christ – southwest corner of 1st Street - is a city owned parking lot which offers first come free parking.

Click here to register online!

CareerQuest Expo

YPW is helping facilitate a networking session at the upcoming CareerQuest Expo. This professional job fair is being held at the Hyatt Regency on January 18th. There are recruiting sessions with more than 40 employers present from 10am to 1pm and then again from 3pm to 6pm. Admission is free and open to anyone, so bring your resume and dress to impress!

There will be a morning session from 8:30am until 10am. YPW staff and volunteers will be facilitating some networking activities and will be available to answer questions about the organization and explain how it can help you build your professional networks. There will also be a keynote speaker present at this session to talk about what recruiters look for in today's job market. We would love for you to join us!