In northwest Kansas, Hays serves as the economic, educational, healthcare, and cultural center of Ellis County and an important hub for the broader region. Located at the intersection of Interstate 70 and U.S. Highway 183, the community combines the institutions and opportunities of a regional center with the relationships, accessibility, and quality of life of a smaller place.

Ellis County’s economic identity has been shaped by resilience and reinvention. After the loss of a major employer in the 1980s, community leaders embraced a long-term strategy of building a more diverse economy from within. Today, that economy is anchored by education, healthcare, telecommunications, technology, small business, and entrepreneurship, with institutions such as Fort Hays State University, HaysMed, Grow Hays, and Fort Hays Tech providing a substantial foundation for continued growth.

Hays is also home to a growing collection of places designed to help people learn, experiment, work, and build. BriefSpace provides coworking, meeting, and business-incubation space for entrepreneurs and remote workers, while the MicroFactory offers 30,000 square feet of flexible production space for small manufacturers and product-based businesses. Downtown, STEM Harvest connects young people with hands-on technology learning, and a new initiative, RISE on Main, will give student entrepreneurs a place to test ideas in a real retail environment.

Fort Hays State University adds another layer of innovation infrastructure. The university’s Tebo Library includes a makerspace, the Institute of New Media Studies, media resources, and technology labs, while Hammond Hall brings together the Cybersecurity Institute and Technology Incubator, Teaching Innovation and Learning Technologies, and Tiger Media Network. The Kansas Academy of Mathematics and Science provides an early-college STEM pathway for high-achieving students, and the university’s informatics, computer science, entrepreneurship, and career-development programs create additional connections between students and the regional economy.

Beyond campus, companies such as TreeTop Security, Nex-Tech, and Nex-Tech Wireless, along with technology-enabled employers in healthcare, energy, utilities, manufacturing, and other industries, demonstrate that technical careers are already part of the local economy. Local partners are working to connect those employers with students through internships, apprenticeships, applied projects, and career exploration while helping existing businesses explore practical uses for technologies such as artificial intelligence and cybersecurity.

That entrepreneurial and technical momentum is unfolding alongside continued investment in quality of place. Downtown Hays and The Bricks District have become a focal point for locally owned businesses, gathering places, events, and community activity, while strong civic collaboration among local government, education, business, healthcare, and economic development organizations continues to move projects forward. The vision emerging across Ellis County is one in which technology, entrepreneurship, workforce development, and quality of life reinforce one another, giving more people reasons to learn, build, work, and stay in the region.

Community Partners

Fort Hays State University

Fort Hays State University is a regional public university and one of Ellis County’s most important anchors for education, talent, innovation, and community engagement. Through academic programs, applied learning, entrepreneurship, research, career development, and partnerships with regional employers, FHSU connects students and faculty with opportunities that extend well beyond the university campus.

Its growing emphasis on economic and workforce development strengthens that role, connecting university talent and expertise with businesses, entrepreneurs, schools, and communities throughout northwest Kansas. The much anticipated revival of the 3,800-acre university farm will provide new applied learning opportunities and a real-world lab where entrepreneurs can test and develop new Ag tech innovations.

Grow Hays

Grow Hays is an economic development organization focused on creating opportunities for businesses, entrepreneurs, residents, and families to build their futures in Ellis County. Its work spans business development, entrepreneurship, housing, workforce, community development, and talent attraction.

Grow Hays also operates resources including BriefSpace and the MicroFactory, giving entrepreneurs, remote workers, and growing companies access to physical spaces designed to support collaboration, production, and business growth.

The Chamber

The Chamber in Hays serves as a connector, advocate, and convener for the regional business community. Through business support, networking, workforce initiatives, community programming, and partnerships, the Chamber helps strengthen relationships among employers, residents, educators, entrepreneurs, and civic organizations.

Its broad reach across the community also makes the Chamber an important partner in telling the story of local businesses and opportunities and helping people connect with the resources available throughout Hays and Ellis County.

Fort Hays Tech | North Central

Fort Hays Tech | North Central provides hands-on technical education and workforce training aligned with the needs of employers throughout north-central and northwest Kansas. Its programs give high school students, traditional college students, and working adults pathways into skilled and technical careers while helping regional industries build the talent they need.

Its connections with employers and other educational institutions make Fort Hays Tech an important piece of the region’s continuum from early career exploration to credentials, apprenticeships, and employment. The affiliation between the technical college and the university ensures employers in the region have access to a full pipeline of talent as they address workforce development needs.

What Being a Member of the Network Means to Hays / Ellis County

Hays and Ellis County are joining the Rural Innovation Network with many of the ingredients of a strong rural innovation economy already in place: a major university, technical education, technology companies, entrepreneurship spaces, accessible early-stage financing, strong broadband, active business organizations, and a culture of collaboration.

Network membership creates an opportunity to connect those strengths with rural communities around the country that are also working to turn education, entrepreneurship, technology, and local talent into long-term economic opportunity. Shared learning and relationships can help Ellis County explore new approaches to founder support, talent retention, applied learning, technology adoption, and the capital companies need to grow.

Ellis County also brings an important perspective to that national community. Its economic history has reinforced the value of diversification, and its current momentum demonstrates what can happen when universities, employers, entrepreneurs, educators, and community organizations invest in a broader base of opportunity. The next chapter is about making those opportunities even more visible and connected, so students can picture careers here, founders can see a path from idea to growth, and more people can choose to build their future in Hays and Ellis County.