June 7, 2021

The Kansas Bankers Association (KBA) is pleased to announce the recipients of 13 scholarships awarded by the Kansas Bankers Educational Foundation (KBEF), a 501(c)(3) corporation created and operated by the KBA. Seven scholarships have been awarded to children of Kansas bankers who met specified criteria. An additional six scholarships were awarded to recipients who are currently enrolled in one of two Kansas colleges/universities that offer banking-specific degrees and/or concentrations.

Less than two years ago, the United States reached its lowest overall unemployment rate in 50 years. The expanding economy and strong labor market even reduced African American and Hispanic unemployment rates to 5.5% and 3.9%, respectively. Yet, the past 18 months have brought the most severe health pandemic, COVID-19, since 1918, the deepest political divisions and conflict since the U.S. Civil War, and the most unsettling racial conflict and protests since the 1960s. In the absence of effective communication, our cultural, gender, political, racial, religious, and other diversity all contribute to conflict within our society.

June 2021 15 & 17- Teller Training – Virtual 21-25 – Schools of Lending Principles – Manhattan 22 – Reimagine ALCO – Virtual 23 – E-Notary – Virtual 22-24 – Relationship & Business Development School – Lincoln, NE 24- HR Training – Virtual August 2021 5 -7 – CEO & Senior Management Forum – Colorado Springs 10 –

KBA Chairman Jonathan Johnson kicked off the 2021 Women in Banking Conference on March 25 and 26 for the first time, virtually.

At the end of May, the government’s Paycheck Protection Program came to a close. If Congress does not extend the program, we can expect the “Monday morning quarterbacking” about the program’s impact on the economy, its design and implementation, and its ultimate cost to begin. Those are appropriate questions to ask as we consider the lessons learned from the nation’s response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Ibelieve KBA’s 2020-21 fiscal year will forever be remembered as a test of our individual and collective resilience and fortitude. The onset of the coronavirus pandemic, which reached Kansas in early March 2020, was a proverbial gut-punch that shuttered broad sectors of our economy, largely halted global travel and tourism, and pushed our health care industry beyond the point of exhaustion and vitally needed resources. With over 5,000 lives lost in Kansas and nearly 600,000 lives lost nationally to COVID-19, it’s difficult to look back at the previous year without some degree of sadness and quiet reflection. While I personally knew a handful of individuals who succumbed to COVID-19 and deeply regret any loss of life, I am grateful that my personal family and professional family at the KBA office were able to overcome this historic health malady. My heart goes out to all that were less fortunate this past year.