Kansas governor candidate engulfed by blowback over ‘no-show job’ at Wichita State. It’s about time.

Posted July 9, 2026

Senate President Ty Masterson, seen here during a March 26, 2026, session of the Senate, has defended his work as director of a WSU program.

Senate President Ty Masterson, seen here during a March 26, 2026, session of the Senate, has defended his work as director of a WSU program. (Photo by Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)

Some of us have to work for a living.

Others of us are Ty Masterson.

I don’t mean his efforts as Senate president, which we report on assiduously and for which the Andover Republican collects $85,000 a year for a 90-day session. That already puts the gubernatorial candidate ahead of the average Kansan’s salary of $58,230 for a whole year’s worth of work.

No, I mean his role as director of “GoCreate, a Koch Collaborative” at Wichita State University, for which he collected a tidy $163,000 last year. New reporting from the Kansas City Star’s Matthew Kelly digs into Masterson’s role and uncovers the uncomfortable truth that no one associated with the university or the candidate can really explain what he does.

Or whether he even shows up all that often.

A student at the front desk of the maker space — where students and community members can plan and build whatever they imagine — didn’t recognize Masterson. (Kelly, whom I know socially, visited the campus to check out the scene firsthand.)

GoCreate assistant director Kimberly McCollum then interrupted and said that she was “the director here.”

No wonder that fellow Republican gubernatorial candidate Philip Sarnecki criticized Masterson for having a “no-show job.”

Perhaps the Senate president works his magic from home, or while traveling. He and his campaign were happy to offer their take for the Star, and I want to make sure to give them their say. I’m sure that the candidate’s camp will offer abundant examples of his work at WSU.

Masterson told Kelly last month that he found equipment for the space, helped out GoCreate members and was “making sure we have the investors in place.”

As for being on campus, he said, “it is highly fortunate that since it’s in the administrative side of things that I don’t have to be on site.” He added, just in case readers didn’t get the point: “I do get on site a couple days a week. Some weeks, I do two to three (days of in-person work) and some weeks I won’t.”

So what does he do?

Masterson’s campaign emphasized that his time at the university was “some of the work he’s proudest of in his life,” while noting he doesn’t take a salary while working at the Statehouse.

“Ty returned to his role after session this year as usual, and he continues to work in person nearly every week and remotely when he’s not on campus,” spokesman Garrett Henson elaborated.

Again, fine. But it doesn’t answer the basic question of what Masterson does, how he genuinely contributes, and whether those efforts justify anything resembling the six-figure salary he collects. As Kelly noted, Masterson enjoys the rewards of a prestigious university job without having earned a college degree himself.

I’m sure his connections t0 Koch-connected entities (the American Legislative Exchange Council, Americans for Prosperity) have nothing to do with his employment at another effort branded with the name of Wichita billionaires.

Others have joined Sarnecki in questioning the WSU arrangement. State Sen. Patrick Schmidt, D-Topeka, tried to amend the state budget in March to cut off funding for the job.

“I’m concerned that this position isn’t actually being filled right now,” Schmidt said.

He was voted down 37-1 and criticized by colleagues. But Kelly’s reporting makes it seem as though Schmidt had a point.

What does Masterson actually do?

Regardless of any work performed, it’s clear that both parties get something out of Masterson‘s employment. The Senate president receives a hefty paycheck, while Wichita State University enjoys the prestige and connections of having one of the top politicians in Kansas on its payroll. That’s worthwhile during an era of cuts to higher education!

The justifications reproduced above suggest that Masterson‘s campaign wants to talk. However, the subsequent vague quotes and stonewalling from WSU (it wouldn’t produce a copy of the Republican’s employment contract) sure makes it seem as though any commitment to transparency only goes so far.

That’s not going to cut it.

Masterson needs to answer clearly and forcefully how many hours he actually works as director, how frequently he shows up to his campus office, and the tangible results that he has produced for the program. He needs to tell us what he actually does. If he’s so proud of the work, that shouldn’t be so much to ask.

He owes a frank accounting to the people of Kansas now that he wants to be their governor. 

 

The GoCreate facility at the Wichita State University campus offers a "maker space" for students and community members. Senate President Ty Masterson works as its director.The GoCreate facility at the Wichita State University campus offers a “maker space” for students and community members. Senate President Ty Masterson works as its director. (Photo by Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector)

This opinion editor’s take

I must admit that I’m pleased to see this story gain traction in statewide media. I’ve written about Masterson and his six-figure public university job throughout the past three years.

I’ve been consistent in questioning the arrangement. It looked then — and looks now — like a cushy job with few requirements that allows Masterson to focus on his work as a politician. The Koch network’s ongoing interest in shaping U.S. politics suggests as much.

I hope that WSU and its students, not to mention the wider Wichita community, receive the full value of Masterson’s expertise. I doubt they do.

In the meantime, here are my takes on the story through the years, beginning in 2023.

March 6, 2023: “Lawmakers have declared war on the poor. They betray the 340,000 Kansans living in poverty.”

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It’s just a shame the poor people of Kansas aren’t able to draw a six-figure salary from Wichita State University as “director of GoCreate, a Koch Collaborative,” as Masterson does. He’s even luckier to have landed such a plum role after filing for personal bankruptcy more than a decade ago. Many people’s lives would be ruined by such an experience, but perhaps they should try being elected to the Kansas Senate.

 

Nov. 2, 2023: “A Kansas GOP senator blasts the Koch network and reveals the damage wrought by division”

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Yet one can argue that the Koch has an uniquely outsized influence on Kansas politics, given that the company generating all this wealth has headquarters in Wichita. AFP has publicly backed candidate Lily Wu in the city’s mayoral race, suggesting the organization wants a voice on all levels of government, not just the state or national. Kansas Senate President Ty Masterson happens to work at “GoCreate: A Koch Collaborative” at Wichita State University, where he earns a six-figure salary.

 

Jan. 13, 2024: “Statehouse scraps: Abortion ban has a snowball’s chance; moving Medicaid goalposts”

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As director of “GoCreate: A Koch Collaborative” at Wichita State University — earning a cool $113,207.66 for his his trouble in 2022 — Masterson could be expected to have a firmer grasp on economic principles.

 

May 22, 2025: “Why Kansas Reflector filed a complaint about stonewalling by the Senate efficiency panel”

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The messages (to the Committee on Government Efficiency) mention Senate President Ty Masterson’s lucrative side hustle at Wichita Stare University, where he earns more than $150,000 a year as “director of GoCreate, a Koch Collaborative.” In one of them, Masterson’s name has been redacted, along with that of the author. In the other, neither Masterson nor the author has been redacted.

 

Clay Wirestone is Kansas Reflector opinion editor. Through its opinion section, Kansas Reflector works to amplify the voices of people who are affected by public policies or excluded from public debate. Find information, including how to submit your own commentary, here.<

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