By TIM CARPENTER
Kansas Reflector
TOPEKA — The vice chairman of the Kansas Board of Regents intends to resign from the state higher education board rather than complete the final two years of his second term.
Jon Rolph, president and CEO of a Wichita restaurant company, was appointed to the Board of Regents in 2019 by Gov. Laura Kelly. He is expected to depart by June 30. The governor would appoint a replacement, subject to confirmation by the Kansas Senate, to finish a term ending in June 2027.
The nine-person Board of Regents has jurisdiction over public universities, community colleges and technical colleges in Kansas.
“Jon is an enthusiastic supporter of higher education who has prioritized the needs of Kansans and our state during his time on the board,” said Carl Ice, chairman of the Board of Regents.
Ice said Rolph “helped our system implement and move forward many key strategic initiatives. He has been an outstanding colleague.”
In 2021, Rolph endorsed a board policy that made it easier for campus administrators of the six state universities to suspend, dismiss or terminate employees, including tenured faculty members, without formally declaring a financial emergency. The policy was implemented in 2022 by Emporia State University to justify dismissal of 30 faculty. It triggered a state and federal court battle that continued into 2025.
In 2023, Rolph revealed that he had surgery to remove a tumor in his abdomen and was undergoing treatment for cancer.
Rolph was serving as chairman of the Board of Regents when the board voted in 2024 to change its diversity and multiculturalism policy under pressure from members of the Kansas Legislature.
The revised policy declared state universities in Kansas couldn’t require faculty to pledge “allegiance to, support for or opposition to diversity, equity or inclusion” or DEI.
“This is, again, our good-faith effort in trying to listen to the Legislature,” Rolph said at the time.
Rolph’s company, Thrive Restaurant Group, operates or owns more than 170 restaurants. It is the second-largest Applebee’s franchisee with restaurants in 15 states. He was a student body president at Baylor University.