Kansas State Treasurer: 529 Savings Program

Open an Account Program Description Learning Quest FAQ's

The Learning Quest 529 Education Savings Plan helps Kansas families save for their loved ones in tax-advantaged 529 savings accounts. Learning Quest 529 accounts are designed to help designated individuals or yourself pay for qualified educational and career advancement expenses. Funds within a Learning Quest account can be invested in a variety of options. Funds can grow and be withdrawn tax free if used toward qualified expenses. Additionally, Kansas taxpayers may take an annual deduction of up to $3,000 ($6,000 for married, filing jointly) from Kansas adjusted gross income for contributions into each beneficiary's account.

Program Administration

Treasurer’s Advisory Committee

The Treasurer’s Advisory Committee advises the state treasurer on the selection and management of funds in the 529 plan. Their collective industry expertise and historical perspective will also guide program enhancements and ensure decisions are made in the best interest of account owners and beneficiaries.

Suchitra Padmanabhan is currently the President of CBW Bank, a payments focused minority owned bank chartered in Weir, Kansas, and has served on the Treasurer’s Advisory Committee since 2008.

Padmanabhan is also a gubernatorial appointee to the Kansas Development Finance Authority (KDFA) Board, where she serves as Vice Chairman, and the Kansas Housing Resources Corporation, where she serves as Chairman.

Padmanabhan has previously worked as the Head of Fixed Income Research for Security Benefit in Topeka, Kansas, where she was responsible for research coverage and portfolio strategy for credit assets and alternative investments. Her prior experience includes investment banking at Bankers Trust in Hong Kong and in at Lehman Brothers in New York.

Padmanabhan graduated magna cum laude from Dartmouth with a BA/BE and an MBA in Analytic Finance from the University of Chicago. She is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA). Suchitra lives with her family in Topeka, Kansas.

Matt Syverson is Managing Partner & Senior Wealth Advisor at Sound Stewardship, LLC, in Overland Park, Kansas, and has served on the Treasurer’s Advisory Committee since 2019.

After graduating from the University of Iowa with a psychology degree and a paramedic certification, Matt served several years in an ambulance on the streets of Tucson and Denver. Inspired in part by his father’s financial planning career, Matt felt called to a shift into the financial services industry back in 2000.

Matt spent his first two years at a larger financial planning company in Denver, and then worked alongside his father in Iowa for another two years. In 2004, Matt and his family relocated to Kansas City. In May 2011, Matt became a Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy®.

Matt and his wife Tammy were both born and raised in Iowa. They have four children.

Tyler Hallagin is a Financial Advisor with Ameriprise Financial and has served on the Treasurer’s Advisory Committee since 2020.

Hallagin graduated from Fort Hays State University in Hays, Kansas, with a bachelor’s degree in marketing. Hallagin began his work in the financial services industry in 2013. Born and raised in western Kansas, Hallagin built a majority of his clientele by focusing on providing financial services to the wide-ranging investment perspectives of rural communities and the agricultural industry. Hallagin values learning about the uniqueness of every client and helping those clients navigate the financial aspect of their life and careers.

When not in the office, Hallagin can be found on the golf course, in the fields hunting, at Arrowhead stadium cheering on the Kansas City Chiefs, or spending quality time with his niece and nephew.

Stuart Berkley is Senior Vice President, Portfolio Manager, and Chief Wealth Strategist for FCI Advisors in Overland Park. He joined the Treasurer’s Advisory Committee in 2023.Berkley joined FCI in 2000 and has more than 25 years of experience in portfolio management. Previously, he managed client portfolios at American National Bank, now J.P. Morgan, and Commerce Bank of Kansas City, working with personal trusts, employee benefit accounts, foundations, endowments and investment management accounts

Berkley completed his bachelor’s degree at the University of Kansas and his MBA at De Paul University.

He is a member of the CFA Institute And the CFA Society Kansas City. He also serves on the boards of the Parkinson Foundation of the Heartland and Bethany Lutheran Foundation.

Kevin Watt is Senior Vice President of Security Benefit and joined the Treasurer’s Advisory Committee in 2023.

Watt graduated from Washburn University in 1991 with a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree. Watt is a 25-year veteran of the retirement services industry, and has spent his career focusing on client relationships, product sales, and value-added programs for broker-dealers and financial institutions. Watt began his career at American Century Investments in 1991, where he worked as a manager. In 1995, Watt joined J.P. Morgan Retirement Plan Services as a Business Development professional. In 1999, Watt began working for his current employer, Security Benefit. Watt leads operational support initiatives for Security Benefit’s sales, marketing, and national accounts teams. He also heads up the defined contribution consulting team, which is focused on bringing technical and regulatory expertise to financial advisors and their clients.

Watt and his wife, Wende, are parents to three boys. Watt currently serves on the Board for Boys and Girls Clubs of Topeka, is on Washburn University’s School of Business Advisory Council, and enjoys serving with the Topeka Rotary and Young Life.

Scott Gates is an Unemployment Appeals Referee at the Kansas Department of Labor in Topeka. He joined the Treasurer’s Advisory Committee in 2023.

Gates received his bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Kansas, and his law degree from the University of Kansas School of Law.

Gates previously served 14 years in the Kansas State Treasurer’s Office as General Counsel and Director of the Learning Quest 529 Education Savings Program. Prior to his hiring as the state director of the Kansas 529 program, Gates was a Staff Attorney at the Kansas Department of Administration where he served on the state’s legal team that helped establish 529 plans within Kansas. Gates and his wife, Kathy, have been active Learning Quest account owners since 2000.

Gates has long been involved with the Boy Scouts of America, where he achieved the rank of Eagle Scout, and received the District Award of Merit.

Tom Treacy is the Deputy Assistant State Treasurer and serves as Executive Director of the Treasurer’s Advisory Committee.

Treacy joined the Office of the Kansas State Treasurer in 2014 and began assisting the Treasurer’s Advisory Committee in 2015. Treacy became the Director of the Learning Quest 529 Education Savings Program in 2019. In 2021, Treacy joined the Kansas Insurance Department, where he worked to expand the securities division’s investor education and fraud prevention efforts. In 2023, Treacy rejoined the Treasurer’s Office under the leadership of Treasurer Steven Johnson, also a former member of the Treasurer’s Advisory Committee.

As Executive Director of the Treasurer’s Advisory Committee, Treacy is tasked with ensuring the committee members’ expertise is utilized in carrying out their mission of advising the Treasurer on the management and oversight of the program for the benefit of account owners and beneficiaries.

Helpful Links

Disclaimer: As with any investment, withdrawal value may be more or less than your original investment. This information is for educational or informational purposes only and is not intended as tax advice. Investments are not guaranteed by the State of Kansas, the Kansas State Treasurer, American Century Investment Management, Inc., or Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.

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