MURRAY CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT (UTAH)

Agency History #681

CREATION

In compliance with a petition from the residents of Murray City to Governor John C. Cutler, a proclamation was issued on July 1, 1905, designating Murray as "a city of the second class." This declaration made Murray eligible to establish a school district under the provision of the 1890 territorial free school law. Almost immediately, the city was divided into five municipal wards for the purpose of electing a board of education. An election was held the following December and newly elected members of the Board of Education took office on January 1, 1906. The board at once appointed a supervisor who had charge of all the schools and school work for the remaining part of the 1905-1906 school year. At the first meeting of the board in June 1906 a superintendent of schools was elected for two years. The mission statement reads: "The mission of Murray City School District is to work in partnership with families in the education of our youth for a changing world." [Policies, Rules and Regulations, The Board of Education of Murray City, GS02 (rev. 13 Sept. 1995), viewed on Murray School District world wide web site, May 2002.]

FUNCTIONS

The Murray City School system conducts an educational program for kindergarten and grades one through twelve, organized into elementary, junior high and senior high schools. The district has 11 schools--7 elementary schools (grades K-6), 2 junior high (grades 7-9), one high school (grades 10-12), and one alternative high school. Murray is a city with a population of about 35,000, located in the middle of the Salt Lake Valley. Spanning approximately 43 blocks north to south (4500 South to 6600 South) and approximately 14 blocks east to west (900 East to the Jordan River and the North Jordan Canal), Murray City encompasses nine and a half square miles. The boundaries of the district are the same as the city limits. Although Murray City School District covers fewer square miles than any of the state's 40 school districts, it is the 14th largest in number of students enrolled. Reported enrollment for the 2001-2002 school year is 6,358. When the district was created in 1905, enrollment was 953.

ADMINISTRATION

The district is governed by a five-member, elected Board of Education. Voters in each of the district's five precincts elect one member to serve as their representative on the Board of Education. School board elections are held in November in conjunction with the general election. The board members elect a president and vice president at the time new members are sworn into office at the first board meeting in January. The district is also subject to the general oversight of the Utah State Office of Education. The superintendent appointed by the board is the executive officer of the board.

ORGANIZATIONAL HISTORY

The superintendent is appointed by the board and works under the direction of the board. An assistant superintendent oversees curriculum and instruction. Together, these officers supervise the directors of Technology & Applied Technology Education, Curriculum K-12, and At Risk Programs. Directors of Personnel & Pupil Services and Special Services & Purchasing report to the superintendent. The district also employs a business administrator. The principal is the administrative officer and instructional leader of the school, working directly under the Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum & Instruction.

Murray residents objected to the consolidation of Salt Lake County Schools in 1905, which would have split the population of the newly incorporated city (residing in county school districts 24 and 25) between Granite District on the north and Jordan District on the south. Through annexation, the population of Murray was increased above the necessary threshold to qualify as a city of the second class. Thus, Murray (which was incorporated in 1902 as a city of the third class) gained the authority to establish its own city school district.

SUPERINTENDENTS, 1905-PRESENT
Gideon M. Mumford,	July 1905-June 1912
Carl Ephraim Gaufin,	June 1912-July 28, 1928 (died)
E. Allen Bateman,	1928-1933
James Clove,	1933-1950
J. Easton Parratt,	August 1, 1950-1972
Richard H. White,	July 1-October 1972
Glen C. Oldroyd,	December 1972-1986
Ronald L. Stephens,	1986-July 1, 1998
Richard Tranter,	July 1, 1998-present

BOARD PRESIDENTS, 1905-1906, 1911-PRESENT
James Godfrey,	July-December 1905
Michael McMillan,	January 1, 1906-unknown
Orson Sanders,	1911-1917
U. G. Miller,	1917-1918
Thomas Martin,	1918-1919
Orson Sanders,	1919-1920
Martin Christensen,	1920-1922
James Sabine,	1922-1923
Thomas Martin,	1923-1924
D. D. Lester,	1924-1926
N. L. Jensen,	1926-1927
James Sabine,	1927-1928
D. D. Lester,	1929-1930
Sarah E. H. Moffatt,	1930-1931
George H. Watts,	1931-1932
Carl C. L. Hansen,	1932-1933
D. D. Lester,	1933-1935
George H. Watts,	1941-1942
W. Douglas Allen,	1942-1943
F. T. Duvall,	1948-1949
D. D. Lester,	1949-1950
McLloyd Killpack,	1951-1952
Val Sundwall,	1952-1953
Lawrence P. Parry,	1953-1954
Wendell C. Day,	1954-1955
Earl J. Healy,	1955-1956
Paul S. Rose,	1956-1957
David B. McCleery,	1957-1958
Earl J. Healy,	1958-1959
Victor L. Brissell,	1959-1960
Herbert G. Spencer,	1960-1961
Paul S. Rose,	1962-1963
Earl J. Healy,	1963-1964
Herbert G. Spencer,	1964-1965
Briant S. Stringham, Jr.,	1965-1966
Paul S. Rose,	1966-1967
Kenneth V. Simper,	1967-1968
Herbert G. Spencer,	1968-1969
Briant S. Stringham, Jr.,	1969-1971
Vere A. McHenry,	1971-1972
John R. Evans,	1972-1973
Thayne R. Harris,	1973-1974
Briant S. Stringham, Jr.,	1974-1975
Vere A. McHenry,	1975-1976
J. Dale Ahlberg,	1976-1977
Boyd F. Jensen,	1977-1978
Thayne R. Harris,	1978-1979
Briant S. Stringham, Jr.,	1979-1980
George I. Brown,	1980-1981
J. Dale Ahlberg,	1981-1982
Briant S. Stringham, Jr.,	1982-1983
George I. Brown,	1983-1985
J. Dale Ahlberg,	1985-1987
Laura S. Baker,	1987-1988
Sherry Madsen,	1988-1989
Bruce R. Cutler,	1989-1990
Laura S. Baker,	1991-1992
Margaret Nelson,	1992-1993
Sherry Madsen,	1993-1994
Earl Townsend,	1994-1995
Laura S. Baker,	January-June 1995 (resigned)
Mildred V. Horton,	June 1995-January 1997
Sherry Madsen,	January 1997-January 1999
Mildred V. Horton,	January 1999-January 2001
G. Lloyd Naylor,	January 2001-[present]

COMPILED BY: W. Glen Fairclough, Jr. , May 2002

SOURCES

Johnson, G. Wesley, and David Schirer for the Corporation of the City of Murray. Between the Cottonwoods. Salt Lake City: Timpanogos Research Associates, 1992.

McHenry, Vere A. "Fifty Years of Independence: A History of Murray City Schools." Master's thesis, University of Utah, June 1954.

Moffitt, John Clifton. A Century of Service, 1860-1960: A History of the Utah Education Association. Salt Lake City: Utah Education Association, 1960.

Moffitt, John Clifton. The History of Public Education in Utah. Salt Lake City: Deseret News Press, 1946.

Murray City Corporation. The History of Murray City, Utah. Murray, Utah: Murray City Corporation, 1976.

Murray City School District. District Office staff roster, http://www.mury.k12.ut.us/DO/DO.HTM [May 2002]

Murray City School District. Policies, Rules and Regulations, The Board of Education of Murray City. [May 2002]

Murray City School District. Public Information Office.

Murray City School District. World Wide Web site, http://www.mury.k12.ut.us/ [May 2002]

Salt Lake County. County Superintendent of District Schools. Report of County Superintendent of District Schools, July 1, 1907.

Salt Lake County. Superintendent of County Schools. Circular of the Public Schools of Salt Lake County. 1890.

Series 83238 Utah. Legislature. Utah Code Annotated, 1851-ongoing. Title 53A, Sections 2-3.

Series 1052 Utah. Legislature. Utah Code Unannotated, 1982-ongoing. Title 53A, Sections 2-3.

Series 240 Utah. Secretary of State. Public Documents Serial Set, 1896-1956. 1905-1906, part 1, no. 6; Sixth Report of the Superintendent of Public Instruction of the State of Utah for the biennial period ending June 30th, 1906. The report of the Superintendent of Murray City School District appears on pp. 71-73.

Series 10819. Utah. State Office of Education. School Directories, 1912-ongoing.