UMKC Innovation Center Leader, Maria Meyers Will Retire This Year

Posted March 25, 2026

The University of Missouri–Kansas City announced that Maria Meyers, the vice chancellor of commercialization and entrepreneurship, will retire and plans to find a successor to the role later this year.

Following nearly 23 years with UMKC, Meyers will step down from her role. UMKC will launch a search for a successor to continue Meyers’ work in entrepreneurship and commercialization, projecting to fill that position by late summer, according to a release. Meyers will stay in her role during the search.

“UMKC is fortunate to have benefited from Maria’s talent and dedication for many years,” UMKC Chancellor Mauli Agrawal said in the release. “Our university and Kansas City communities are stronger, more vibrant and more successful because of Maria’s contributions.”

During her time at UMKC, Meyers helped lead the UMKC Innovation Center, which serves to partner student entrepreneurs with the community to create high-impact programs and economic development. Meyers also helped launch KCSourcelink, a network that helps entrepreneurs find and manage resources in the Kansas City region.

Meyers first joined UMKC in 2003 as the director of KCSourcelink. She would then be promoted to executive director of the UMKC Innovation Center, the facility that houses KCSourceLink. In November 2023, Mayers became the vice chancellor of commercialization and entrepreneurship. 

Meyers was recognized as an honoree for the Ingram’s Magazine 2022 WeKC–Women Executives Kansas City.