Sprucewood’s new principal has racked up her second major award of the year.

Lori Jones, who since 2009 has served as the District’s Coordinator of Comprehensive Guidance Counseling, received the Carl Perkins Outstanding Service Award from the Guidance Division of the Utah Association of Career and Technical Education. The award came at the June 2014 UACTE guidance conference.

“It is a great honor to receive the award and to have been able to serve the counselors of the state, students and CTE,” Jones said. “There are many dedicated individuals who are also deserving of recognition and I have had lots of help and support from the board members of UACTE.”

The Carl Perkins Outstanding Service Award is given to individuals who have made contributions of state or national significance to the improvement, promotion, development and progress of career and technical education.

Jones has been a counselor and district counselor coordinator for 18 years. Prior to her career as a counselor, she taught elementary, middle and high school students in Ohio. She is a graduate of the University of Dayton, where she earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education, with endorsements in Special Education, and a Master’s Degree in School Counseling/Psychology. She earned an Administration and Supervision endorsement from Utah State University, and has served as a middle school counselor and counselor/CTE specialist at the Jordan Applied Technology. As CSD’s Coordinator of Comprehensive Guidance Counseling, Jones has served as the Crisis Team Lead and on the boards of the Utah School Counselor Association and UACTE, where she was the Guidance Division President in the 2013-2014 academic year.

In providing Jones with the Perkins award, UACTE praised Jones’ work to investigate evidence-based instructional practices to help students reach their full potential academically, behaviorally and socially. UACTE also cites Jones’ willingness to share her knowledge on subjects including suicide prevention, positive psychology, instructional strategies, Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, and crisis response.

Earlier this year, Jones was named Educator of the Year by the Utah Technology Council in recognition of her work to connect counselors and other educators to business and industry leaders to learn about high-demand jobs. She will shift gears in fall 2014, when she rolls out the red carpet on the first day of school as principal of Sprucewood Elementary School.