Small businesses are companies with 500 employees or fewer. However, they make up 99% of all U.S. firms. Of those, nearly half have four employees or fewer. Dan Lara is state director of the Kansas Small Business Development Center. And Brandy Willett runs a regional center in Wichita that serves 10 counties. The centers help small businesses in a variety of ways, from planning to accessing capital. Lara and Willett talked with the Range about the impact of small businesses, the surge of business startups during the pandemic and why anyone would want the stress and long hours associated with starting a business.
Also, public art can be the symbol of a community — like The Keeper of the Plains — or a catalyst for lively debate — think “Tripodal.” Whatever form it takes, public art both reflects and enhances a community. For this month’s Hidden Kansas, Lu Anne Stephens tells us about a public art collection in a place you might not expect.
