Kansas is a big state, and to get an appreciation for its size and diversity, Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little already has traveled to communities throughout the Sunflower State.

“These trips not only help me get to know Kansas but also serve as an opportunity to help Kansans better know KU,” she said.

With the help of local KU Alumni Association members and KU Endowment donors, Gray-Little has visited communities from Pittsburg to Ulysses. She worked at KU’s State Fair booth in Hutchinson, toured the KU-student built 5.4.7 Arts Center in Greensburg and announced the expansion of the Midwest Cancer Alliance in Salina.

“Everywhere I’ve gone, people are proud of KU and believe we’re an asset to the state,” she said. “They’ve also noticed that KU and its affiliates have been more active throughout Kansas over the past several years, particularly in the western part of the state, and they appreciate that.”

The chancellor shares the message that KU not only is the University of Kansas, but also the university for Kansas. Whether it’s welcoming more students from western Kansas communities like Liberal—closer geographically to the Big 12 schools in Oklahoma and Colorado than to KU—or expanding the University’s research and service operations to benefit more Kansans, she wants KU’s reach to continue to grow.

Gray-Little’s travels won’t let up anytime soon, with upcoming visits to Parsons and Colby, and a second trip to Garden City, planned in the coming weeks. And having already met with alumni and the Kansas congressional delegation in Washington, D.C., she also is scheduled to visit Jayhawks in Texas, Illinois and California.