The historic Current Club of Emporia is radically changing its structure. A demographically bent membership has inspired the new leaders of the organization to make serious changes in order to attract younger members. 

The Current Club was established in 1900 by a group of men, including William Allen White and Albert Taylor, for Emporia residents to gather together and educate one another on topics of interest to them. The club featured a mix of community members and people connected to what is now Emporia State and met once per month to attend a presentation. 

These talks only had one guideline: speakers should not talk about their current job. 

“So if you were a doctor, you would give a talk on something you’re interested in, besides medicine,” said Michael Smith, professor of Political Science at Emporia State University and Acting President of the Current Club. “If you were a political science professor, you give a talk on something you’re interested in besides political science and so on and so forth.”

In recent years, the organization has been attempting to attract a larger audience. Although the Current Club initially featured exclusively men, women have recently been encouraged to join the ranks, and they aren’t the only new invitees. At 54, Smith is the youngest currently active club member, so the organization is making a concerted effort to reach a younger group of Emporia residents. 

“The Current Club is a great organization, and it’s very much a part of the fabric of Emporia,” said Smith. “We’d hate to see this group die. Even people my age, let alone people younger than me, just don’t join community organizations that have monthly meetings like they used to. They have competing commitments and childcare responsibilities, and if they do join, many would prefer to join via Zoom or similar technologies.”

To potentially attract more members to the fold, the Current Club is radically restructuring their organization. Rather than monthly meetings, the club will host at least one highly publicized featured speaker per semester, inviting the news media and live streaming each event. 

The first of these speeches was presented by Washburn professor of political science Bob Beatty on Tuesday, Oct. 29, when he publicly analyzed the landscape of the 2024 Presidential Election and Kansas politics. The talk attracted approximately 15 attendees. 

Smith believes in the value of getting involved in one’s community. 

“There’s so much research showing the benefits of community organizations,” he commented. “People who join community organizations are obviously more involved in their community, but they also tend to be happier. They’re more likely to vote. They’re less likely to be addicted to screens, whether it be television or, more recently, phones and laptops and so forth…It’s good for the individual and it’s good for the fabric of the community.”