Sara Nell Thomas Lampe

Chair of the Missouri Commission on Human Rights

Speaker at the 1:30 p.m. ceremony on May 16, 2014

A former member of the Missouri General Assembly, Sara Lampe was appointed by Governor Nixon to chair the Missouri Commission on Human Rights. Sara Lampe and Associates, LLC, her consulting group, continues her work nationwide with teachers and school districts interested in creating responsive and thinking classrooms for students. Lampe's initiatives include MOLEAD, a statewide program to train school leaders.

A proud alumna of Missouri State University

A native of Cassville, Mo., Lampe graduated from Missouri State in 1970 with a Bachelor of Science in Education, Elementary Education, Speech and Theatre, and in 1976 with a Master of Science in Elementary Administration. Lampe acted in Tent Theatre and was a member of the college USO tour.

Pursuing excellence in education

After eight years in general education classrooms, Lampe helped co-create Missouri's premier services for gifted students for the Springfield Public Schools. Today, the WINGS Programs span K-12 and offer an array of services from rapid acceleration to an International Baccalaureate Diploma. During this time, she was also an adjunct professor at Drury University and served as principal of Phelps Center for the Gifted.

Serving in political office

Lampe ran and won a seat in the Missouri General Assembly in 2004. She served four two-year terms in the House of Representatives, and before she was termed out of office, she held leadership positions as ranking member on budget, education special committee on the arts and downsizing state government. She fought for stronger laws in protecting students from bullying earning her the Horace Mann Award from the Missouri National Education Association. Lampe also led her caucus to cast the deciding votes to pass a bill changing this university's name to Missouri State University in 2005.