Jefferson City  - On December 4, 2024, Governor Mike Parson announced that Sandra (Sandy) Karsten will retire as Missouri Department of Public Safety (DPS) Director at the conclusion of Governor Parson’s term in office on January 13, 2025.

"Director Karsten has dedicated her entire public service career to law enforcement, public safety, and good governance. Our communities across the state are better off today having benefitted from her service," Governor Parson said. "Whether it was fighting crime, helping respond to a global pandemic, or anything in between, Sandy always answered the call with skill, creativity, and focus. It has been an absolute honor for Teresa and me to work alongside her with her unmatched professionalism and integrity. We are proud to call her a friend, and we wish Sandy and her family the best in her retirement."

“It has been my great honor to serve the people of Missouri and to work to make this a safer state for more than 39 years,” Director Karsten said. “I’ve been extremely fortunate to work with dedicated and committed professionals at the Highway Patrol, the Department of Public Safety, and with our public safety partners across the state. Missourians are fortunate to be served by dedicated and capable public safety professionals. I am grateful to the many public safety leaders I have had a chance to work with over almost four decades and am especially appreciative of Governor Parson for giving me the opportunity to serve in his administration.”

Governor Parson appointed Karsten to serve as DPS’s 15th director on August 27, 2018, following her retirement as Missouri State Highway Patrol superintendent. Karsten had served with the Highway Patrol for 33 years and was the first woman in Patrol history to attain the ranks of lieutenant, captain, major, lieutenant colonel, and colonel; she was also the first woman to lead the Department of Public Safety.

Karsten worked with Governor Parson to develop and implement the Missouri Blue Scholarship, which funds up to $5,000 in tuition to assist recruits attending Missouri law enforcement training academies. She also worked to increase information sharing for law enforcement through reorganizing the Missouri Law Enforcement Data Exchange (MoDEx).

Karsten also led an overhaul of DPS’s grants program to make grants more accessible, increase staff support, and reduce administrative burdens on local grant recipients – including streamlining the Deputy Sheriff Salary Supplementation Fund, which boosts minimum pay for deputies in counties across the state.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Karsten oversaw the expansion and restructuring the Missouri Disaster Medical Assistance Team, MO DMAT-1, to transform it into a rapidly deployable, fully-equipped medical unit capable of providing highly specialized medical personnel for more mission assignments.

Karsten also worked closely with Lincoln University to help establish and license the Lincoln University Law Enforcement Training Academy, the first licensed law enforcement training academy at a Historically Black College and University (HBCU) in the nation.