In January 2020, former State Senator Shalonn “Kiki” Curls (D-Kansas City) was confirmed by the Missouri Senate to serve on the Missouri Labor and Industrial Relations Commission (LIRC). Curls’ appointment by Governor Michael L. Parson made her the first African American and fifth woman to serve as LIRC Commissioner.
The LIRC’s primary constitutional duty is to oversee the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations (DOLIR) in appeals of workers’ compensation, unemployment insurance, and tort victims’ claims as well as prevailing wage objections.
As Senator, Curls represented the 9th Senatorial District in Jackson County. After serving in the Missouri House since 2007, she won a special election to the Missouri Senate in February 2011. Curls won re-election in 2012 and again in 2016.
While in the Missouri Senate, Curls served in multiple leadership roles, including the position of Assistant Minority Floor Leader. During her tenure, Senator Curls has worked tirelessly on issues regarding access to quality healthcare, decent and affordable housing, quality education and economic development.
Senator Curls received her education from St. Teresa’s Academy in Kansas City and the University of Missouri-Columbia. Senator Curls is the proud mother of twins, James and Michaela.
Testimonials
JAG has been a life changer.
JAG pushes us out of our comfort zone. It has truly helped me find my voice. I have learned how to voice my opinions the right way – when to speak and when to listen. Without JAG I have no doubt I would still be living my old life. I wish I could have found my voice sooner, but the important thing now is: I have found it, and I will never let it go.
Before I joined JAG, I was lost. JAG provided assistance in pinpointing a career and making steps in order to pursue it. My JAG Specialist motivated me to make connections and to continue my education in the emergency response industry. JAG has changed my life!
Born into a family where addiction was a generational struggle, Destany Massey faced her own battles with substance abuse and a life lacking direction. Determined to break free from the cycle of trauma and hardship, she sought a different path. That path led her to the JAG (Jobs for America’s Graduates Missouri) program, a turning point she never saw coming. With the unwavering support of the program and her teacher, Destany found purpose, healing, and hope.
“JAG and my teacher literally saved my life,” she shares. Through resilience and determination, Destany overcame addiction, broke the chains of a painful past, and transformed her life into a story of success and the promise of a brighter future.
I felt hopeless because no matter what I did, I thought the future I wanted was too far out of reach. I wasn’t smart enough or rich enough to live the life I wanted. Because of this, at the age of 15, I exploded. Everything parents pray their child isn’t doing, I was, or I was trying to. In the midst of this self destruction, the greatest opportunity came up and shook my hand. I went from dropping out to picking up my cap and gown. JAG didn’t save my life, it taught me how to save my own.
