By NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly came to Hutchinson on Friday for a roundtable at AgTrax along with Agriculture Secretary Mike Beam, but she said the time with local leaders was about more than just agriculture.
"This meeting is a roundtable to discuss what my administration can do in partnership with Hutchinson and Reno County to help it grow," Kelly said. "We're talking about childcare, housing, workforce."
Kelly knows that without childcare, not only Hutchinson, but the rest of the state will struggle to continue to grow economically. The new September unemployment number for Reno County released Friday was just 2.6%.
"We have been investing money into child care development," Kelly said. "In my second term, I'm going to actually elevate the Children's Cabinet to a cabinet level position. There will be a secretary of Early Childhood Education, so we can sort of consolidate all the resources that we have and build on those, in conjunction with our local communities."
Kansas State University has been doing a childcare survey in Reno County which should be finished soon that will give further data to local and state policymakers to assist in their decision making process.