UMKC Vice Chancellor Retiring After 23 Years

0:00It's March 25th. Welcome to Kansas News Today, powered by AI. The University of Missouri, Kansas City has announced them Maria Meyers. Their vice-chancellor for commercialization and entrepreneurship is retiring after nearly 23 years with the school. They plan to start a search for her replacement right away and hope to have someone in place by late summer. Meyers will stick around in her role throughout the hiring process to ensure a smooth handover. Her work has been central to building up the university's focus on turning ideas into businesses. Chancellor Molly Agrawal praised her long-term dedication, saying it has made both the university and the Kansas City area more vibrant and successful. Local communities have felt the boost from her efforts in supporting startups and economic growth. She played a key part in running the UMKC Innovation Center, which connects student entrepreneurs with real-world partners for big projects. Meyers also will help start KC Source Link, a key network that guides business owners to vital resources

1:02across the region. Looking back, she joined UMKC in 2003 as director of that network rose to lead the Innovation Center and took her current spot last. November, with her award as a top woman executive in Kansas City, back in 2022, her influence will carry on as the search moves forward.