Kentucky School Advocate
April 2023
In Conversation With features an interview between a leader or figure involved in public education and a representative of the Kentucky School Advocate.
Stephanie Spence, the longtime administrative assistant to the superintendent of Barren County Schools, has been a member of the Kentucky Organization of Superintendents’ Administrative Assistants (KOSAA) for 10 years, serving as an officer and a mentor. She is also the organization’s president-elect and was recognized at KOSAA’s conference in February with the first-ever KOSAA KUP (Knowledge, Understanding and Passion) Award.
Q. Why did you get involved in the KOSAA leadership, and how has the organization helped you in your work?
A. I didn’t know a lot about it until Mr. [Bo] Matthews became superintendent in 2011. Lanetta Shive, who was the administrative assistant from Metcalfe County then, said “You should come to this meeting. It’s great networking and we are trying to build the program.” I went to my first meeting around 2012. It was a great place to learn, to see “Hey they do something a little different than we do.” Once a month the local administrative assistants for the three districts in Barren County and our surrounding counties would meet. We became really close.
Q. KOSAA has a mentor program, which helps newly hired administrative assistants. You’ve been a mentor in the past. How does the program work and what is its value.
A. Through the mentoring program a new member can sign up for a mentor so that when they get stuck or need to run something by someone, they can call or email them. In Barren County, we have three school districts so if assistants have issues, they call me, and if I do, I’ll call them. We decided we’re each other’s mentors.
Q. How many members does KOSAA have?
A. We have 169 members from 127 districts and three cooperatives.
Q. You say KOSAA has received attention from other states?
A. Yes, at our last conference, the Illinois Association of School Boards sent two people to observe and talk to us. They had heard that we do this for our assistants, and they want to build a similar program.
Q. When does KOSAA have statewide meetings?
A. Our conferences are twice a year in conjunction with KSBA’s conferences in February and July. Our planning committee, which has members statewide, meets by Zoom a couple of times before those meetings. During the July conference we go over all the new legislative policies that have come down.
Q. How does the statewide membership keep in touch throughout the year?
A. We have a listserv. Every day, members ask questions that go out to all of our membership. A question might be “Does anybody have a job description for a particular position? If so, can you share it?”
Q. You’ve worked for Barren County school district 23 years, and have been the superintendent’s assistant for 22 years. Why have you dedicated so many years to the district?
A. I don’t know why the good Lord placed me in education. I didn’t know what I wanted to do out of high school. My dad said he’d pay for me to go to vocational school so I got an accounting and administrative assistant degree from Bowling Green Technical College and they hired me before I ever graduated.
Q. You’re the first to receive the KOSAA KUP award, which honors a superintendent’s assistant who demonstrates best practices, advocates for the district, shows high ethical standards and understands the value of public service. How did it feel to earn this recognition?
A. I’ve been in this position 22 years and I’m still enjoying it because the team around me is just a great group to be around and work with. And KOSAA members, I look up to them. They’ve taught me so much, and they make it new and fresh. We have fun, but we also work hard. My job is always exciting, and it’s a little different every day.
Q. Having a job where things are constantly changing is exciting but requires you to be ready for anything. What’s the most challenging part of being a superintendent's administrative assistant?
A. Working with my superintendent is not a challenge. He’s a great guy. He’s taught me more about having grace when working with the public than I could have ever learned anywhere else. I would say the complaint phone calls are probably the most challenging. Sometimes it’s hard to bite your lip and follow protocols. People often want to call the board without giving the school the chance to resolve an issue. Mr. Matthews has always been big about giving those principals and school leaders the chance to resolve any issue that might come up. Sometimes callers don’t want to hear that, but we feel like that needs to come from the school. I try to reassure them that we’re here to help them. Considering all that schools face, with security and other issues, I sometimes think you need anger management classes. I don’t always like those calls, but often people just want to be heard. I’ve tried to learn how to listen to people as they come.
Q. As KOSAA plans its educational programming, do you consider topics like “How to deal with difficult people,” or other topics that would be helpful with these challenges?
A. At our recent conference, we talked about mental health and how it affects not just students but staff. As assistants we deal with a lot and don’t always get to talk about it. I said maybe we could have a presentation about mental health at our July meeting.
Q. Mr. Matthews says you are “a library of knowledge” regarding board policy. There’s a lot of policy to keep up with. How do you do it?
A. A lot of it is just experience. We’ve done it in a way that’s systematic. Somebody would say, “It’s board policy.” So I’ve just looked it up. I had great people in front of me. Bill Walter, who was our assistant associate superintendent, was a stickler for policy. There have been times when people ask, “Why do we do it this way?” and I have said, “It’s our policy.” It is not a personal reflection or what I think should happen. This is what we have to follow. Board policy is our manual for how we do things. When I don’ t know policy I can say, “Let’s look it up.” I’ve tried to make that my go-to when I don’t know.
Q. About a year ago, the district moved to a new, larger central office. How did you manage it?
A. I was nervous about moving records, and I can’t say I did this on my own. Most every department took the lead for their records, because everyone’s requirements were different. For board records, everything’s permanent. We don’t get rid of anything. So it’s a monumental task. I’ve just always dreaded dealing with a move or what would happen to records if there was a natural disaster, but we were so excited about the move, I don’t think we stopped to think about it. And we did it in stages.
Q. Your superintendent said you’re vital to office culture. As example, you make new staff feel welcome and organize holiday meals and celebrations. Why is office culture so important to the way the district operates?
A. I’m a people person and want us to have a good time, get our work done and be efficient. But it’s important that people know we care and that we’re just not here to work. We do that really well. We celebrate together. CheyAnne Fant, our director of nutrition services, just won a big national award so we had a cupcake party for her. We celebrate, but we’re also there when there are deaths and funerals and those kinds of things too. I just took it as my life’s work to pull everybody together and to have a good time while we’re here because we’re not here forever. And, if we’re all pulling in same direction, then when times get hard and major things happen in our school district, we’re here to support each other.
Q. This month, Kentucky schools and districts will celebrate Administrative Professionals Day. What are some ways board members can show appreciation to their district’s administrative professionals, not just on that day, but all year.
A. By showing their appreciation for what we do. Just to say thank you goes a long way, or it does with me. I’ve been blessed with wonderful board members. Our board members are always telling me, “Thank you, I appreciate you.” A few years ago, I was having a hard time, and Shelly Groce, our board chair, sent me a text. It said, “I’m praying for you.” And even now, remembering that, I get all weepy.