Local Leadership
I am grateful to serve our community.
We are in a pivotal season for Sedgwick County. We need leadership to help improve our position economically while working to bridge the divide relationally. This community is our home. I want to do all that I can to make sure we are improving and fostering the best quality of life for everyone in Sedgwick County.
Common Sense Podcast
On this episode of “Common Sense” host Ryan Baty sits down with youth advocate, mentor, and community leader Adan Grimaldo for an eye-opening discussion on the realities facing vulnerable youth in Sedgwick County. Drawing from Adan Grimaldo’s personal journey from gang involvement and behavioral health struggles to powerful transformation, the conversation dives deep into the root causes of youth violence, the foster care crisis, and the community’s role in reversing dangerous trends among local kids.
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Change for the Better
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Issues
Staffing Stability for Sedgwick County Government
With nearly 3,000 employees across 46 departments, the work being done by our employees is vital to the quality of life we experience in the community. Upon my arrival on the Commission, we were experiencing significant staffing shortages – particularly in public safety and public health. Aggressive and strategic adjustments in compensation plans returned increased employee morale and staffing stability. Today, we have staffing levels above 90% and our performance goals are all being accomplished. Strategic workforce investments have provided more effective and efficient services to the 525k people of Sedgwick County.
Homelessness, Foster Care and Behavioral Health
Every policy decision must find a connecting link to healthier families. Our community has made significant progress in several large scale community challenges. In homelessness, we continue to develop a long-term community plan with a focus on shelter, services, and affordable housing. We have worked collaboratively to reduce the negative impacts of a foster care system that is failing our most vulnerable kids. We have also invested into a new COMCARE CRISIS center that will increase services such as mobile mental health, 988 suicide line, medical detox beds as well as other strategic initiatives to help meet the growing needs of our community.
Development of the Northwest Expressway
Connecting K-96 to Kellogg through west Sedgwick County has been a discussion for 30+ years. This would spur incredible economic development, but the conversation had stalled as had cooperation amongst key stakeholders. I have worked to re-engage the project with KDOT, Maize, Goddard and the City of Wichita as well as helping to reestablish the NW Expressway Coalition. We now have more momentum in the project than what has been seen in over a decade.
Property Tax Reform
Increasing property taxes has become a painful challenge for many families and businesses. With nearly 50% of our county revenues being generated through property taxes, we aim to reduce the county’s dependency on this revenue source and provide relief to our community. In each of my budgets, we have found ways to reduce the property tax mill levy while also stabilizing core county services. As my #1 priority in 2025 and 2026, we will continue to reduce property tax burden through a series of strategic reforms and initiatives.
Modernizing Local Government
The cost of government continues to increase, and reform is needed to counteract the increasing costs. As we look across the county and our 20 city partners, I will advance plans to eliminate redundancies via more shared services, strategic partnerships, and functional department consolidations. It is time to modernize the local government model and in doing so we will find reduced costs and improved efficiencies. I will continue leading the conversation and building collaborative relationships.
“The government closest to the people, serves its people best”
– Thomas Jefferson
Success is Local
Success requires leadership that listens to the pulse of the community. Local government needs to be shaped by civility and collaboration in order to maximize the potential of our people.
As a business owner & pastor, I am excited to communicate our vision for Sedgwick County and demonstrate a plan that enhances quality of life in our community. These conversations will be focused on our economy, quality of life investment and the appropriate function of our local government.
Work in the Community
Here are a few ways we give back to our community with links for you to join in!
Love Schools
The heart of this organization is to pair local businesses with local schools in order to meet strategic needs and supply resources.
Foster Care Advocate
I have worked with selective organizations to help raise awareness of the foster care crisis in our community.
Firm Foundation Ministries
This organization provides transitional housing and reintegration skills training for individuals leaving correctional facilities.
The Mattress hub
We have strategically partnered with local schools and organizations to donate beds to children in need.
Adan Grimaldo shares a lot of insights into the world of troubled youth, and I was deeply interested in his take on bullying and social media. For all the good that technology brings into our lives, there is an unmistakable downside to social media and the pressures it can place on our young people. We talked about this topic and so much more – Watch or listen to this episode on my website or anywhere you find your podcasts! Link in comments. … See MoreSee Less
1 CommentsComment on Facebook
Monthly newsletter. The topic – Data Centers.
What are they?
What are the opportunities and concerns?
What policy exists to govern their use in our county?
Questions or feedback…. always happy to help! … See MoreSee Less
33 CommentsComment on Facebook
On this podcast episode, I was able to sit down with youth advocate and mentor, Adan Grimaldo, for an eye-opening discussion on the realities facing vulnerable youth in Sedgwick County.
Drawing from Adan's personal journey and powerful transformation, we took a deep dive into the recent spikes in youth violence, the foster care crisis, and the community’s role in reversing dangerous trends impacting our kids.
Watch or listen to this episode on my website or anywhere you find your podcast! Link in comments. … See MoreSee Less
7 CommentsComment on Facebook
Ridiculous. Let the protests and public outrage commence. Time to let this guy go! … See MoreSee Less
19 CommentsComment on Facebook
Thanks for the opportunity to stop by and encourage a GREAT group of young ladies! Very respectful and super talented.
Keep stacking W’s! 🏀
Maize South High School
MSHS Lady Mav BB … See MoreSee Less
0 CommentsComment on Facebook
Currently, we have around 1,500 kids in Sedgwick County that are in the foster care system. The data suggests that 70% will have a touchpoint in the criminal justice system at some point in their life, only 45% will graduate from high school, and nearly 1 out of 3 will end up homeless shortly after aging out of the system – often with significant trauma for both kids and families.
Adan and his team work hard to make sure these kids are supported in their journeys, and he shares the challenges and opportunities of working in this field. The full episode will launch tomorrow! … See MoreSee Less
2 CommentsComment on Facebook
From time to time, I want to bring people on my podcast that do incredible work in our community but aren't often seen by the public. Their stories deserve to be told — and I'm excited to share my friend Adan Grimaldo of Pyxis and Hope 4 Da Hood Inc.
Adan does incredible work for at-risk youth in our foster care system, helping to provide stability and structure in a lot of broken spaces. Adan's story is powerful, and he's redeemed his own upbringing and life experiences to better impact the next generation.
Look for this episode to drop Monday, February 2nd! … See MoreSee Less
16 CommentsComment on Facebook
This flu bug is nasty. My house seems to be a germ factory courtesy of all that comes home from school with my kids — and I’ve been down for a few days now.
Sincere apologies to the dozens of meetings and events I’ve had to reschedule this week. I hate being on the sidelines.
Side note: Pitchers and Catchers report in 10 days. Spring is on the horizon! … See MoreSee Less
13 CommentsComment on Facebook
Special thanks to Sedgwick County Fire and members of Sedgwick County Fire Fighters Local 2612 for the terrific chat and the challenge coin.
SCFD operates with 9 stations throughout Fire District 1 — covering 618 square miles and 75,000+ residents across 10 cities and the unincorporated areas throughout our county.
Interesting fact ⬇️
The County Commission also serves as the Fire Board. I’m the only Commissioner that actually lives in the Fire District and pays Fire service taxes. This has been a significant conversation the last few years and the need to ensure that there is taxation with representation.
2026 will be another transformative year for Sedgwick County Fire. I’m excited about several opportunities to continue modernizing this department and supporting these great Fire Fighters! … See MoreSee Less
4 CommentsComment on Facebook