For as long as she can remember, Kristin Schmidt has loved music. One day, she saw a quote that said, “Music is what feelings sound like,” and it was a light bulb moment for the educator who has steeped her life in helping those around her.

“Music has such a relatability to mental health,” Schmidt said. “My self-care is listening to music or going to see live music.”

The mental well-being of students and faculty in Crystal Lake School District 47 is top of mind for Schmidt, the district’s director of social-emotional learning. In August, Schmidt began her 25th year in District 47 and her 30th year in an educational setting.

“I think I always liked the idea of being able to help people to build a skill set around emotional resilience,” Schmidt said.

Schmidt is among 10 recipients of Shaw Media-Northwest Herald’s 2025 Women of Distinction Award. It honors women in McHenry County – nominated by their peers, friends and loved ones – who provide leadership in their fields of expertise; serve as role models and mentors; advocate positive social change; or give back to their community through time, talent and resources.

Starting a new school year evokes excitement for Schmidt, who started her career pursuing a music and psychology double major before shifting her focus and earning a master’s degree in social work. From the onset, she set her sights on working in education.

Early in her career, she saw an opportunity to accomplish more and returned for a second major in educational leadership, building her foundation for a job that, at the time, didn’t exist.

“Kristin is such a trailblazer in everything she does,” said Abbey Nicholas, executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness for McHenry County. “She is always thinking about how she can innovate, how she can unite the school and the community.”

Schmidt serves on the board of directors for NAMI, and she was selected to serve on a parent advisory board for Gov. JB Pritzker’s Blueprint for Behavioral Health, just a few of the many ways she is active in supporting mental health needs in the community beyond her day job in District 47.

Schmidt had a vision that connected the school district and the larger community, whether it was helping families with resources or helping those with resources find families, rather than functioning in their own silos.

“I love being a part of change and helping people see things through a different lens,” Schmidt said.

Schmidt is a connector, helping build partnerships and share resources, such as the one crafted between District 47 and The Break, Crystal Lake’s teen center.

In the past, students facing discipline for substance use, such as tobacco, vaping, alcohol or other drugs, would be suspended, which Schmidt saw as essentially sending the student home from school with time off.

Schmidt said she wanted to do more to address the substance use and connected with The Break, where students and their families meet with peer coaches to address substance use.

“It’s been a huge success, and we have very grateful parents. It’s an out-of-the-box way to address the issue,” Schmidt said. “It’s a stereotype to think it’s a problem in high school, when now it is something we see in middle school.”

In her role as the director for social-emotional learning, Schmidt sees an opportunity to fill a void in education to support students’ emotional and mental health. The work goes beyond feelings and communicative skills, Schmidt said, as studies show that social-emotional learning can have a positive influence on students’ academic performance while also building an essential foundation in skills they will use throughout their life.

“We’re talking about the ability to lead, listen to a peer, take turns, to be able to pivot and problem-solve,” Schmidt said. “It’s not only [social-emotional learning] skills but reducing the stigma around mental health, too.”