Written by Christina Briggs, Affiliate Network Director, UK HealthCare Kentucky Children's Hospital

In Covington, the Leadership Kentucky Class of 2025 explored what it means to view familiar challenges through a new lens, recognizing how a shift in perspective can uplift entire communities. That theme was carried throughout our entire session in Northern Kentucky—a region that continues to prove what is possible when communities choose collaboration over division, and shared purpose over isolated progress.

We kicked off our NKY session with Rick Wurth, CEO of OneQuest Health, whose message highlighted how reimagining care—and meeting people where they are—is changing the landscape of mental health support. What began in the 1880s as businessman and philanthropist Amos Shinkle’s vision to care for the community’s homeless and orphaned children has grown into a modern organization providing trauma-informed mental health and addiction treatment services to thousands of children, adolescents, adults, and families each year. Their own words best capture this transformation and the power of shifting perspective: “As community needs have evolved, we have embraced our value of growth and change to evolve with the community.”

We continued exploring the theme of re-envisioning mental health care through a panel of experts that included Crystal Leugers, Chief Programming Officer at OneQuest Health; Dr. Holly Danneman of the UK College of Medicine; Gannon Tagher, Dean of NKU’s College of Health and Human Services; and our own classmate, Adam Roland, Vice President of Outpatient Services at OneQuest Health. The panel emphasized that meaningful solutions to our nation’s mental health crisis are not created in silos—they emerge through alignment, collaboration, and a steadfast commitment to the people being served. Together, they showed how aligning clinical care, education, and community partnerships forms a powerful framework for long-term impact and better patient outcomes.    

Next, we had the privilege of visiting the Life Learning Center – where they work to shift societies’ perspective of individuals with substance abuse and criminal records from the focus of their poor choices, to the reality of their value. We heard from President Alicia Webb-Edgington, who shared the organization’s mission to give people facing poverty, unemployment, and hopelessness a second chance and the opportunity to make a positive impact in their communities by addressing the underlying issues causing the cycle. She explained that the program supports participants as they address the physical, financial, spiritual, emotional, and relational challenges that may be holding them back, empowering them to choose a new path and work toward the life they envision. This programming has been so live-changing and successful, that they are looking to duplicate the model at other locations throughout the state.

While visiting the Life Learning Center, our classmates (Cheryl Besl, Jamie Johnson, Elizabeth Griffith Mudd, and Andrew Steele) working in economic development and tourism offered insights into their day-to-day responsibilities—from the most rewarding aspects of their roles to their biggest challenges, and how they must continually adapt to new government policies and the evolving needs of the communities they serve.

We ended the day with a special reception at classmate Dennis Kennedy office, DBL Law with LKY alumni and sponsors. Even the reception tied into the theme of looking at things differently, as their building was a preservation and expansion of a historical building in urban Covington with great views and unbeatable hospitality.

To quote fellow classmate, Brady Shultz, we received a “Masterclass in regionalism” during our time in NKY. On Thursday, we visited the OneNKY Center – a newly opened building with the sole purpose of bringing together leaders from across Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties to unite behind initiatives that deliver meaningful outcomes and advance the region. Panelists offered perspectives and addressed questions on NKY’s ability to prioritize regional progress over individual victories. Those on the panel represented NKY Chamber of Commerce, BE NKY Growth Partnership, ONENKY Alliance, Horizon Community Funds, and MeetNKY. After the panel discussion, we had the opportunity to tour the new OneNKY Center and meet with tenants, including LifeSciKY – a lab incubator that advances science, entrepreneurship, education, and economic growth by equipping innovators with the essential resources and connections to bring their ideas to life.

Our next experience included hearing from the CEO of the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Airport (CVG), Lawrence Krauter. CVG touts an annual economic impact of $10.5 billion and is the 7^th largest cargo airport in North American with dual cargo hubs for DHL and Amazon – making it one of only a few dual cargo hubs in the world. While some airports were financially drained during the COVID pandemic, CVG was able to continue flourishing due to this diversification in services offered. We enjoyed an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of CVG, complete with a ride across the runways, an inside look at F&E Aircraft Maintenance, an up-close view of the massive cargo planes, and conversations with the team about how they keep aircraft for numerous companies safe and operational.

Our day ended with a tour of Mazak iSMART Factory – a factory whose machines make machines that manufacture products ranging from aerospace, to medical, to consumer electronics, to construction. Mazak provides a wide range of machining solutions to suit job shops and major manufacturers alike.

After a thought provoking and interesting day, we had a quick group dinner at Wooden Cask Brewing Company before heading back to the hotel to retire for the evening.

Our final day in NKY started off at SparkHaus – a reinvented space with a mission of providing a community hub for entrepreneurs and innovators to grow, connect and succeed. We were greeted with a warm welcome from Covington Mayor Ron Washington, a Covington native and retired law enforcement officer. Mayor Washington shared with us his vision for Covington with a focus on increasing availability and affordability of housing, delivering efficient and responsive government services, and ensuring Covington remains a welcoming and inclusive community for all. 

We then had the opportunity to hear from Campbell County Judge Executive, Steve Pendery; Boone County Administrator, Matt Dowling; and Kenton County Administrator, Joe Shriver as they built on the conversation we’d started at OneNKY about the importance of regionalism in NKY. They provided examples of how working together had saved their communities noteworthy amounts of money and shared tips on how to deal with “naysayers” when you know the initiative you are pushing is what is best for the community.

NKY is not only a region embracing the power of regionalism—it is also cultivating a vibrant entrepreneurial community through organizations like SparkHaus. Katie Taylor, Jake Rouse, and Dave Knox shared personal stories of how they leveraged SparkHaus and the connections they made there to accelerate their companies’ growth.

What could have been dismissed as just another aging building became an opportunity for Blue North to pursue a bold vision: revitalizing one of Covington’s most historic structures to offer affordable workspace and event venues, giving emerging entrepreneurs the resources they need to launch and grow their ideas. And with their commitment to supporting small businesses, you won’t find Panera Bread or Starbucks served on-site—Blue North fully stands behind its mission.

As Leadership Kentucky 2025 wrapped up our sixth session, we left Northern Kentucky with a refreshed lens—one shaped by leaders who choose collaboration over fragmentation, people over systems, and action over hesitation.

This region stands as a testament to what can happen when communities refuse to be defined by invisible boundaries. In Northern Kentucky, strength isn’t found in isolation but in working side by side toward a shared future.

And through this experience, LKY 2025 was reminded:
How you choose to see a challenge or opportunity can fundamentally change what’s possible.