Katie Jo Wheeler

Katie Jo Wheeler

Commissioner Wheeler grew up in Liberty, Missouri. In 2005 she graduated summa cum laude from Baylor University with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. After college she worked as a paralegal for the law firm of Spencer Fane LLP before attending the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law. In law school Commissioner Wheeler received the Judge Shepard Barclay Prize, and was inducted into the Rollins Society and the Order of the Barristers.

After law school Commissioner Wheeler returned to Spencer Fane LLP in Kansas City as an associate attorney, where she advised businesses and individuals on environmental issues related to regulatory compliance, litigation, and business transactions.

Commissioner Wheeler joined the Missouri Department of Natural Resources as General Counsel in 2017 and was promoted to Deputy Department Director in 2018. As Deputy Director, she managed the Department’s environmental regulatory programs, administration, communications, and legal counsel.

Governor Parson appointed Commissioner Wheeler to the Administrative Hearing Commission in 2021.

Commissioner Wheeler resides in Kansas City with her high-school sweetheart and their two young children.