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SALT LAKE CITY – A manager with the University of Utah's Bennion Service Center has been appointed to fill the Precinct 1 vacancy on the Salt Lake City Board of Education.
The board voted 5-1 on Tuesday to appoint Bryce Williams to the position, which was vacated when board member Joel-Lehi Organista resigned on June 4, a day after his arrest on multiple state charges of possession of child pornography as well as a charge of object rape of a child, a first-degree felony.
He also faces federal charges of receiving, transporting and possessing child pornography and one count for production of child pornography.
Organista was sworn into office in January after winning the election to the school board in November, running unopposed after topping a primary election field of five candidates.
Williams, chosen among seven applicants, grew up in Precinct 1 and lives in Rose Park with his wife, Katherine Torres. He earned two degrees from the University of Utah, a bachelor's in social work and a master's in educational leadership and policy.
Williams oversees senior student programs for the Bennion Service Center. He also serves as a board member of the Community Development Corp. of Utah, is a member of the Rose Park Community Council, and a board member of the Salt Lake Education Foundation. He has been a member of the West High School Alumni Association since 2006.
Williams said it was an honor to be chosen by the board to fill the seat.
"As we work our way out of the pandemic, I look forward to spending time face to face with families, students, teachers and administrators; to hearing what their needs are; and to working collectively with the rest of the board to address those needs," Williams said in a statement.
Prior to the vote, board President Melissa Ford said the appointment "is of the more difficult decisions we as a board have to make. I wish we weren't in a position where we have to make it," explaining that the representative should be chosen by voters rather than the board.
Williams is the third person to assume the Precinct 1 seat since Tiffany Sandberg, who served 7½ years on the board, stepped down in April 2020.
The board appointed Michelle Tuitupou to succeed Sandberg but Tuitupou did not run for election in November 2020.
