08/26/2026
“At 18, I knew exactly what I was going to do with my life: join the Marine Corps and serve in the infantry…until I learned women couldn’t do that. Eventually, I landed in communications as a Marine Corps Field Radio Operator until I ultimately received a medical discharge. Then I earned my bachelor’s degree, and landed what I thought was my dream job: Administrative Assistant to the Ozarks Tech Executive Vice Chancellor for Administrative Services. I became the boots-on-the-ground, first-point-of-contact and ‘knower of all things’ for our department (...and maybe even the college). Without realizing it, I'd spent nearly seven years learning how to manage risk for a college. I loved my job, wasn't looking to leave, and then in early 2025, two different business partners of mine approached me within the same week about applying for the Risk Manager position opening at Springfield Public Schools. I took it straight to my bosses and their response was essentially, ‘This job was made for you. You are a risk manager. And you're ready to leave the nest.’ And with their encouragement (and maybe a few tears) I took a huge leap of faith. Somehow, the girl determined to spend her life in combat boots ended up behind a desk managing risk for Missouri's largest school district, and loving it.
Honestly, I'm not sure most of our SPS employees even know a Risk Management department exists! We're a mighty team of two helping manage risk across the entire district – and ‘risk’ is an incredibly broad category. We handle risk assessments, work-related injuries, bus and vehicle accidents, property damage, liability claims, insurance and all sorts of unexpected situations. But we also help departments figure out how to safely bring their ideas to life. Our job isn't necessarily to say ‘no.’ It's to ask the questions others may not think to ask, figure out what could go wrong, and then help find a way to accomplish the goal as safely as possible. When you spend your days looking through a risk-management lens, questions that sound completely normal to everyone else can cause minor heart palpitations for us:
‘Can we purchase a set of knives for theater performances?’
‘Can we offer a course where students go hiking, boating, and spelunking five days a week?’
‘Can we rent a gyrosphere and encourage our staff to get inside it?’
With more than 50 buildings and thousands of employees and students, there's always something new to learn, solve and think through. No two days look the same! And I can confidently say I'm never bored!
I've always believed growth happens when we're willing to step outside of what's comfortable. I chose SPS because I was ready to grow. At its core, I think that's what SPS is all about: growing people. We give our students opportunities to learn, grow, discover what they're capable of, and prepare for what's next. And SPS does that for its employees, too. SPS has given me the opportunity to grow, the trust to lead and the encouragement to keep getting better. I'm incredibly grateful I chose SPS.”
- Kaylyn Staats, SPS liability and risk manager
