Executive Board

Nicki Brammer

President

Nicki is excited to be working with UAGC. She has five children, including two sets of twins, and is passionate about gifted education. She has served on various school community councils and the Alpine School District Community Council, but her favorite work is always volunteering in the classroom with students. Nicki has enjoyed grant writing for education and business clients and was the Founder/Director of Mighty Montessori.

Frankie Walton

Communications

Frankie started her career as a high school math teacher, teaching for 14 years in Granite School District. After moving to Jordan District, she taught sixth-grade gifted students, earning an Elementary Teaching License. Additionally, she has endorsements in Instructional Coaching, STEM, and Gifted & Talented Education. She is currently the Jordan School District Secondary Gifted and Talented Teacher Specialist and is happy to be back in the land of teenagers. Frankie strongly believes in providing opportunities for all students to extend their learning, explore new experiences, and discover talents and interests.

Tina Jensen

Past President

Tina Jensen has spent the last 19 years teaching in the International Pathways Program in the Salt Lake City School District. This is a gifted dual immersion Spanish program. She currently teaches 5^th and 6^th graders and is passionate about advocating for diverse learners. She has spent the past 24 years teaching gifted and talented students and has served on the UAGC board for the past 8 years. She received her BA in Elementary Education from Utah State University and has worked to earn endorsements in Gifted and Talented Education, ESL, and Spanish. This is her third year serving as president. She enjoys serving others and considers herself a lifelong learner. She lives in South Jordan with her husband Matt, and they have 6 children. She spends a lot of her free time cheering on the sidelines as she has 4 boys that play competitive soccer and a daughter who plays tackle football. She is also a full-time taxi driver, driving to dance lessons, soccer games and practices

Amy Pilkington

Secretary

Amy Pilkington is delighted at the opportunity to be a part of the gifted community of Utah. She believes that there is no nobler calling than influencing the lives of others through education and is passionate about creating engaging learning environments where all students can grow into lifelong learners. She is a committed lifelong learner and avid devourer of books. Learning new things and curiosity about the world around her is something she feels very passionate about. She earned a dual bachelor’s in English and History teaching from Utah State University and later earned a master’s in education leadership and administration. She has endorsements in Gifted and Talented education and as a Literacy Specialist. She has worked with youth for over 25 years and taught in the classroom for 7 years before becoming an administrator. She adores being the principal of Wasatch Peak Academy in North Salt Lake and the opportunities they offer to advanced and gifted students.

Jennifer Funn

Treasurer

Jennifer was born and raised in upstate New York. She obtained her bachelors in psychology from Chapman University (Orange, CA), married young and stayed at home for 12 years to raise her five children. When her youngest child was in kindergarten, she felt the need to start a career of her own. A good friend, who happened to be a principal at a local elementary school, encouraged her to substitute. From that very first day, Jennifer knew she found her calling. She was hired the next year as a part-time gifted and talented teacher. While teaching with a provisional license, she pursued and completed her master’s degree in elementary education with a concentration in gifted and talented education from George Mason University (Fairfax, VA). She is very passionate about gifted and talented education. Currently as a fifth-grade teacher in a general education classroom, she applies the various techniques and lessons she once used in her homogenous GT classes to fit the needs and the diversity in her current classroom. She advocates for GT students in these classrooms and assists other educators in knowing how to differentiate and extend in an effective and engaging manner.

Executive Committees

Heidi Thorpe

Parent Outreach

Heidi is a daughter, sister, wife, and mother. Her dad was a first-generation college graduate and her mother taught for years in elementary schools in Utah before having children of her own. Heidi is the middle of five siblings, trailing right behind a gifted sibling; competition is a real motivator for Heidi. Her mom raised her children as many an educator does, incorporating phonics and basic math into fun games that they would play as siblings. Heidi attended public schools right alongside the boy who would grow up to be the man she chose to marry. No, they were not high school sweethearts; they needed to grow up before they decided they could actually enjoy spending time together. Her husband has taught for 10 years in charter schools in the time that Heidi has carried and given birth to their four children (ages 9 down to 1), the last two born in their home, and all of them "gifted" from their perspective. Heidi's goal as their mother is to give them opportunities; she focusses on giving them opportunities to develop and strengthen motor skills, develop independence, and spending lots of time outside. Heidi enjoys reading, writing, walking, and discussing modern parenthood with fellow parents.

Tammy Wright

Programs

Tammy Wright has been a teacher in Granite School District for 25 years, 12 of which were in the Advanced Learning Center gifted program at Fox Hills Elementary. She has been the Gifted Coordinator for Granite School District since 2021. She earned a B.S. in Elementary Education from Brigham Young University, and and M.Ed. from Utah State University. She has teaching endorsements in Gifted and Talented, Elementary Mathematics, and ESL. She has served on the UAGC Summer Conference committee since 2020, and joined the UAGC board in 2023.

Kristi Burgess

Advocacy Chair

Kristi Burgess is the Davis Enhanced Education Programs (DEEP) Supervisor for the Davis School District. She received a Bachelor's Degree in Elementary Education from Brigham Young University and taught second grade in the Alpine School District before obtaining a Master's degree in Gifted Education from Columbia University. She then worked in the Extended Learning Program (ELP) in the Salt Lake City School District as first a teacher and then a District Specialist. Kristi spent ten years directing and teaching in a private preschool utilizing curriculum geared toward gifted learners. She also taught college-level courses through Southern Utah University and Utah State University to teachers pursuing their Gifted and Talented endorsement. In addition, she helped facilitate a multi-year Javits Grant research project (UCARE) which sought to improve services for advanced readers in Title I schools throughout Utah. Kristi is passionate about advocating for gifted and talented students and helping advanced learners reach their potential.

Shari Taylor

Education Outreach

Shari Taylor is one of the Assistant Principals at Lehi Junior High School. She chose to enter administration at the middle school level. She loves the energy of teenagers; walking into the lunch room usually makes her smile. She has been an educator for the district for 28 years teaching all elementary levels in music and advanced 5th & 6th grade instruction for all subjects. In addition to teaching children, Mrs. Taylor teaches adults working on their Utah State Gifted and Talented Endorsement and teachers for identified advanced classes through BYU. Mrs. Taylor’s passion in education is advocating for gifted and advanced programs. She is the past president of the Utah Association of Gifted Children and Director of Gifted Services in Alpine School District. Although gifted education is her work interest, other interests include outdoor activities such as skiing, hiking, biking, and site seeing, and her real passion is family. She and her husband spend time with their three children and many extended family members. Mrs. Taylor loves her career as a life-long educator and learner and is currently working on her Doctorate in Educational Leadership.

Utah Association for Gifted Children
869 E 4500 S #403
Salt Lake City, UT 84109-3049

UAGC is a non-profit organization 501 (c) 3