USBE Superintendency

Sydnee DicksonSydnee Dickson, Ed.D.

Utah State Superintendent of Public Instruction

Dr. Sydnee Dickson has been serving the children of Utah as a proud educator for the past 41 years. She joined the Utah State Office of Education in 2007 and was named as State Superintendent of Public Instruction on June 23, 2016. Prior to joining the Utah State Office of Education, Sydnee served in Utah public schools in roles including teaching, school counseling, school and district administration.

Superintendent Dickson began her education in a two-room schoolhouse in rural Utah and went on to earn two master’s degrees in School Counseling and School Administration as well as a doctorate in Education Leadership and Policy at the University of Utah.

Dr. Dickson is a frequent participant on state and national committees, task forces, and boards, including currently serving on the Board of Trustees for the Council of Chief State School Officers and West Ed Board of Directors. Her professional expertise is grounded in engaging community partners, providing educators with evidence-based professional learning, and developing student centered school leadership. Sydnee is passionate about developing equitable and innovative school systems to ensure all students are prepared to have choices for their future.

    

Leah VoorhiesLeah Voorhies

Deputy Superintendent of Student Achievement

Leah Voorhies, PhD, is the Interim Deputy Superintendent of Student Achievement (which includes being the State Director of Special Education).  She’s been an administrator for the USBE for 15 years. Dr. Voorhies is a licensed school psychologist. She earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology, a master’s degree in school psychology, and a doctorate degree in counseling psychology, all from Brigham Young University.  She then earned an Education Administration/Supervision credential from Utah State University.  Dr. Voorhies was an instructor at Salt Lake Community College for seven years in both the Education and Social Sciences departments.  She served for three years as Co-Chair of the Utah Child Welfare Improvement Committee that advised the Division of Child and Family Services; the Chair of a non-profit foundation, the Utah Deaf and Blind Children’s Fund, for ten years; was the elected Utah delegate to the National Association of School Psychologist’s leadership assembly for three years; and is currently a Board member of the National Association of State Directors of Special Education.

Dr. Voorhies oversees the following USBE sections:

  • Student Learning and Student Support teams

Elisse NeweyElisse Newey

Deputy Superintendent of Policy

Elisse Newey currently serves as the Deputy Superintendent of Policy at the Utah State Board of Education (USBE) and is responsible for policy review, rule writing, and legislative relations. Before working as the Deputy Superintendent, Dr. Newey was the Policy Advisor at USBE. Dr. Newey was a public-school teacher for ten years, working in school districts in New York City and Austin, Texas. She holds a juris doctorate and a Ph.D. in education policy from Brigham Young University.

 

 

Deputy Superintendent Newey oversees the following USBE sections:

  • Policy, Law and Professional Practices
  • Student Data Privacy

Scott JonesScott Jones

Deputy Superintendent of Operations

Scott Jones currently serves as the Deputy Superintendent of Operations for the Utah State Board of Education (USBE) in addition to performing his duties as a member of the Utah Charter School Financing Authority (UCSFA).  Mr. Jones was appointed to the position of Deputy Superintendent of Operations in July of 2015. He has a Bachelor's Degree in Economics and a Master's Degree in Accounting. Scott currently serves in the United States Army Reserve as the Deputy Chief of Staff, Logistics for the 807th Medical Command in Salt Lake City Utah.  He has worked in the both the private sector and the public sector in the areas of brokerage, financial analysis, comptroller, budget formulation and analysis, federal and state programs, procurement, security and logistics.

Deputy Superintendent Jones oversees the following USBE sections: 

  • Charter Schools
  • Data and Statistics
  • Financial Operations
  • Human Resources
  • Information Technology
  • Internal Accounting
  • School Children's Trust

Announcements

Information coming soon!

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