About me
I grew up in a military-connected family and graduated from a Department of Defense high school—an experience that instilled both adaptability and a deep appreciation for structured systems, clear expectations, and what happens when those systems break down. That perspective has carried through a deliberately diverse professional career spanning intellectual property litigation and prosecution, family law, juvenile dependency, bankruptcy, estate planning, and criminal defense. Across those fields, one theme remained constant: the law is only as effective as its implementation in real-world systems serving real people.
In parallel, I built a career in information technology, becoming a certified project manager and leading distributed development teams across multiple countries. Managing complex, cross-functional projects sharpened my focus on governance, documentation, and risk management—particularly in environments where compliance requirements are not theoretical, but operational. This dual background in law and technology now directly informs my work in education.
I currently serve as a Data Privacy and Records Officer for a K–12 public school district in central Utah, where I operate at the intersection of student data privacy, EdTech procurement, and regulatory compliance. My work focuses on translating evolving legal requirements—including Utah’s student data privacy laws and national frameworks like the NDPA—into practical, sustainable processes for school districts. This includes contract review and negotiation, vendor risk assessment, policy alignment, and building workflows that help IT teams and administrators meet compliance expectations without grinding operations to a halt.
My experience with administrative law, developed through industrial compliance and licensure work, provides a practical lens for navigating regulatory systems—not just understanding what the rules say, but how agencies expect them to function in practice. At the district level, that means bridging the gap between legislation, state guidance, and the day-to-day realities of approving and managing EdTech tools in a resource-constrained environment.
Outside of work, I maintain a healthy respect for both structure and creative chaos. I am an avid reader, sew when I need to think, and play a variety of instruments—none particularly well, but all enthusiastically. I once auditioned for Broadway (with confidence exceeding talent) and spent six years in Civil War reenactment, which, in hindsight, was excellent preparation for explaining compliance requirements to rooms full of skeptics.
