ELLY GRIMM
• Leader & Times
Kansas is starting to see more representation on bigger stages and soon, the state will see even more of that.
Earlier this month, it was announced Adam Proffitt will serve as the 2025 National Association of State Chief Administrators (NASCA) president. Proffitt currently leads the Kansas Department of Administration and Kansas Division of the Budget, and previously served as the treasurer of NASCA.
As Proffitt tells it, the road to his new role started last year.
“I was approached about joining the executive team for NASCA in 2024, I’d gotten a phone call from the former president and he asked if I would like to join the committee as an alternate,” Proffitt said. “After some conversations and learning about NASCA and what all it does and everything else, I decided to go for it. I did that for most of 2024 and then in the late summer or early fall, I got another phone call saying there was an opening in the treasurer’s position, and they must have thought of me since I’m the head of the Kansas Department of Administration and Kansas Division of the Budget, so I moved up to that role. Like many state government jobs, a lot of my peers are appointed by their governors, and the past president and vice president’s terms ended in January, so I was asked if I would want to step into the president’s role and lead the organization.”
Proffitt added there were multiple emotions going though his head after being approached for the position.
“I was very honored and humbled to have been asked. NASCA is an organization that is comprised of others like me who are secretaries of administration or commissioners or directors, and they are leaders of their organizations in their states,” Proffitt said. “To be the leader of these leaders is truly an honor, and the fact that they trust me in such a role, I don’t treat that lightly, and my goal is to make sure I’m living up to the standard that’s been set by previous presidents and others involved in the organization. We’re all about operational efficiency, we’re all about being connected to industrial leaders and other state partners, and we’re committed to ensuring we’re doing everything we can to serve the citizens of our state. To be the lead of this organization is a big honor, and it’s a responsibility I will be taking very seriously.”
And there will be little time to lose in terms of getting to work, Proffitt said.
“NASCA is really unique, and in the past few years, instead of hiring an outside management company for the day-to-day operations, we now do many of those tasks in-house, so we’re more of a self-managed organization,” Proffitt said. “We do have an executive director, a program director and other staff that helps us with those strategic operations. I’m going to ensure that transition continues to be smooth and continues to operate at the high level expected of us and connect with other industry partners to ensure we’re receiving word about any innovations going on. One of my first priorities is going to be increasing member engagement – we’re open to all states, and any state chief administrator, whether they’re a member of NASCA or not, is able to access our services, so I’m going to start some outreach to help increase that engagement and let people know what we do. A big task will be rounding out my executive committee, which is really important since we want the best people possible involved and helping people. I’ll also want reach out to other state secretaries of administration and get their thoughts on everything and gain some new ideas for what we can do. Additionally, we have two big conferences every year, and our next one will be in May in Las Vegas, so we’re working to get the word out about that to all of our partners and make sure we have as big a conference as possible so everyone can share their voice.”
Proffitt added his new role will help Kansas be more known on the national stage.
“One of the things I’m most excited about is representing Kansas on a more national level. A lot of organizations like this have Kansas representation, and it’s great – Gov. Kelly is actually the head of the Democratic Governors Association, and there are other Kansans leading other national organizations,” Proffitt said. “In Kansas, we take great pride in the work we do, and we all work really hard. The state workforce is dedicated to trade and dedicated to the citizens of Kansas, and I think it’s great to have Kansas squarely in the middle of all of that, especially with an entity like NASCA that’s so focused on operations and efficiency. It’s always great to put a spotlight on what NASCA does, because it’s really important for us to increase our operational excellence. We’re entrusted with taxpayer money, and it’s our responsibility to be good stewards of that taxpayer money and put it to good use and use only what we need. The work of NASCA is more important now than ever, bringing together state chief administrators from across the nation to learn from each other and share best practices. I look forward to serving and hope to keep making NASCA strong and ready for the future.”
Overall, Proffitt said, he is excited for the opportunity.
“This is a great opportunity to showcase what we do in Kansas, and for Kansas to really help shape what other states do. We want to share our state’s best practices with other states and also learn from them,” Proffitt said. “It’s also a great opportunity for us to welcome other states and communicate with them – I can’t tell you how many times I’ve come across an issue of some sort here in Kansas and have been able to get some help from one of my colleagues in another state. That’s truly the intent of an organization like this, because while we all have our unique challenges, there’s also a lot we have in common, and having those open lines of communication can only be a benefit for everyone.”
