KC Scholars Announces Newly Elected Board of Directors Members: Michael Roane and Beto Lopez

KC Scholars Announces Newly Elected Board of Directors Members:

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (June 17, 2020) — KC Scholars announced the election of Michael Roane and Beto Lopez to its board of directors. They will both start three-year terms beginning on July 1, 2020.

Michael Roane served as co-chair of the Steering Committee and the Implementation Committee during planning and implementation of KC Scholars. Roane is the previous Senior Vice President & Chief Human Resources Officer for JE Dunn Construction, is active on multiple community boards and co-chaired the KC Rising Human Capital Workgroup.

A first-generation college graduate who grew up on the Westside of Kansas City, Beto Lopez is currently the Chief Operating Officer with the Guadalupe Centers, with a previous career in finance and real estate in the corporate sector. He currently serves as the Mayor Pro-Tempore of Lee’s Summit, and he has served as a key member on several volunteer boards and commissions including Guadalupe Educations Systems, Kansas City’s Brownfield’s Commission, Donnelly College, Overland Bancorp and Jackson County Sports Complex Authority.

Strong leadership and dedication to the community are nothing new to the Board of Directors, as CEO and President of KC Scholars, Beth Tankersley-Bankhead, explains, “The board is exceptional – all are dedicated members and believe deeply in KC Scholars’ mission to grow and retain local talent through fair and impartial access to education and employment. We are excited to have Beto and Michael join the board and are confident they will make significant contributions.”

Roane and Lopez join five other current KC Scholars Board of Directors including Jan Kreamer (Board Chair), David Warm (Secretary), Tammy Edwards (Treasurer), Terry Bassham and Michelle Kay.

KC Scholars was incubated September 2016 at the Kauffman Foundation, and has completed four scholarship application and selection processes. KC Scholars currently has more than 4,000 Scholars from six counties surrounding Kansas City. Approximately 1,800 scholars are enrolled in postsecondary education in Fall 2020. The remaining Scholars in Grades 10, 11, and 12 are preparing for college enrollment and are from diverse backgrounds including public, private, charter and homeschools. Of the current KC Scholars, 75 percent are first generation college students and 76 percent are individuals of color.

Developed through a community-engaged process that included the involvement of more than 70 regional community members, KC Scholars:

• Awards college scholarships – renewable for five total years
• Provides college advisement and planning support to Scholars and their families
• Can increase the postsecondary attainment rate by nearly five percent for the Kansas City region and 13 percent for Blacks and Latinos
• Encourages at least 80 percent of Scholar graduates to remain in the Kansas City region to work, making it a workforce pipeline program

Individuals eligible to apply for scholarships are current high school students in the 11th-grade and adult learners with some college and no degree, who live within the six-county, bi-state area, and may not be able to afford college otherwise, as 100 percent of awardees come from low- and modest income households.

To learn more about KC Scholars, the application process and its impact, visit kcscholars.org. 

About KC Scholars

KC Scholars’ mission is to increase postsecondary education attainment by providing the means – through scholarships, financial incentives to promote college savings, and support services – for low- and modest-income students and adults to complete a postsecondary credit-bearing credential or degree. Achieving the mission will change lives, set in place a culture of postsecondary completion, and increase the region’s workforce pipeline and economic vitality. Visit www.KCScholars.org for more information.