Deirdre Stevens Straight is the Freshman Success coordinator at one of the comprehensive high schools in the Salt Lake City School District. She works to ensure that students have equitable access to curricula and extracurricular opportunities and seeks to build meaningful partnerships with students’ families.

Deirdre has had many roles in Salt Lake City schools, including working as a long-term substitute teacher, creating and running a hands-on science program for elementary students, and serving on School Community Council, PTSA, and numerous steering committees.

Deirdre contributed to the work of the Utah State Board of Education as a member of USBE’s Equity Lab, Early College Subcommittee, Refugee Collaborative and 2020 Utah Assessment Work Group.

In January 2022, she was a guest on the RadioWest podcast to discuss “Who’s Responsible for Racism in Davis County and The Rest of Utah.” She is currently a member of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee for the local unit of her church. She and her husband are the proud parents of three children. They love to travel as a family.

“I see serving in UROR as the natural next step in the work I have been doing for the last 20 years in Salt Lake City schools as a mom, educator, and advocate. We have a long way to go to uproot racism and other forms of prejudice in our schools and communities, but I am pleased that more and more students, families, educators, and community members are pulling together to do this important work. Schools should be sites of equity, free from hate so all that children may thrive.”