Board Sets Strategic Direction at July Retreat This summer, twelve Jana’s Campaign board and staff members gathered in Council Grove, Kansas to determine the organization’s strategic direction for the next five years. Major changes, including electing a new slate of officers, hiring an executive director and focusing the overall mission, are already being implemented. As a result of the retreat, we have revised our organizational statements, including our mission and vision, to more accurately reflect our focus on prevention and education. These changes are also reflected in three newly clarified program focus areas: secondary education, higher education and community-based education. Our education and prevention work is specifically designed for secondary schools and students, colleges and students, and community organizations.
Dr. Heather Reeson Lambert Elected As Board President Shortly after the board retreat in July, Dr. Heather Reeson Lambert was elected to serve as president of the Jana’s Campaign board of directors. Lambert is a professor of psychology at Doane College (NE) and past president of the HOPE Crisis Center board of directors in Nebraska. HOPE provides services to domestic violence and sexual assault victims in southeast Nebraska. Dr. Curt Brungardt, Jana’s step-father and past board president, has stepped down from the board and is now serving as a volunteer staff member and advisor with Jana’s Campaign.
Brungardts Recognized for Work with Kansas Batterers Intervention Program Advisory Board Marking the end of their term of service, Curt and Christie Brungardt were recognized by Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt for their six years of service as co-chairs of the Kansas Batterer Intervention Program Advisory Board. Jana’s Campaign believes that effective offender intervention programs can help reduce the cycle and escalation of domestic and dating violence. The Brungardts would like to thank Dorthy Stucky Halley and Michelle McCormick of the Attorney General's office for all of their education, encouragement and support.
Jana’s Campaign Hires Executive Director Kelley Parker, formerly the Associate Director and past board member of Jana’s Campaign, started her role as Executive Director in October of 2015. Parker will be leading Jana’s Campaign from a new branch office in Colorado Springs, while the organization’s headquarters will remain in Hays, Kansas. Parker holds a master’s degree in organizational leadership and has spent her career working with nonprofit organizations. Parker has been involved with Jana’s Campaign since its inception in 2009.
Board Member Mark Russell Receives Award This October, Mark Russell, Jana’s Campaign board member, was honored as one of the “Men Who Make A Difference†by the Harris County Domestic Violence Coordinating Council. Russell received this award for his work as co-chair of the Aid to Victims of Domestic Violence (AVDA) board of directors in Houston, Texas. Also pictured is fellow award recipient Khambrel Marshall and District Attorney Devon Anderson. Congratulations on this honor Mark!
‘Love Doesn’t Hurt’ Program Continues to Expand
Our Jana’s Campaign teen gender violence prevention program, “Love Doesn’t Hurt†continues to rapidly grow across the state. Teen dating violence is a preventable public health problem which requires a comprehensive strategy to stop before it starts.
Since July, 74 new teachers have been trained by our certified Safe Dates teacher-trainers. Today, 83 middle and high schools are integrating the ten-lesson Safe Dates curriculum into existing classes. Jana’s Campaign staff and volunteers have also given numerous assemblies and conference/classroom presentations. Between July and December, nearly 8,000 middle and high school students in Kansas will have heard this message at least once, if not multiple times. Additionally, many of these schools have been granted $100 mini-grants to create a school or community project that raises awareness of teen gender violence. Grant Boosts Programming Efforts in Western Kansas An exciting addition to our teen prevention programming came as a result of generous support from the Dane G. Hansen Foundation, awarded through the Heartland Community Foundation. This funding allowed us to implement a comprehensive, multi-level approach to teen dating violence prevention for all middle and high schools throughout Ellis, Rooks and Trego counties (Kansas). This multi-dimensional pilot program includes both curricular and co-curricular elements for students, faculty and staff training and recommendations for school-wide policy revisions.
Love Doesn’t Hurt Expands to Colorado Along with our extensive Love Doesn’t Hurt work in Kansas, we have expanded our work into Colorado, where we have partnered with the Family and Consumer Science (FACS) and Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) programs. This semester, Jana’s Campaign has presented to more than 480 students from 34 schools and has trained nearly 50 teachers on the Safe Dates Curriculum. We also recently introduced our service project mini-grant program in Colorado, and are excited to support student groups taking on school and community service projects that address teen dating violence.
Coaching Boys Into Men Updates Thanks to a $5,000 grant from Futures Without Violence, Jana’s Campaign has trained coaches and school personnel from 12 schools in Kansas and Oklahoma on the Coaching Boys Into Men program since June. The purpose of this program is to teach healthy relationship skills to middle and/or high school student athletes in order to prevent teen dating violence. This year this work has expanded into Oklahoma and we will be providing a training for coaches in Colorado in February of 2016. Empty Place at the Table Raises More Than $33,000 Over 130 people gathered at the Fort Hays State University Robbins Center to celebrate the fourth annual Empty Place at the Table event. More than $33,000 was raised to be used towards prevention and education programming for secondary schools, colleges and universities, and community-based organizations. Thank you to everyone who donated, volunteered or supported us for this fun event!
Third Annual Heartland Campus Safety Summit Another Success Faculty, staff and students from over 90 colleges, universities and community organizations gathered at Johnson County Community College (JCCC) on November 3 and 4 to learn how they can better reduce and respond to gender and relationship violence on their campuses. More than 285 attendees from 12 states participated in the third annual Heartland Campus Safety Summit hosted by Jana’s Campaign and JCCC. These schools represent a total enrollment of 506,774 students. This important event was generously sponsored by a HopeLine grant from Verizon Wireless. To learn more about the summit, visit heartlandsummit.org.
Inaugural Rocky Mountain Campus Safety Summit Scheduled for June 2016 Based on the success of the Heartland Campus Safety Summit, Jana’s Campaign is expanding our multi-state conference model to the Rocky Mountain region. Colorado College in Colorado Springs will host the inaugural summit, scheduled for June 8-9, 2016. College personnel and community-based organizations will be invited from the states of Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah and Wyoming. Proposals for presentations are currently being accepted. Conference registration will open in March 2016. To learn more about the Rocky Mountain Campus Safety Summit, please visit rockymountainsummit.org
Special Issue of eJournal of Public Affairs Released Drs. Curt and Christie Brungardt, founders of Jana’s Campaign recently served as guest editors of a special issue for the eJournal of Public Affairs. This special issue focuses on higher education’s role in preventing and responding to gender and relationship violence. Submissions were received from Kansas, Iowa, Indiana, South Carolina and Oregon. Jana’s Campaign is proud to offer this special issue to the field to help colleges and universities, victims and survivors, and policy makers better understand the issue and identify effective ways to prevent and respond. To see the journal, click here.
Board Member Tre’ Giles Continues Peace Corps Work Tre’ Giles, Jana’s Campaign board member, is serving as a Peace Corps volunteer in Gambia, Africa. Recently, Tre’ was selected to attend an upcoming Let Girls Learn Summit, a program that seeks to expand access to education for adolescent girls around the world by empowering local leaders to put lasting solutions in place. Peace Corps Volunteers like Tre’ who live and work at the grassroots level will serve as catalysts of community-led change. We are so proud of you, Tre’. Keep up the good work! The Impact Project Jana’s Campaign is embarking on a national fundraising campaign seeking to raise $500,000 over the next eighteen months. These funds will allow us to take our work to the next level. Over our six year history, our programming impact has been felt throughout Kansas and across the United States. Now, it’s time to do even more.
The IMPACT project fundraising campaign is designed to increase both the scale and scope of our work and to create even greater impact. The IMPACT project will allow us to improve and expand our gender violence prevention efforts in middle and high schools, colleges and universities, as well as with our community-wide programming activities. We are doing great work, but it is time to move our gender and relationship violence prevention programming and our impact to a greater level. Through individual, corporate and foundation donors and with our earned revenue, we seek to raise $500,000 by July 1, 2017.
Our Funding Priorities
Middle & High Schools: New resources will be used to enhance and expand our Love Doesn’t Hurt: Teen Gender Violence Prevention program in Kansas and in our neighboring states. Our goal is to reach 20,000 new adolescents with this effort.
Colleges & Universities: New resources will be used to develop, implement and expand programming activities that are designed to prevent and respond to campus gender violence both regionally and nationally. Our goal is to reach an additional 200 colleges and 200,000 new college students.
Community-Wide Education: New resources will be used to broaden our impact through our various community-wide educational programming strategies across Kansas and into surrounding states. Our goal is to reach 50 new communities and 100,000 citizens.
Project Co-Chairs
Together, Mia Lang and Curt Brungardt are chairing the IMPACT project fundraising campaign. Both Mia and Curt have a deep passion for Jana’s Campaign and our efforts to reduce gender relationship violence.
Mia Lang is a ten-year-old fourth grader at Holy Family Elementary School in Hays, Kansas. Last year for her birthday, she asked her family and friends not to buy her gifts, but rather to donate to Jana’s Campaign. Her efforts and passion for the cause raised $1,100. Since that time, Mia continues to fundraise and volunteer for Jana’s Campaign.
Curt Brungardt is the Voss Professor of Leadership Studies at Fort Hays State University in Hays, Kansas and is a co-founder of Jana’s Campaign. The past five years, Curt has served as president of the Board of Directors before stepping down in August 2015.
We are making a difference. With your help we can do even more.
Please support the IMPACT project and help us reach our goal. All proceeds will directly support our education and violence prevention work. Donate today!
This summer, twelve Jana’s Campaign board and staff members gathered in Council Grove, Kansas to determine the organization’s strategic direction for the next five years. Major changes, including electing a new slate of officers, hiring an executive director and focusing the overall mission, are already being implemented. As a result of the retreat, we have revised our organizational statements, including our mission and vision, to more accurately reflect our focus on prevention and education. These changes are also reflected in
Shortly after the board retreat in July, Dr. Heather Reeson Lambert was elected to serve as president of the Jana’s Campaign board of directors. Lambert is a professor of psychology at Doane College (NE) and past president of the HOPE Crisis Center board of directors in Nebraska. HOPE provides services to domestic violence and sexual assault victims in southeast Nebraska. Dr. Curt Brungardt, Jana’s step-father and past board president, has stepped down from the board and is now serving as a volunteer staff member and advisor with Jana’s Campaign.
Marking the end of their term of service, Curt and Christie Brungardt were recognized by Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt for their six years of service as co-chairs of the Kansas Batterer Intervention Program Advisory Board. Jana’s Campaign believes that effective offender intervention programs can help reduce the cycle and escalation of domestic and dating violence. The Brungardts would like to thank Dorthy Stucky Halley and Michelle McCormick of the Attorney General's office for all of their education, encouragement and support.
Kelley Parker, formerly the Associate Director and past board member of Jana’s Campaign, started her role as Executive Director in October of 2015. Parker will be leading Jana’s Campaign from a new branch office in Colorado Springs, while the organization’s headquarters will remain in Hays, Kansas. Parker holds a master’s degree in organizational leadership and has spent her career working with nonprofit organizations. Parker has been involved with Jana’s Campaign since its inception in 2009.
This October, Mark Russell, Jana’s Campaign board member, was honored as one of the “Men Who Make A Difference†by the Harris County Domestic Violence Coordinating Council. Russell received this award for his work as co-chair of the Aid to Victims of Domestic Violence (AVDA) board of directors in Houston, Texas. Also pictured is fellow award recipient Khambrel Marshall and District Attorney Devon Anderson. Congratulations on this honor Mark!
An exciting addition to our teen prevention programming came as a result of generous support from the Dane G. Hansen Foundation, awarded through the Heartland Community Foundation. This funding allowed us to implement a comprehensive, multi-level approach to teen dating violence prevention for all middle and high schools throughout Ellis, Rooks and Trego counties (Kansas). This multi-dimensional pilot program includes both curricular and co-curricular elements for students, faculty and staff training and recommendations for school-wide policy revisions.
Along with our extensive Love Doesn’t Hurt work in Kansas, we have expanded our work into Colorado, where we have partnered with the Family and Consumer Science (FACS) and Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) programs. This semester, Jana’s Campaign has presented to more than 480 students from 34 schools and has trained nearly 50 teachers on the Safe Dates Curriculum. We also recently introduced our service project mini-grant program in Colorado, and are excited to support student groups taking on school and community service projects that address teen dating violence.
Thanks to a $5,000 grant from Futures Without Violence, Jana’s Campaign has trained coaches and school personnel from 12 schools in Kansas and Oklahoma on the Coaching Boys Into Men program since June. The purpose of this program is to teach healthy relationship skills to middle and/or high school student athletes in order to prevent teen dating violence. This year this work has expanded into Oklahoma and we will be providing a training for coaches in Colorado in February of 2016.
Over 130 people gathered at the Fort Hays State University Robbins Center to celebrate the fourth annual Empty Place at the Table event. More than $33,000 was raised to be used towards prevention and education programming for secondary schools, colleges and universities, and community-based organizations. Thank you to everyone who donated, volunteered or supported us for this fun event!
Faculty, staff and students from over 90 colleges, universities and community organizations gathered at Johnson County Community College (JCCC) on November 3 and 4 to learn how they can better reduce and respond to gender and relationship violence on their campuses. More than 285 attendees from 12 states participated in the third annual Heartland Campus Safety Summit hosted by Jana’s Campaign and JCCC. These schools represent a total enrollment of 506,774 students. This important event was generously sponsored by a HopeLine grant from Verizon Wireless. To learn more about the summit, visit 
Based on the success of the Heartland Campus Safety Summit, Jana’s Campaign is expanding our multi-state conference model to the Rocky Mountain region. Colorado College in Colorado Springs will host the inaugural summit, scheduled for June 8-9, 2016. College personnel and community-based organizations will be invited from the states of Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah and Wyoming. Proposals for presentations are currently being accepted. Conference registration will open in March 2016. To learn more about the Rocky Mountain Campus Safety Summit, please visit 
Drs. Curt and Christie Brungardt, founders of Jana’s Campaign recently served as guest editors of a special issue for the eJournal of Public Affairs. This special issue focuses on higher education’s role in preventing and responding to gender and relationship violence. Submissions were received from Kansas, Iowa, Indiana, South Carolina and Oregon. Jana’s Campaign is proud to offer this special issue to the field to help colleges and universities, victims and survivors, and policy makers better understand the issue and identify effective ways to prevent and respond. To see the journal, click 
Tre’ Giles, Jana’s Campaign board member, is serving as a Peace Corps volunteer in Gambia, Africa. Recently, Tre’ was selected to attend an upcoming Let Girls Learn Summit, a program that seeks to expand access to education for adolescent girls around the world by empowering local leaders to put lasting solutions in place. Peace Corps Volunteers like Tre’ who live and work at the grassroots level will serve as catalysts of community-led change. We are so proud of you, Tre’. Keep up the good work!
Mia Lang is a ten-year-old fourth grader at Holy Family Elementary School in Hays, Kansas. Last year for her birthday, she asked her family and friends not to buy her gifts, but rather to donate to Jana’s Campaign. Her efforts and passion for the cause raised $1,100. Since that time, Mia continues to fundraise and volunteer for Jana’s Campaign.
