On June 7, 2019, University of Utah President Ruth Watkins appointed a new director to the University Neighborhood Partners (UNP) program — Jennifer Mayer-Glenn. Mayer-Glenn received her bachelor’s degree in Spanish from the U and later received her master’s degree in education from Westminster. She will take the seat on July 1 of this year. Her predecessor, Sarah Munro, served as director since 2015 and had been deeply involved with UNP for over a decade.
The UNP was created in 2001 with the goal of “foster[ing] greater civic engagement through mutual empowerment, discovery, and learning rooted in diverse life experiences [which] specifically brings together the university and Salt Lake City’s west-side community for reciprocal learning, action, and benefit, including increased access to higher education for community members.” Mayer-Glenn voiced hopes to continue building on this by establishing genuine and sustainable partnerships as well as ensuring that all voices can be heard.
President Watkins spoke on Mayer-Glenn’s skill set by saying “UNP’s goals, which include increasing access to college for west-side communities and strengthening the U and other higher education institutions, will be advanced through Jennifer’s talents, experience and strong leadership.”
Previous to taking on this position, Mayer-Glenn worked in the education field in a multitude of capacities. She worked in the pre-K to the 12th-grade education sector for over 20 years, gradually moving up to becoming an administrator at the Glendale-Mountain View Learning Center. Additionally, Mayer-Glenn served as the assistant principal at several schools, an alternative language services coordinator and a special education teacher. Currently, she is the director of Family School Collaboration for Salt Lake County School District.
Mayer-Glenn’s goal has always been to lead “schools in building their capacity to create [a] welcoming and inviting culture, connect family engagement to student learning and provide development and mentorship opportunities for school staff.” She hopes to continue instilling this ideology in her newest position.
Said Mayer-Glenn, “I am deeply honored to be selected to lead UNP and build on the groundbreaking work of Irene Fisher, Rosey Hunter, Sarah Munro and the UNP staff.” She went on to add, “I look forward to continuing to connect Salt Lake City’s brilliant and vibrant west-side community to the U while also increasing community-engaged research for the benefit of all of us. There is much we can learn from each other and [it’s] time for us to be on this journey together.”
