COMMUNICATION – TRUST – COOPERATION. Each critical components of leadership and a team. While at Rock Springs, KARL Class XVI experienced the Leadership Adventure Course that reinforced these values.
KARL Class XVI kicked off their Genesis Seminar which is just the beginning of their two-year journey. The seminar started at the Kansas Department of Agriculture with a Dale Carnegie of the Heartland seminar working with the Class to dive in and connect with others.
Genesis Day One
Thursday, August 25, 2022
Submitted by: Ashley Beying
The opening session of KARL Class XVI’s Genesis Seminar began with the group officially meeting through introductions at the Kansas Department of Agriculture – Manhattan campus. Martinez Media and Marketing graciously provided us with professional headshot photography and group photos. Jill Zimmerman, KARL President and CEO, then took the time to welcome us to the inaugural session of KARL Class XVI with words of wisdom and advice. She charged us to “Be kind, and enjoy your experience,” as well as “Focus on team building and cultivating relationships.” She reiterated that the KARL program will continue to “cultivate you and challenge you throughout the experience,” but that we as class members need to engage and be present throughout the process. We then moved into introductions of our esteemed guests, speakers, KARL staff, and the board of directors present for the Genesis seminar. KARL Class XVI participants then gave a short introduction themselves. Andrea Krauss, the class chair for the day, provided Kansas Department Secretary of Agriculture, Mike Beam, with a warm welcome. Mike joined to provide us with an update on where Kansas agriculture is presently, as well as things to look towards in the future. Many were impressed to find that agriculture is Kansas’ largest economic driver, with a total contribution of $76 billion, and family owned farms and ranches make up 84.6% of Kansas agriculture. In the KDA, there are 5 different divisions, which include:
Some questions were then asked, including:
After Secretary Beam’s very informative presentation, Doug Hofbauer, President of KARL, provided a welcome on behalf of the Board of Directors. He provided some brief comments, including that KARL gives the individuals in the program a tremendous opportunity to learn and grow as individuals, but you also have the chance to learn from others in the program. He encouraged us to acknowledge what you can bring to your class, but also to get to know other backgrounds, as well as what skills and expertise they bring to the table.
We then had an engaging presentation by Gordan Hibbard and Amanda Elders with the Dale Carnegie Foundation, where they provided us with the chance to better connect with others. They reiterated that real transformation begins within, and the presence that we create can set the stage for future interactions. The first activity involved “shaking hands,” first with intentional eye contact and engaging behavior, and next with an aloof presence where we actively sought out the next conversation. It showed that our first impressions can make an impact on what others think of us. They then guided us into practicing “pause, part, and punch.” We were able to introduce ourselves in a way that others could remember more easily. Lastly, they went over different techniques for remembering other’s names. This can help a person as it shows genuine interest in others, shows that we are focused on the other person, and helps us to be a strong conversationalist. We then engaged in a charades version of performing each persons’ names, some classmates providing a picture that would be hard to forget!
Our last afternoon speaker to engage us in presence for the afternoon was Colene Lind, with a presentation entitled “Getting over ourselves.” She stated that she spends a lot of time asking herself three questions in everyday interactions and in her evaluation of other people’s interactions: why did they say that, why did they say it that way, and is there a way they could have said it differently. She stated that in certain interactions, we may enable, or disable ourselves through our communication techniques. She then introduced the word ecocentrism, which is an attentiveness to other people’s words. Ecocentrism bias is when “we are at the center of our own universe.” She states that we can’t always know perfectly how others are perceiving what we say, which is why we always start looking at situations from our own perspectives and thoughts, and also believing that others also start looking at situations from our own perspective. She described how our conversations towards others can be affected by ecocentrism bias. For those of us in the majority of the population, the word “welcoming” means “welcome, come join us, it is great to have you here.” However for a person of color, or for someone who has indigenously been excluded, the word “welcoming” can mean “you belong here.” By looking at this word, what it means and how a person experiences the word can be vastly different, based on a person’s experiences and where they come from. Now one may ask, what is the best way to overcome ecocentrism bias? As Colene says, it is ASKING, or getting someone else’s perspective. We can do this in three ways:
1. We need to say and signal that we are open to another person’s perspective. We can do this by saying “I want to hear your experience.” This is about expressing openness.
2. Reduce the consequences for sharing the truth. This can be done by moving productive conversations into what went wrong.
3. Make it clear that you want to know the truth.
She ended her presentation by encouraging us to be intentional in conversations with others, act and speak empathetically, and being a more active participant in conversation.
As we finished up the afternoon portion of our GENESIS Karl Day 1, we loaded up in our cars and headed to the Midwest Dream Car Collection for a night of networking, engaging conversation, hors d’oeuvres and drinks with KARL staff, alumni, and supporters. Our day leader, Andrea Krauss, gave introductions of the esteemed guests, former board members ,and fellows. She then introduced our first evening speaker, Dr. Richard Linton, Kansas State University’s president. In his time with us, Dr. Linton shared his journey of what got him to where he was today. Some words of encouragement he included were to “be a cheerleader always, and have fun every day. Come in with high energy, go into everything with a positive energy, as it is infectious, both with internal and external stakeholders.” He mentioned his key mentors, and he encouraged us to find people that would be mentors to us, both nice people, as well as “not as nice” people that would push you to greatness. He educated us on ways that he goes about growing a “team”, including utilizing strengthsfinder so there is a wide diversity of strengths. Some of the plans that he has for Kansas State University include:
He ended by answering the question, “What excites you about K-State?” HIs answer – “The people. The people are incredible. If you have great people, you can make anything happen. Second, the student experience.”
After an incredible presentation by Dr. Linton, Andrea Krauss then introduced our final speaker for the evening, Ron Wilson with the Huck Boyd Institute. Ron’s focus of the evening was providing education on Revitalizing Rural Kansas. He gave background information about Huck Boyd, and that he was a publisher of a newspaper in Phillipsburg, Kansas that made a lifelong commitment to rural communities. He challenged us to encourage regional grassroots solutions, where we can power and engage local leaders to find shared solutions that can fit each community. In addition, he encouraged us to support “ruralpreneurs” and value added homegrown businesses. Ron noted that there is power in what has come from the COVID pandemic, as it has allowed individuals to work remotely, which could be of benefit in bringing people back to rural America. To make this happen, Kansas needs to make it a priority to develop a greater breadth of infrastructure, such as enhancing broadband internet access, improving transportation in rural areas, and investing in rural schools. He encouraged us to support and focus on the quality of life that rural Kansas provided. After the two informative presentations, we each took the time to drive to Rock Springs Ranch, where we enjoyed each other’s company and got to know each other better through the evening.
Genesis Day Two
Friday, August 26, 2022
Submitted by: Ryan Engle
We continued our journey as KARL Class XVI with our first full day at Rock Springs Ranch. Jake Worcester, CEO and President of the Kansas 4-H Foundation, spoke to our class the first half of the morning regarding the story of Rock Spring Ranch. The original ranch, which consisted of 350 acres, was purchased by the 4-H Clubs of Kansas back in 1946 for the price of $22,500. The ranch now contains 735 acres with many substantial capital improvements having been made the last several years.
Rock Springs also has the second largest spring in Kansas which produces over 1,000 gallons of water per minute and provides all the water for the facility. Another fact regarding Rock Springs is that it contains some of the oldest trees in the State of Kansas.
Rocks Springs Ranch provides a place for not only 4-H members and leaders a place for retreat and transformation, but also families and businesses that visit this place throughout the year. Planned enhancements will continue to be made for future generations to benefit from this beautiful property.
The second half of the morning was spent developing our leadership skills and growing as a class while participating in various leadership adventure courses. Our class was split into two groups and performed four separate team building exercises in order to learn more about leadership, teamwork, positive attitude, and learning from experience within our groups.
After lunch, members of the Kansas Department of Agriculture joined our class to discuss critical issues facing Kansas agriculture in the future. We were joined by Assistant Secretary of Agriculture Kelsey Olsen, Division of Water Resources Chief Engineer Earl Lewis, and Animal Health Commissioner Justin Smith.
Each of these members of the Kansas Department of Agriculture provided a job description of their individual roles as well as some of the challenges we are facing within Kansas Agriculture. Animal Health Commissioner Smith discussed difficulties in responding to an animal emergency and what to do. Chief Engineer Earl Lewis talked about sedimentation issues facing many of the Kansas Reservoirs as well as the ongoing depletion of the Ogallala Aquifer.
The middle part of the afternoon was led by KARL President Jill Zimmerman. Jill communicated what an awesome KARL network we have and for all of us to know it better and tell our story. Each member of the class shared what our favorite leadership quote were and also began to develop our individual six word memoir.
The afternoon concluded with Dr. Emily Lehning, Co-Founder of Roots and Legacies. The goal of this session was to open the conversation about talents and the power of leveraging your Strengths as a leader. Dr. Lehning talked about managing around weaknesses and focusing on your top five strengths
as you will see a bigger return as this will allow others to utilize their strengths in the areas we aren’t as strong in.
The day concluded with an amazing brisket supper at the Kniebel Cattle Company. Kevin and Mary Ann (VIII) Kniebel as well as Joe Carpenter (IX) and Barb Downey (VIII) hosted this event and was definitely one of the highlights of the day.
After supper, a panel discussion was held by Joe Carpenter, Barb Downey, Mary Ann Kneibel, and Debbie Lyons Blythe. Debbie shared about her current term serving as Chair on the board of directors for the U.S. Roundtable For Sustainable Beef and the importance of agriculture advocacy.
Joe, Barb and Mary Ann all shared about their past participation with the KARL Program and indicated that years later they are still connected with their respected classes. Mary Ann shared “to go with the flow” throughout the next two year as some things might not go according to plan, but to make the best of the situation.
We would like to thank the Kniebel Cattle Company/Kevin and Mary Ann Kniebel/Barb Downey and Joe Carpenter for hosting this event. The social and networking opportunity as well as learning more about agriculture advocacy were invaluable to KARL Class XVI.
Genesis Day Three
Saturday, August 27, 2022
Submitted by: Sara Hayden
A final look at Genesis:
After two (2) days of bonding and learning together, class XVI started the day by sharing takeaways from the previous day’s experiences. Many echoed the importance of our strengths conversation with Dr. Lehning; specifically, the idea of organizing around ones weaknesses, but placing a focus and energy behind improving ones strengths. Dr. Lind was also championed for her wonderful presentation on “getting over yourself” and truly being present; the idea of mindfully listening opposed to actively listening. An overlying theme to Dr. Lind’s presentation that was mentioned by several was the concept of getting another’s perspective instead of taking another’s perspective. It is easy to say that the group was enamored by the evening spent at the Kniebel farm. No matter the background or professional roles we find ourselves in, we all learned much from the questions asked and answered about the US Roundtable for Sustainable Beef. Whether water, beef or agriculture way of life, sustainability was a critical component needed for Kansas agricultural success in the future.
Aside from the wonderful presenters, the group enthusiastically shared revelations and successes from our class time experiencing the ropes course. One mentioned how incredible it was to see a group of leaders adapt and fall into supporting roles to ensure the success of the team. Another shared that the team building aspect of the challenges chosen were perfect to allow us, as a class, to become vulnerable with one another and break the ice as we begin our two (2) year journey together.
After a meaningful session of takeaways, we had the opportunity to learn “the power of KARL” from previous KARL class fellows, Andrew Ochampaugh and Kim Baldwin. Highlights of their presentation include:
Don’t waste the opportunity:
Be patient with the process:
Be open:
KARL-pool:
Be present:
Be intentional:
Scribe notes are an important tool:
Have fun, but not too much fun:
Be prepared:
Be reflective:
Be vulnerable:
Be engaged
Be connectors:
Kim ended by reminding us of a quote that was shared with her by Dr. Flinchbaugh, “everyone puts their pants on one leg at a time.” We are in a legendary leadership program and are all challenged as changemakers, participate in the experience and know you’re each of value in this process.
Lastly, we spent time as a class to reflect on standards and start to build a standards guideline specific to our class. Andrea Deitl and Sara Hayden will keep the standards conversation going with the group until our November gathering. Wendy Hughes will set up WhatsApp for the class to connect and Mary Marsh will set up a class Facebook and help to document our experience with photos.
Overall, our genesis experience was just that, the genesis of a group of legendary leaders. KARL class XVI will exceed expectations and be positive changemakers.
Click HERE to access Genesis presentations.
