Board selects new leader of Utah’s largest school district

Shane Farnsworth was selected Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020, to be the new superintendent of the Alpine School District, effective July 1, 2021. | Alpine School District

AMERICAN FORK — Shane Farnsworth was appointed superintendent of the Alpine School District by vote of the board of education Tuesday.

He is assistant superintendent of operations for the Alpine District, which serves some 82,000 students and employs some 9,000 educators and staff and is the state’s largest.

Farnsworth will takes the reins on July 1, 2021, succeeding Superintendent Sam Jarman, who is retiring.

Jarman notified the community of his plans to retire shortly after the start of the school year. He has worked in education for 35 years and has been Alpine District superintendent for the past six years.

Farnsworth has 22 years of experience in the district as a classroom teacher, principal and district administrator over secondary schools. He earned a bachelor’s degree in classical studies and his master’s and doctorate of education degrees in educational leadership from Brigham Young University.

His doctoral studies focused on trust relationships between teachers and administrators. His research was published in the September 2019 edition of the National Association of Secondary School Principals Bulletin journal.

Farnsworth has also been an adjunct professor at BYU and Southern Utah University in leadership preparation programs. Farnsworth has chaired the Utah School Accreditation Council and served for several years as a lead evaluator of schools throughout Utah.

Farnsworth and his wife, Meri Ann Farnsworth, are the parents of six children, all of whom have attended or currently attend schools in the Alpine School District. The Farnsworth family resides in American Fork.

“My appointment as superintendent of schools is a humbling honor and privilege. I am excited for the opportunity to collaboratively work with our dedicated employees and board of education in serving the students, families and communities of Alpine School District,” Farnsworth said in press release.

Twenty-eight community members, including teachers, parents, government officials, school administrators, support professionals, city leaders and others screened all candidate credentials and applications and recommended to the school board names of people to be interviewed.

The board selected finalists and conducted a second round of interviews to select the finalist.

“As a board of education, we were pleased and amazed by the caliber of highly qualified applicants from across the state, from multiple districts, and from within the district who applied. The selection process was not easy. It has been one of the most rigorous endeavors we’ve faced,” board president Scott Carlson said in a statement.

This story will be updated.

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