Board Summary, March 18, 2025 

Note: Recordings and documents for agenda items can be accessed via BoardDocs by clicking on the corresponding agenda items

Digital Connections

Canyons elementary schools will be asked to make sure in-classroom use of Chromebooks is monitored by a teacher, Superintendent Dr. Rick Robins said during a presentation focusing on a planned communitywide conversation regarding CSD’s Chromebook filtering system. The presentation, which included other immediate courses of action in response to parent concerns about CSD’s filtering system, outlined how CSD plans to get input from parents, teachers, and principals on the proposal to tighten filtering on elementary-level Chromebooks. In addition, Robins said CSD plans to block media file sharing categories and schedule regular Digital Citizenship updates for the entire community. The Board of Education, which had previously directed the Administration to do the study, also proposed starting a subcommittee to study Chromebook usage and filtering options across grades and schools.

Administrative Appointments, New Assignments

The Canyons Board of Education approved several administrative appointments and assignments. The appointments are effective at the start of the 2025-2026 contract year:

• Kelcey Kemp, an assistant principal at Jordan High, was appointed Jordan High’s new Principal. He will replace Dr. Bruce Eschler, who resigned to assume a District-level administrative post at Murray School District this summer.
• Replacing Kemp will be Dr. Sarah Thomas, currently an assistant principal at West High, who was hired to join Canyons earlier this year.
• Mark Mitchell, currently an assistant principal at Draper Park Middle, will be assigned to Alta High as an assistant principal.
• Kory Crockett, an assistant principal at Alta High, will be assigned to serve as assistant principal at Draper Park Middle.

The Board also approved two additional Assistant Principal hires. Each appointee’s school-specific assignment will be decided at future Board meetings as the Board weighs additional recommendations for administrative hires. The appointees are:

• Ivie Erickson, an administrative intern at Jordan School District.
• Rachel Ostvig, currently an Instructional Coach at Midvale Elementary.

Fee Schedules

The Board of Education approved fee schedules for the 2025-2026 school year. For about a month, parents have been able to review and provide comment on the fee schedules. Per the new schedules, which will take effect in the coming school year maximum-fee amount a high school student will be charged, including extracurriculars, is $600. The middle school aggregate will remain $500, and there are no changes to the elementary schedule. The fee schedules can be accessed on BoardDocs.

Board Roundtable

As part of a roundtable discussion about Canyons’ as-yet-unnamed innovation center, to be housed at the former regional headquarters of eBay, Superintendent Robins presented information gathered to help inform decisions about programming at the facility. Board members discussed the possible allocation of space and cost to house some programs and courses at the 215,000-square-foot building, which will be the new home of the Canyons Technical Education Center. The Board will reserve an agenda item in future meetings to discuss the progress at the center. 

Legislative Wrap-up

Of the 962 bills introduced during the 2025 General Session of the Utah Legislature, 197 have a direct impact on the operations of the Canyons School District. That’s according to a presentation on the legislative session by External Relations Director Charlie Evans and Public Engagement Coordinator Susan Edwards. In all, 582 bills were approved by lawmakers during the 45-day session. CSD-supported legislation that passed include school-safety and school-bullying amendments and cosmetology-education modifications. The list of CSD-opposed failed bills included HB568, which would have required the school district to provide a half-day kindergarten class with full curriculum in each school, and HB303, which aimed to require public schools to share directory information with another LEA upon request. Such bills as a flag-display amendment passed despite opposition by various education-advocacy groups, including Canyons. Legislators also passed bills impacting funding and curriculum and instruction. The Board discussed preparing a letter to state elected officials regarding the 2025 legislative session.

School Highlights

Midvalley Principal Margaret Swanicke said the school enjoys strong parent and community support, has a positive and collaborative culture, and focuses on safety and security. In a list of school highlights, Swanicke also said the Jr. Huskies are encouraged to set and achieve clear goals. They also excel in the school’s lauded Spanish-English Dual Language Immersion program. Midvalley teachers also deserve credit for improving results on student-learning assessments, she said.

Patron Comment 

The following patron addressed the Board during Patron Comment. Recordings of the patron’s remarks can be accessed on BoardDocs.

• Brynn Whitchurch
• Liz Jenkins
• Courtney Wimberly
• Carly Dent
• Lindsey Knudsen
• Shandra Brown
• Jessica Smith
• Emily Ord
• Angela Boyden
• Nancy Nichols
• Jessica Anderson
• Amberlie Jeppsen
• LaNae Larson

Canyons Strong Recognitions

The following were recognized for their achievements:

• Hillcrest and Alta High Utah FIRST Robotics teams for winning awards at a regional competition.
• Brighton High teacher Kristen Reuter, the Utah finalist for the 2025 Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching.
• Brighton High’s Model UN team for winning major awards at the International Model UN Conference in New York.
• Corner Canyon High teacher and baseball and wrestling coach Jeff Eure for being named the SHAPE-Utah Teacher of the Year for Athletics and Coaching.

Middle Schools Honors Classes

Canyons is working on a plan to bolster honors course offerings in the middle schools. Students also would be provided Digital Literacy Instruction as soon as they enter middle school instead of when they are in the eighth grade and preparing to head to high school.

Consent Agenda

The Canyons Board of Education approved the Consent Agenda, including the minutes of the March 4, 2025 meeting of the Board of Education; hire and termination reports; student-overnight travel request; purchasing bids; February financial reports; and administrative appointments.

Board and Staff Reports

The Board and Administration did not deliver reports because of the late hour.