Panelists tell Emerging Leaders: We can all be better advocates of Wichita
A panel of local leaders speak June 28 to participants in the Wichita Business Journal's Emerging Leaders program at the Kansas Leadership Center. From left, Damon Young, chief business officer at KLC; Luis Rodriguez, president and CEO of Keycentrix; Mary Beth Jarvis, executive director of NXTUS Inc.; and Adam Smith, president of Exploration Place.
SHELBY KELLERMAN / WBJ
By Shelby Kellerman – Managing Editor, Wichita Business Journal
Jun 28, 2022
Adam Smith was working at a museum in San Diego when he considered applying for the role of president of Exploration Place in Wichita.
He applied, and got the job in fall of 2019.
"Hands down, my quality of life all around has improved by moving here, it is a great place to live and work, a great community," Smith told a group of participants in the Wichita Business Journal's Emerging Leaders program on Tuesday. "However, when I saw that job posting for Exploration Place, it was like, 'Awesome, awesome, awesome — oh, it's in Wichita.' And that's a true feeling."
While hesitant at first, Smith said what changed his mind was a conversation he had with Paul Bowen, a well-known aviation photographer who spoke positively about Wichita.