Spring Schmidt’s career has been shaped by an unusual combination of pragmatism and purpose. A public health professional for nearly two decades, she has built a reputation for steady leadership in complex systems, particularly during moments when clarity, resolve, and follow-through matter most.
Her path into public health was not linear. Spring began her career as a technology project manager in banking, a role that satisfied her love of organization and systems but ultimately left her wanting something more human-centered. A layoff during the early 2000s recession became a turning point. She returned to school, pursued psychology, and entered doctoral work in educational psychology, where she discovered a passion for prevention, behavior change, and health education. Writing curriculum and grants aimed at improving health outcomes, especially for young people, became her entry point into public health at a systems level. That work led her to St. Louis County, where she steadily advanced into leadership roles focused on health promotion, research, and operations. By the end of 2018, she found herself serving as Interim Co-Director and later Deputy Director of the County Health Department—a role she held through the first two years of COVID. It was a season that fundamentally reshaped her approach to leadership. As Spring reflects, “Covid burned hesitancy out of me. You didn’t have time to be hesitant.” The urgency of the moment demanded decisiveness, and in meeting it, she shed the self-doubt that often shadows women in leadership.
While she deeply valued the mission and people of public service, Spring recognized that her strengths—and her joy—lay in operational leadership rather than public-facing politics. She transitioned to Saint Louis University and, soon after, to her current role as CEO of the Missouri Public Health Institute, an organization dedicated to strengthening public health systems statewide. Today, her work centers on advocacy, strategy, and partnership—supporting those on the front lines of public health and helping systems function better for the communities they serve.
At the core of her leadership philosophy is empowerment, grounded not in hierarchy but in shared responsibility. “If we open a space or I lead a space, it is because I think we collectively have the power to do something about what we’re talking about today,” she explains. That belief guides how she builds teams, mentors others, and advances mission-driven work. She is known for directness, for saying what needs to be said, and for moving conversations toward action—qualities sharpened by experience and necessity rather than ambition.
Spring’s commitment to public health is deeply personal. She grew up in significant poverty and understands firsthand what it means to rely on systems that are inconsistent or inaccessible. That lived experience continues to inform her work today. “I very much want to be working on a system that is helping to lift people up and give them the support that they need in order to live their best life,” she says. It is a throughline that connects her professional choices, her advocacy, and the way she defines success.
Outside of work, Spring has embraced a slower, more creative rhythm. After leaving county government, she took up watercolor painting—her first hobby pursued purely for enjoyment. She and her husband of twenty years spend time cooking, playing board games, and walking their two rescued chihuahuas, Frank and Precious. Family remains central to her life, whether that means time with her mother, her sister, or her many nieces and nephews.
When asked what she would recommend to fellow Forum members, Spring offers advice that reflects both her humor and her humanity: have a leaf fight. It is a reminder that joy, playfulness, and presence are not distractions from serious work, but essential to sustaining it.
Spring’s story is one of clarity earned through experience, leadership shaped by service, and a steady commitment to building systems that work better for everyone.