Jim Ward was brought up right. The oldest of five siblings, his parents taught him that service to others mattered most. When there is so much cynicism in our day to day lives, it is refreshing to know that Jim does what he does because he enjoys seeing good things happen to good people.
He put himself through law school, started his own law practice, and was a prosecutor for Sedgwick County where he helped put away dangerous criminals. He worked to improve our schools while serving on the Wichita school board and then served on the Wichita City Council. He did this all before he was 33 years old.
For the past 17 years, Jim has been a forceful leader in the Kansas legislature. During the Brownback years, Jim fought to limit the damage, then stepped up to lead in setting things right again.
He helped return state government from near bankruptcy to sound fiscal status. He worked to deliver sufficient and fair funding to our state’s public schools and helped stop the stealing from our state’s highway plan.
He believes good paying jobs come from nurturing businesses and believes state government must be a partner in making that happen. He believes Kansas families should have the tools they need to achieve the American dream, and fought to restore the child care tax credit and mortgage tax deduction.
One of the reasons Jim likes to see good things happen is that he has two grown children, Zach and Emily, and wants to leave Kansas in as a better place for them and for the rest of us.