Ad Astra Technology Summit Honors Five Kansas Tech Award Winners and Explores Exponential Technologies

FlagshipKansas.Tech’s fourth annual Ad Astra Technology Summit, hosted by event partner Wichita State University’s Barton School of Business, once again showcased the power of technology, collaboration and innovation in Kansas. Bringing together tech and community leaders, educators and entrepreneurs, this year’s summit explored the theme “Disrupt: How Exponential Thinking Is Changing Tech’s Future,” elevating the conversation around AI, workforce development and what it takes to build an exponential organization. 

The day featured a two-session keynote experience from Salim Ismail, Chairman of OpenExO, bestselling author of Exponential Organizations and ExO 2.0 and former Vice President at Yahoo. Ismail’s first session left attendees buzzing, painting a vivid picture of disruptive convergence, how AI, robotics, biotech and other emerging technologies are colliding and accelerating change faster than most organizations are built to handle it. He returned for a second session to challenge attendees with practical frameworks for rethinking how their own organizations grow and adapt in that environment. 

The summit also included a State of Kansas Tech session with presentations from TEC Systems Group President Luis Rodriguez, KC Tech Council CEO Kara Lowe, NXTUS President & CEO Mary Beth Jarvis and USD 259 CIO Rob Dickson, along with afternoon breakout sessions spanning tech education, industry innovation, startups and workforce development. Teachers attending the summit were eligible for one full graduate credit hour. 

“This year’s theme, Disrupt, was about more than a buzzword, it was a call to rethink what’s possible for the future of Kansas tech,” said Megan Harper, FlagshipKansas.Tech Board Chair and Director of Marketing & Sales at Twin Valley. “Our 2026 award winners show what that looks like in action, whether it’s a teacher opening the door to computer science for thousands of students across her district, a community leader turning a single room into a thriving esports hub for an underserved neighborhood, or an advocate building the Midwest’s case as a leading tech hub. That’s the kind of bold action this summit exists to celebrate.”

Since debuting in 2022 at Riverfront Stadium in downtown Wichita, the Ad Astra Technology Summit has grown into one of Kansas’ signature technology events, with past keynote speakers including Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak (2023) and science educator Bill Nye (2024).

Among the highlights of the summit was the recognition of this year’s Kansas Tech Award winners, individuals and companies that have made significant contributions to the advancement of technology and innovation in the state:

Kansas Tech Visionary of the Year: Kara Lowe. Lowe is CEO of the KC Tech Council, a membership organization that serves as the shared voice of Kansas City’s technology industry, representing nearly 200 member companies ranging from startups to enterprise. Under her leadership, the KC Tech Council advocates for public policy at the state and federal levels, championing workforce development programs to build a competitive tech talent pipeline and convening the region’s tech leaders around a shared mission: establishing the Midwest as a leading tech hub. Lowe currently serves on the Workforce Development Board for the University of Kansas Edwards Campus and as Treasurer on the Board of Directors of the Tech Councils of North America. A proud University of Kansas graduate and lifelong Kansas Citian, she was recognized for her vision, voice and sustained commitment to the region’s tech economy.

Kansas Tech Community Innovator of the Year: Aaron Sheltrown. With support from Parks & Recreation leadership and a $40,000 city investment, Sheltrown led the transformation of a single room at Junction City’s 12th Street Community Center into the Twin Valley Esports Arena: Home of the Twisters, a hub for technology, connection and opportunity located in a low-income neighborhood. In its first year, the program attracted nearly 600 registered members and almost 5,000 annual check-ins, with as many as 60 participants engaging daily. Sheltrown built the program around esports as a gateway to real-world skills including teamwork, leadership, broadcasting, content creation, event management and digital literacy, helping participants access career pathways and higher education scholarships. His ability to forge public-private partnerships has brought professional-grade equipment, mentorship and connectivity to a community that would otherwise lack access to those resources.

Kansas Tech Startup of the Year: Planetary Talent. Cofounded by Mark Janzen, Jacob Schlittenhardt and Rohit Ghule and grown out of Wichita’s Groover Labs startup community, Planetary Talent began as AI tools built for a planned sci-fi video game before being repurposed into a recruiting platform. The company allows employers to launch a global talent search in under five minutes and run the entire hiring process conversationally through tools like Slack or email, hiring compliantly anywhere in the world. At a time when AI is widely seen as displacing workers, Planetary Talent takes the opposite approach, using AI-enhanced, story-driven matching to connect skilled people with meaningful opportunity, with every candidate verified and interviewed by industry experts before an employer sees their profile.

Steve & Janet Wozniak Kansas Tech Teacher of the Year: Haley Schmitz. Schmitz is a computer science teacher at Washburn Rural High School who has been described as the heart and soul of computer science and technology learning across her school district, which serves more than 6,000 students K-12. She single-handedly teaches the district’s full slate of high school computer science courses, from introductory classes through AP coursework, spanning computer science, game design, cybersecurity and coding. Schmitz founded the school’s Computer Science Honor Society, which runs technology learning activities for the community throughout the year, and launched a summer camp teaching engineering, computer science and coding alongside an annual STEAM carnival that serves hundreds of students. A self-taught computer science educator, she was also recently named her district’s 2025–2026 Secondary Teacher of the Year. As part of the award, Schmitz received a $1,666 check, a nod to the original price of the Apple I computer, along with a Smart Rover Robotics Kit from Deloitte’s Smart Factory Believers Program.

Kansas Tech Student of the Year: Kelly Lotsu-Morgan. A Computer Science student in the Honors Program at Newman University, Lotsu-Morgan arrived in Wichita from Ghana less than two years ago and is on track to graduate in just three years. On campus, he leads the AI Engineering Team and serves as President of the Coding Club, and he has developed tools now in active use at Newman, including Calendar Hero, an AI scheduling assistant, and PathMaker, an AI-powered degree planning and career exploration platform. He also founded Propel, an ed-tech platform supporting international students through test preparation, college applications and visa processes, built from the resource he wished he had during his own journey. Long-term, he hopes to build diagnostic technologies that improve access to healthcare in underserved communities.

About FlagshipKansas.Tech

FlagshipKansas.Tech is a nonprofit organization that brings together Kansas technology companies to shine a light on the depth of skill, ingenuity, and innovation running through our cities and communities. Current goals include raising awareness, attracting and retaining technology talent, and supporting technology workforce training and education. Learn more at flagshipkansas.tech. 

About the Ad Astra Technology Summit

The Ad Astra Technology Summit is an annual conference presented by FlagshipKansas.Tech that convenes industry leaders, startup entrepreneurs, government officials, and educators to explore and address current technology issues. Past keynote speakers include Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak (2023) and science educator Bill Nye (2024). The summit features breakout sessions, the Kansas Tech Awards, structured networking, and continuing education credit for teachers. For more information, visit adastrasummit.tech.

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