New study finds Topeka right in the middle of the pack when it comes to overall diversity

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took a look at 501 cities across the country and found that Topeka ranks 235 when it comes to overall diversity.

“235 is pretty much middle of the pack, so could be more diverse in some areas,” WalletHub analyst Jill Gonzales said.

Compared to 134 mid-sized cities, Topeka has a ranking of 86, and Barbara Stapleton with the Topeka Partnership said that number is encouraging.

“I think our trajectory is upward trending and that’s a positive long term and we continue to move forward in making sure we are in inclusive community,” Stapleton said.

The study ranked many types of diversity including economic and religious. Those were two areas the Capitol City performed better.

“We’re doing the right thing. We’re working towards improvement. We have an understanding that we need to be considering diversity, equity, and inclusion,” Stapleton explained.

She said the city is working on ways to improve in all areas of diversity.

“Momentum 2022 within all areas that we have, it focuses on that diversity, whether it’s economic diversity, cultural, socioeconomic, all of those areas it’s part of the consideration and everything that we do that way,” she added.

Gonzales said cities that have more diversity tend to thrive.

“Local economies generally do better when they embrace and capitalize on new ideas and a lot of times the way new ideas get anywhere is through diversity of all kinds whether it’s cultural, whether it’s economic, whether it’s religious,” she said.

Placing in the 230's however, still puts Topeka well ahead of its neighbors. Manhattan was ranked 393rd, while Lawrence finished it the bottom quartile at 407.