Crosby Kemper III, Joins Missouri Humanities Council’s Board

  

 We at MHC are very happy to have Crosby Kemper III as a member of the Council, where the perspective he brings as an educator with a corporate background will be of immense value as we move forward in carrying out our mission.

The Missouri Humanities Council welcomes Crosby Kemper III, Library Director of the Kansas City Public Library, to the Council’s Board. Kemper’s new position will build on his strong commitment to supporting the humanities.

 “The humanities are important to the creation of civilization,” said Kemper. “They are the things that round out our lives and give them meaning, the things that give us the highest level of pleasure and bring the most wonder and joy outside of the natural world.”

 Kemper has a history degree from Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut and has worked in a variety of industries throughout the nation and world. Kemper’s corporate background is with the Kansas City-based UMB Financial Corp., one of the largest banking companies in the Midwest, serving in various positions including chairman and CEO.

 Kemper previously spent a year in China teaching English. He also worked as the executive director of the British Institute of the United States in New York. On the civic side, Kemper has served on boards with the Governor’s Commission on the Future of Higher Education in Missouri, the Missouri Banker’s Association, the Show-Me Institute, St. Louis state public policy think tank, the Shakespeare Festival – St. Louis and the Heart of America Shakespeare Festival – Kansas City.

 “The diversity in my background helps me understand the diversity of the state,” Kemper said. “We need to match the needs and the passions of the world to some of the opportunities and visions of the folks in the business world. It’s a tough time for the humanities. They’re the first thing that gets cut in a political budget, but they’re even more necessary in troubled times. The humanities are what sustain us.”

 Kemper will pull on his financial background along with his work in the humanities in hopes to help build interest in the business and civic community.

 “We need to continue introducing the humanities to larger groups of adults and build the financial base for the Council and other humanities institutions with more collaboration,” said Kemper. “We want to raise the whole community consciousness of the humanities, and collaboration will help us do that.”

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