JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Like some in the Capitol, Elizabeth Peters did not arrive in politics in the usual way. The legislative assistant to Rep. Nick Marshall, R-Platte City, didn’t start as a political buff.
She got her undergraduate degree in psychology and soon took any work in social services she could find, especially working with children. Peters said she was fascinated by the interactions she had with people in the work and, more importantly, the laws governing mental health.
“The law and the way laws are written affect everything,” Peters told The Missouri Times. “It doesn’t matter what you do or if you are engaged or not, the laws here are going to affect your life.”
After a few years in social services and a lifetime born and raised in Jefferson City, Peters spotted an ad in the local paper for an open position in government. The job was constituent services for Lt. Governor Peter Kinder. From 2007 to 2011, Peters worked in Kinder’s office for more than three years before she continued her education, earning a master’s degree in Health Psychology.
“I love psychology and the ability to understand behavior, a lot of laws are based on human nature,” Peters said. “And I love my field, but I decided I was getting a little bored with it, so I entered a Ph.D. program.”
Peters starts her program during December and will be studying public policy and administration with an emphasis in law and public policy. She credits Marshall, her boss for almost two years now, for inspiring her to change courses.
“He’s a Constitutionalist — he just is,” Peters said. “And sometimes that is frustrating for people because he doesn’t vote just because a Democrat or a Republican says so. He keeps the Constitution on his desk and even if there is a good bill, if he sees something in it that seems to violate the Constitution, he’ll vote against it. His convictions are amazing.”
Peters, a single mother, is taking courses online will working full time, something she says allows her to get the education she needs without losing some valuable free time. Her early concerns about the quality of online education were quickly dispelled. During her first master’s program, Peters spoke with a constituent contact for higher education through Kinder’s office, and was assured that quality programs could be found.
“At first I thought ‘I don’t know, online courses are just a cop out, they give anyone a diploma,’” Peters said. “I quickly learned that is not the case. I quickly found out that Walden [University] was a great school and like most other campuses, some professors and classes were going to be easy and others were going to be more challenging.”
Peters loves mental health work, but she’s slowly been converted into a political junkie, diving into the issues like education and social services, describing herself as an “extrovert,” with a lot of insight to offer.
“I think I can do more with my passions to help people in mental health in this capacity in the Capitol than anything else,” Peters said. “I love counseling and it’s something I’ll always love and treasure, but I wanted to switch gears and combine both of my passions.”
Peters isn’t sure what her long-term future will hold. But with three degrees and more than five years already as a Capitol employee, her options are pretty wide open. So wide open, in fact, that she says she feels like anything is possible.
“I’ve had people ask me if I would run and I just say I don’t even know how to think about something like that right now,” Peters said. “But for the short term I want to finish school and I want to spend time with my son and I want to help Nick [Marshall] who I have so much respect for and who really ushered me into the place I’m in now.”
For now, she’s content to work during the day, study online and at night and spend time with nine-year-old Gabriel. She’s always got something on her plate though, she’s a fitness buff who does Zumba and yoga and says her movie taste is “very eclectic.”
“Music or movies, anything really, it all depends on what I feel like in that moment,” Peters said. “Lots of things are interesting to me, so day-to-day I can’t say I have a favorite this or that, because I’m always trying stuff that is different.”
Collin Reischman was the Managing Editor for The Missouri Times, and a graduate of Webster University with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism.
