Dixie Snow Huefner, Professor Emerita, University of Utah
I retired from my faculty position in the Special Education Department at the U. in 2007. Since then I’ve been involved as a board member of the SLC Public Utilities Advisory Committee and as Communications Chair for Utahns for Ethical Government, both important learning experiences for me.
I came to Utah in the 1960s with a B.A. in Political Science from Wellesley College and used my political science background in several ways back then: first, in writing a report on Salt Lake City Politics, which became part of Harvard Professor Edward Banfield’s City Politics series, then in ghost authoring The Missing Link, the report recommending construction of the Symphony Hall and the 1969 Salt Palace arena and convention center. I spent 15 years at home raising our two sons and then obtained an M.S. in Special Education at the U. and a J.D. from the U’s College of Law. I spent 4 wonderful years as a judicial clerk to the Honorable Stephen H. Anderson, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. My primary career, however, was as a special education professor, where I taught students and authored books and articles on special education law and disability policy for many years prior to retirement. I was also active in faculty governance at the U. and at the national level in education law.
Over the years, I have been involved in the community as a board member or chair of various social service and education organizations, including the Utah Parent Center; elementary, middle school, and high school PTAs and community council; the United Way of Greater Salt Lake; Family Counseling Center; Learning Disability Ass’n; and U of Utah Alumni and Law School Alumni Associations.
Our form of government values citizen contributions. We hope that members of the Citizens’ Counsel can share collective knowledge and insights with Utahns in a way that effectively prioritizes and illuminates some of the state’s pressing issues.