District 4

Photo of Connie O'Brien: District 4
Connie O'Brien

Phone: (913) 706-2396

First term on State Board: 2025

Committee Assignments:

  • Attorney General Juvenile Justice Oversight Committee
  • Kansas Advisory Committee on Indigenous Education (KACIE)
  • Liaison to the Kansas State School for the Blind (KSSB)

Autobiography

In 1979, my husband and I moved to Tonganoxie to enjoy country life. I am the mother of 11 and the grandmother of 19. All of my children are graduates of the Tonganoxie public schools. I am a graduate of Saint Mary in Leavenworth, earning a B.A. in Secondary Education and Social Studies.

I previously served as the Director of Religious Education at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Tonganoxie and as a Superintendent for one of the many 4‑H programs. I am also a former teacher and substitute teacher in Leavenworth County, working in Special Education.

Additionally, I served as a State Representative for Kansas House District 42 from 2008 to 2016. I have been very active in the Republican Party, serving as a county vice chair and as a district chair.

My motto for education is:

“Good, better, best—I'll never let them rest until good is better and better is best.”

 

Map showing Kansas State Board of Education District 4 outlining the district’s geographic boundaries within the state of Kansas.

District 4 represents the following school districts in northeastern Kansas, listed in county order:

Coffey

  • Lebo-Waverly USD 243

Douglas

  • Baldwin City USD 348
  • Eudora USD 491
  • Lawrence USD 497

Franklin

  • Central Heights USD 288
  • Ottawa USD 290
  • Wellsville USD 289
  • West Franklin USD 287

Jefferson

  • McLouth USD 342
  • Perry Public Schools USD 343

Johnson

  • DeSoto USD 232
  • Gardner-Edgerton USD 231
  • Olathe USD 233
  • Shawnee Mission USD 512

Leavenworth

  • Basehor-Linwood USD 458
  • Tonganoxie USD 464

Lyon

  • North Lyon County USD 251

Osage

  • Burlingame Public Schools USD 454
  • Lyndon USD 421
  • Marais Des Cygnes Valley USD 456
  • Osage City USD 420
  • Santa Fe Trail USD 434

Shawnee

  • Auburn-Washburn USD 437
  • Shawnee Heights USD 450
  • Topeka Public Schools USD 501

Wabaunsee

  • Mission Valley USD 330

Wyandotte

  • Bonner Springs-Edwardsville USD 204
  • Kansas City USD 500

For more information, contact:

Deborah Bremer
Board Secretary
(785) 296-3203