K-State alumni assume new leadership positions on board of directors
The K-State Alumni Association board of directors transitioned its membership and
leadership June 3 during the board’s annual meeting in Manhattan, Kansas.
Alan Fankhauser, Garden City, Kansas, who was named chair-elect last year, assumed his leadership position as 2017-18
chair at the annual meeting. Fankhauser earned his bachelor’s degree from K-State
in 1982. Most recently, he spent 10 years in events marketing for Harley-Davidson
Motor Company and is transitioning back to Kansas. He succeeded Dan Yunk, Manhattan, who now fills the immediate past-chair position until June 2018. Yunk earned his
bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degrees from K-State in 1971, 1975 and 1987, respectively,
and is the owner of Yunk Consulting.
Board member Sylvia White Robinson, Kansas City, Kansas, will serve as chair-elect. She will become the chair in June 2018. A 1971 K-State
graduate, Robinson is a retired educator and former member of the Kansas Board of
Regents, which governs the state’s six universities.
In a general election this spring, members of the Alumni Association approved a slate
of five new members of the board of directors. These alumni also began their four-year
terms at the board’s annual meeting and will continue to June 2021.
They are Dr. Jeff Luty ’89, Abilene, Kansas, owner of an optometry practice in Abilene; Debbie Leckron Miller ’75, Council Grove, Kansas, a contributing writer for Midwest Living magazine; Frank Hernandez III ’92, Houston, regional sales director for the Spectranetics Corporation; Laura Propp ’06, San Antonio, senior communications partner for USAA; and Cmdr. Tim Oswalt ’93, Washington, D.C., U.S. Naval Attaché to Pakistan at the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad.
Additional board leadership includes Rand Berney ’77, Round Rock, Texas, chairman, Kansas State University Foundation board of directors; Curt Frasier ’73,
Beloit, Kansas, treasurer; Amy Button Renz ’76, ’86, Manhattan, president and CEO of the Alumni Association and board secretary; Greg Willems, Manhattan, president and CEO of the KSU Foundation; and K-State President Richard Myers ’65,
Manhattan.
Two K-State students filling yearlong standing appointments also assumed their seats
on the board. They are Matthew Grosdidier, Lenexa, Kansas, Student Alumni Board president, and Jack Ayres, Overland Park, Kansas, K-State student body president.
Outgoing members recognized for their service to the Alumni Association’s board of
directors were Michelle Swim McGuire ’93, Bentonville, Arkansas; Jada Allerheiligen Hill ’88, Cincinnati, Ohio; Steve Johnson ’75, Lawrence, Kansas; Mel Kopf ’61, Topeka, Kansas; and Travis Lenkner ’01, exiting past-chair, Chicago.
Jessica Van Ranken ’17, Lindsborg, Kansas, 2016-17 K-State student body president, and Taylor Fry ’17, Great Bend, Kansas, outgoing student members, also were recognized for their service.
“On behalf of the Alumni Association, I would like to extend our utmost appreciation
for the leadership these volunteers, both past and present, have given to the organization,”
Renz said. “These K-Staters provide us with their time, talents and experiences which
allow us to be better stewards of our mission to ‘to lead and inspire lifelong involvement
that will benefit Kansas State University and all members of our Wildcat Community.’”