The district announced this week that Business Administrator Jason Johnson will be leaving at the end of April to become the next Vice President of Administrative Services at UBTech.
“Jason has been an outstanding steward over the business affairs of the district,” Uintah Schools Superintendent Rick Woodford said. “His leadership has been instrumental in helping Uintah School District reach the board's strategic plan goals.
“We are pleased that he will be working for one of our community partners where he will continue to have a positive impact here in the Uintah Basin,” Woodford added. “We wish Jason and his family the best as he transitions into his new position at UBTech.”
Johnson has served as the district's business administrator for just over 3 years. He will assume his new role at UBTech on May 1.
The district has begun a search for a new business administrator with the assistance of the Utah School Boards Association. As part of this process, the Uintah School Board met in a closed session on March 13 to discuss adjustments in compensation necessary to attract highly qualified candidates for this position. In a related matter, the board also discussed the superintendent’s compensation for the upcoming fiscal year. This is an annual process.
Consistent with Utah law, the business administrator and superintendent’s contracts will become a matter of public record once they are approved by the board in an open meeting.
Central Cove Preschool Town Hall
The Uintah School District, in partnership with Utah State University Uintah Basin and VCBO Architecture, will hold a pair of town hall meetings on Monday to help the public learn more about the proposed construction of a new building for Central Cove Preschool.
The first town hall meeting will take place at Naples Elementary in the media center from 5 p.m. to 6:15 p.m. The second one will take place at Maeser Elementary in the media center from 7 p.m. to 8:15 p.m.
Representatives from the school district, USU and VCBO will be on hand to present information and answer questions about the proposed project. Individuals can attend both meetings if they would like, but the same information will be presented at each meeting.
The Central Cove Preschool project is still in the preliminary stages. At present, the board has not voted to fund the project. The district has the money in its capital fund to build the project.
The building that houses Central Cove does not meet the current or future needs of students and staff. The building was constructed in 1940 and was not originally designed for use as a preschool. It has far outlived its expected lifespan and has a host of issues one would expect to find in an 83-year-old building.
The district is required by federal law to provide special education services for children 3 and up, giving them an opportunity to attend school alongside their typically developing peers. Central Cove meets this requirement for the district.
The district has examined all possible options for Central Cove Preschool. District administrators are recommending construction of a new building. They are working in partnership with representatives from USU Uintah Basin to secure a possible location for the building near the USU UB campus in Vernal.
UHS Music at Region
The Uintah High Choir program competed at the Region Chamber Choir and Solo & Ensemble Festival on Tuesday at Cottonwood High School. The state qualifiers from Uintah High are Polyphony (chamber choir); SoVoce (acapella ensemble); vocal soloist Lauren McKee; piano soloists Hailey Rasmussen, Annabelle Johnson, and Briel Pettit; and the duets of Eve Swonger and Josh Ek, Ellaina Merryweather and Annabelle Johnson, and Allison Despain and Eve Swonger.
The Uintah High Band program competed at the Region Band Festival on Wednesday at Cedar Valley High School. Band director Brian Gibson said his students received excellent ratings.
Celebrations
Uintah Middle School students did well at the Ritchey Science and Engineering Fair, which was held Thursday at Weber State University.
David Pierce earned NOAA’s 2023 Taking Pulse of the Planet Award and a 2nd-place finish in the Environmental Science category.
Pierce, Angela Jolley, Rowan Deletant, Quinn Bigler, and the team of Aaden Owens, Braxton O'Crowley and Kyle Hunter were also recognized as part of the ThermoFisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge, which honored the Top 10% of all projects at the science fair.
Angela Jolley finished 2nd in the Zoology category, while Taylee Wells earned an Honorable Mention. Aaden Owens, Braxton O’Crowley and Kyle Hunter finished 2nd in Transportation. Quinn Bigler finished 2nd in Social and Behavioral Sciences.
Bridger Taylor and Lundi Phillips each earned Excellent ratings in the Engineering category, and Alexis Anderson received and Honorable Mention in Environmental Sciences.
Congratulations to these outstanding student scientists!
Postseason honors were announced this week for six Uintah High basketball players. The Region 7 girls basketball coaches named Kyrsten Bake and McKenzie White the All-Region 1st Team. Zoey Glenn received an Honorable Mention. The Region 7 boys basketball coaches named Dauson Gardiner to the All-Region 2nd Team. Gabe Elison and Kaedyn Sheffield received Honorable Mention nods. Congratulations!
Weekend Events
The Uintah High Softball Team plays a home region game today against the Cedar Valley Aviators. The varsity game starts at 3:30 p.m., followed by the JV game. The game will be live-streamed on Channel V6 at
www.channelv6.com
The Uintah High Boys Soccer Team is on the road today, taking on the Tooele Buffaloes in a region game. The varsity game is scheduled to start at 3:30 p.m., followed by the JV game.
The Uintah High Boys Tennis Team is playing at Carbon High today and tomorrow. The boys and girls track & field teams are also competing in Price tomorrow.
Good luck to all our teams and GO UTES!