Getting To Know: Laurie Gregory

LAURIE GREGORY

Director of development, Exploration Place

Just about wherever she’s lived, Gregory has found a way to be involved in education policy. She says her new job of raising money for the children’s science museum is a continuation of that.

“I have a real passion for education and learning,” said Gregory, who started working at Exploration Place last month. “I love the hands-on learning environment that we have here. It kind of brought me full circle into why I got into policy in the first place.”

Gregory grew up in South Dakota and first came to Kansas to study performing arts at Tabor College in Hillsboro. She finished her degree in fine arts and graphic communications at Bethel University in St. Paul, Minn., then worked as a designer and art gallery manager in Denver.

After moving to Great Bend, she served on the school board there from 1994 to 1997 and then represented the 33rd state senate district from 1997 to 2001. She served on the Maize school board from 2005 to 2009 after moving to Wichita.

On the business side of things, Gregory has worked as director of sales for Corporate Lodging Consultants, owned an insurance agency and worked in development for the Kansas Policy Institute and most recently Saint Francis Community Services.

One of Gregory’s primary tasks will be raising money for a new gallery called Design Build Fly, which is scheduled to open late next year and is designed to spark interest in aviation. Gregory says one thing she’s been surprised to learn about Exploration Place is how much of its work is done off-site, in the form of outreach to area schools.

Her job, she said, “is fundraising and growing support for everything Exploration Place does. Development is being a true leader in the community along with the other leaderships team here.”

Gregory and her husband, Dave, have a blended family of six children and eight grandchildren. She enjoys sailing, snow skiing, gardening and landscape design.

“That’s kind of how I get my creative side taken care of these days.”

Joe Stumpe

This story was originally published June 8, 2016 at 11:46 AM with the headline "Getting To Know: Laurie Gregory."