Shannon Beal of Citizens Bank of Kansas has been selected to participate in the Kansas Bankers Association’s 2024 Bank Leaders of Kansas (BLOK) program. Now in its 18th year, the BLOK program is a statewide leadership development program designed to build participants’ leadership skills and knowledge of the banking industry.

Beal joins a distinguished class of 22 bank leaders for the 2024 BLOK class.  Training begins in February 2024 with a series of sessions designed to educate participants about the Kansas Bankers Association (KBA), which represents the state’s banks in the areas of government relations, law, education, and insurance. The classes address the state and federal legislative process, develop meaningful relationships with state lawmakers, culminating in a visit Washington, D.C. to meet congressional leaders. Additional sessions will focus on challenges and opportunities facing bankers and entrepreneurs in the state’s rural and urban areas, and individual leadership skills. 

“The BLOK program is a unique program for bankers to develop a broader sense of the banking industry. We are pleased that Shannon has been selected for the 2024 BLOK program,” said Kyle Russell, President of Citizens Bank of Kansas. 

Shannon Beal serves as the Community Bank President for Citizens Bank of Kansas in El Dorado. With 25 years in banking, Shannon is an experienced lender specializing in commercial lending. Shannon graduated from Wichita State University with a BA in Business Administration.  She serves on the boards for El Dorado, Inc., El Dorado Chamber, and the Circle Booster Club. She is a member of the El Dorado Rotary Club and Women in Commercial Real Estate, and is a graduate of Leadership Butler. Shannon and her husband, Brandon, reside in El Dorado with their three teenage children.

The Kansas Bankers Association, a statewide association, founded by bankers in 1887, represents and serves its 211 member banks out of its office in Topeka.