Kristina Marie Sandherr (born June 2, 1980) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

educator A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...

and Democratic politician from Green Bay, Wisconsin. She served two terms as a member of the

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The Assembly is controlled by the Republican ...

, representing

Wisconsin's 90th Assembly district The 90th Assembly district of Wisconsin is one of 99 districts in the Wisconsin State Assembly. Located in northeastern Wisconsin, the district comprises the east side of the city of Green Bay, Wisconsin, in central Brown County, Wisconsin, Bro ...

from 2021 to 2025. She also previously served on the Green Bay Area School Board. During most of her political career, she was known by her married name, Kristina Shelton.

Early life and career

Sandherr was born in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

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, on June 2, 1980. She attended

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

from 1998 until 2002, graduating with a B.S. in

kinesiology Kinesiology () is the scientific study of human body movement. Kinesiology addresses physiological, anatomical, Biomechanics, biomechanical, Pathology, pathological, neuropsychological principles and mechanisms of movement. Applications of kines ...

, physical and

health education Health education is a profession of educating people about health. Areas within this profession encompass environmental health, physical health, social health, emotional health, intellectual health, and spiritual health, as well as sexual and r ...

. She later attended

Marymount University Marymount University is a Private university, private Catholic university with its main campus in Arlington County, Virginia, United States. It was founded as Marymount College in 1950. Marymount offers bachelor's, master's and doctoral degre ...

from 2008 until 2010, earning a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in science and health promotion management. She then taught in the Health and Physical Education department at

Northern Virginia Community College Northern Virginia Community College (NVCC and, informally, NOVA) is a public community college with six campuses and four centers in the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C. It is the third-largest multi-campus community college in t ...

from 2010 until 2013. Sandherr worked for

Action for Healthy Kids Action for Healthy Kids is a United States-based nonprofit organization focused on child heath. The organization was founded in 2002. It focuses on increasing access to healthy foods and physical activity, supporting social emotional learning, a ...

from 2012 until 2019, when she became a program director at a Green Bay area

YWCA The Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) is a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries. The World office is currently based in Geneva, Swit ...

Political career

Sandherr's political career began as an appointee to the Green Bay Area Public School Board in 2018, chosen by the other members of the board from a list of applicants. She then won a three-year term in the 2019 spring election, and was serving as the board's vice president when she was elected to the state Assembly. In December 2019, Green Bay's state representative, Staush Gruszynski, was the subject of sexual harassment accusations from an Assembly staffer. As a result,

Gordon Hintz Gordon N. Hintz (born November 29, 1973) is an American public administrator and Democratic politician from Oshkosh, Wisconsin. He is the county executive of Winnebago County, Wisconsin, since April 2025. He previously represented the Osh ...

, Democratic leader in the Assembly, stripped Gruszynski of all committee assignments. Two months later, in February 2020, Sandherr announced she would launch a challenge against Gruszynski in the Democratic

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Work ...

, with the hope of replacing him in the

. Sandherr defeated Gruszynski in the primary with nearly 80% of the vote, and went on to face Republican Drew Kirsteatter, a 21-year-old airline employee and college student, whom she defeated in the

general election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...

. In February 2024, Sandherr announced she would not run for re-election that year and would retire from the Assembly to focus on her family and career.

Personal life

Sandherr was married to Jon Shelton, a professor of history and Democracy & Justice Studies at the

University of Wisconsin–Green Bay The University of Wisconsin–Green Bay (UW–Green Bay, UWGB, or Green Bay) is a public university in Green Bay, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1965, it is part of the University of Wisconsin System. As of fall 2024, student enrollment h ...

, until 2023. They have two children, Sara and Keith. Sandherr is a certified

yoga Yoga (UK: , US: ; 'yoga' ; ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines that originated with its own philosophy in ancient India, aimed at controlling body and mind to attain various salvation goals, as pra ...

instructor.

Electoral history

Green Bay School Board (2019)

, colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", General Election, April 2, 2019 (choose three)

Wisconsin Assembly (2020, 2022)

, colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", Democratic Primary, August 11, 2020 , colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", General Election, November 3, 2020 , colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", General Election, November 8, 2022

References

External links

* *
Campaign website

Kristina Shelton
at

Green Bay Area Public School District Green Bay Area Public School District (GBAPS) is the fourth largest school district in Wisconsin. As of the 2020–21 school year, GBAPS served more than 21,000 students in 36 schools and had 3,641 full-time equivalent (FTE) staff positions. A ...

90th Assembly District (2011–2021)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shelton, Kristina Living people 1980 births Politicians from Green Bay, Wisconsin Women state legislators in Wisconsin Democratic Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly Politicians from Pittsburgh Pennsylvania State University College of Health and Human Development alumni Marymount University alumni 21st-century American women politicians 21st-century members of the Wisconsin Legislature