Kristen Spain was named the Eugene Field Teacher of the Year once and for all in April, after receiving nominations by her building twice prior.

The nod of confidence serves as a capstone to her teaching career, as she will succeed Jennifer Taylor as principal beginning this school year.

“Mrs. Spain’s personal and professional contributions as a classroom and intervention teacher have positively impacted Eugene Field’s culture and performance for more than a decade,” said Taylor, who has been promoted to R-I assistant superintendent of personnel. “Her tenacity to support and shape both staff and student leadership, combined with her unique talents and creativity, will ensure Eugene Field’s continued success for many years to come.”

It is apropos that Spain would be chosen in March to carry on the work Taylor started, considering Spain has had a front-row seat to the turnaround that has transpired over the years.

A Van Buren native, Spain’s career with the Poplar Bluff School District began in 2008 as a second grade teacher at Oak Grove, fresh out of college, having earned her bachelor’s in elementary education from Central Methodist University in Fayette that year.

Taylor worked directly with Spain for several weeks, serving as a Reading First coach at Oak Grove, and the two remained in contact. In 2012, Spain reached out to Taylor, now Eugene Field principal, and shared that she was considering introducing “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” into her classroom.

Spain had gotten the idea at the time from Pinterest. She was familiar with Stephen R. Covey's work, having done a book study as a teenage student at Rolla High School. As destiny would have it, Taylor happened to be on her way to a Leader in Me symposium to explore how to implement the derivative program school-wide.

A second grade teaching position came open at Eugene Field, and Spain would end up transferring on account of the initiative. Spain was an original member of the pilot, formalized the following year when the elementary school was awarded a $75,000 grant from Franklin Covey's I Am A Leader Foundation. Eugene Field earned the program’s prestigious Lighthouse designation by 2016, and Spain is credited for helping to orchestrate four successful re-certifications since. She was the first to implement ancillary student-led parent-teacher conferences, for which she was featured in School and Community Magazine through the Missouri State Teachers Association.

“Leader in Me really was it for me,” Spain reflected. “Going to Eugene Field got me back to my ‘why’ of wanting to make a difference in kids’ lives and show them that even if they’re less fortunate, you can be anything you want to be. You really and truly can, if that’s what you’re passionate about.”

Going forward, she says she wants to "instill in teachers that we all have gifts, you just have to find what your talent is." Spain served as an interventionist for the past two years, before which she was employed as a third grade teacher, following a year as a district-wide virtual instructor for first graders, after spending the previous five teaching the grade span. Content as an interventionist, she has been working toward her second master’s degree in reading literacy from Missouri State University in Springfield. In 2012, she earned her master's in elementary administration from William Woods in Fulton to possibly "open up more doors" later on down the road.

The opportunity presented itself in February, when the Board of Education approved Taylor’s advancement to the superintendent cabinet. Once the building position was posted, Taylor approached faculty members with the requisite certification to see if anyone internally would be interested in applying in order to ensure continuity.

Eugene Field was listed at No. 8 in U.S. News & World Report’s 2021 'Best Elementary Schools' out of over 1,000 ranked statewide based on Missouri Assessment Program scores in the context of socioeconomic demographics. The previous year, the elementary school was one of only two in the state to be named National ESEA Distinguished Schools out of 1,300 Missouri Title 1 educational institutions for closing the achievement gap among student groups.

“Eugene Field is a positive hub in the Southside community,” Spain stated. “I want to continue [building] that sense of pride and I want to retain our teachers and pour into them, and model to our kids to become lifelong learners and to believe in themselves.”

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Cutline: Kristen Spain takes the baton from her mentor, Jennifer Taylor, to become the next principal of Eugene Field Elementary School.