Interview With Dr. Anna Stubblefield 22nd Superintendent of Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools

Category: Education, featured-interviews


Dr. Anna Stubblefield became the 22nd Superintendent of Schools for Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools on July 1, 2021. As a proven and focused leader, she understands the importance of building effective leadership teams, increasing community outreach, and fostering vital partnerships within the community that encourages and support academic achievement.

Dr. Stubblefield joined KCKPS following a full year of online learning due to the pandemic. She has been fully engaged from the moment she grabbed the baton of leadership. She established a renewed sense of purpose within the KCKPS District by building highly effective leadership teams to increase collaboration and consistency in monitoring performance measures.

KCKPS vision is to become one of the nation’s top urban school districts by Inspiring Excellence: Every Grownup, Every Child, Every Day. Her intentions and approach to bringing this vision to reality have been straightforward. She believes in listening and learning before charting the course of action. Dr. Stubblefield held several Listening and Learning sessions with parents and guardians to get input on how well the KCKPS is serving their children and areas of improvement. She partnered with the University of Kansas Center of Research to conduct an environmental scan to develop an understanding of the scope of the school system’s academic structure. She expanded the self-correcting feedback loop and introduced new strategies for increasing stakeholder input for the Board of Education and staff.

As a dynamic and compassionate leader, Dr. Stubblefield established a renewed sense of purpose within KCKPS. She has brought together a leadership team to achieve a shared vision of becoming a top school district that the community can be proud of.

Before joining KCKPS, Dr. Stubblefield worked in Lawrence Public Schools for thirteen years. She served as the Deputy Superintendent from 2017 until the spring of 2021. She also served as the Interim Superintendent during the 2017-18 school year.

As Deputy Superintendent, she oversaw Human Resources, Special Education, Student Services, Lawrence Virtual School, and Curriculum and Instruction. She was also instrumental in Lawrence Public Schools’ equity work. Before that, she served as Lawrence’s Assistant Superintendent, Director of Human Resources, and as a middle school principal.

She began her career in education as a Special Education teacher and coach in the Center School District. After teaching she transitioned into the role of assistant principal in the Blue Valley School District. She previously served as an adjunct instructor for the University of Kansas, St. Mary’s, and Baker University.

In October 2018, she participated in the Women in Education Leadership program at Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Dr. Stubblefield earned her Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Saint Louis University, an Educational Specialist’s degree from the University of Missouri at Kansas City, and two Master’s Degrees (Special Education and Teaching & Leadership) along with her Bachelor’s degree in Education from the University of Kansas.

She is married to David, and both are proud parents of three sons.

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