District Newsletter – March 7, 2025

Dear Salt Lake City School District community,

Showing up to school every day is one of the best ways for students to succeed. When they miss too many days it’s tough to keep up, and catching up can be even harder. Did you know that missing just two days a month adds up to 10% of the school year? That’s enough to be considered chronically absent.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve seen a big jump in chronic absenteeism, both in our district and across the country. But this is something we can tackle together! Regular attendance helps students build strong habits, stay connected to their learning, and gain the skills they need for the future.

We need your help to make sure students are in school every day. Talk to your child about why showing up matters, and if there’s anything keeping them from attending, let your school know. We’re here to help.

Sincerely,

Elizabeth Grant, Ph.D.
Superintendent

Excellence In Action

• West High School’s Kathy Barnard was named the 2025 Foreign Language Teacher of the Year for Utah by the Utah Foreign Language Association. This prestigious award recognizes her dedication to language instruction, her profound impact on students, and her contributions to the field. Congratulations, Kathy!
• You may know Salt Lake City School District has the highest number of active National Board Certified Teachers of any district in Utah, but did you also know all four members of the leadership team for the Utah National Board Coalition - John Arthur, Tony Zani, Carrie Johnson, and Emily Petty - are teachers in our district?
• East High teacher Hayden Godfrey was selected to participate in a fully funded study trip to Germany. This trip offers a unique opportunity for American social studies, world history, and German teachers to travel to Germany, learn about the country’s society, its political institutions, history, and culture first-hand.
• Denise Hevner, the welding instructor at Highland High School, has been selected as the Utah Hockey Club's nominee for the 2025 NHL/NHLPA Most Valuable Teacher. You can support her nomination by voting for her at NHL.com/MVT. You can vote once a day through the month of March.  

We are grateful for our incredible teachers who make a difference in the lives of our students every day!

Public Comment on School Fees

Our Board of Education will hold its second public comment period on proposed school fee changes for the 2025-26 school year during their next meeting, Tuesday, March 18, 2025. The board meeting begins at 5:30 PM, and the public comment period will start at 7:15 PM. The proposed fee changes are available for review on the district website.

Scholarship Applications Due Soon

Did you know the Salt Lake Education Foundation offers scholarships to Salt Lake City School District students? Most of the scholarships are good for any post-secondary education and are not limited to four-year colleges or universities. That includes trade schools, community college, technical certifications, etc. Applications for these scholarships are due soon: next Friday, March 14, 2025.

For more details on scholarship opportunities, visit the Salt Lake Education Foundation website.

Bond Update Webpage Now Live

Thanks to your support of our bond vote last November, we are moving forward with major projects across the district. Plans are underway to rebuild West and Highland High Schools, build a modern athletic field house at East High, and implement sustainability initiatives at schools across the city.

We want to make sure we keep our Salt Lake City community up to date on these important bond projects. To that end, we’ve launched a new webpage! We will use this page to share project updates, final design plans (when they are finalized), photos, etc. If you have questions, you can also reach us at news@slcschools.org.

Upcoming Calendar

• March 14 – Salt Lake Education Foundation scholarship applications are due
• March 18 – Board meeting (5:30 PM) and public comment period (7:15 PM) at the district office (406 E. 100 S., SLC, UT 84111)
• March 31 – April 4 – Spring Break – All schools closed
• April 4 – District offices closed for the last day of Spring Break
• April 15 – Board meeting, 5:30 PM at the district office (406 E. 100 S., SLC, UT 84111)