The School Trust
History
Before the first United States Congress ratified the constitution and before the election of George Washington, a process was established by the Continental Congress to ensure children of the new country would be educated. The Land Ordinance of 1785 and the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 set aside lands to support public education as territories and states became part of the Union. The Founding Fathers were concerned about the sporadic establishment of schools and demonstrated their commitment to an educated citizenry and maintaining a democracy as the organized system of land grants was put in place. Utah was granted school trust lands through the Utah Enabling Act and Utah Constitution, a bilateral contract between the Federal Government and the State of Utah.
Learn More
Annual Statewide Distribution
The School LAND Trust Program, established by the legislature in 1999, distributes a portion of the annual earnings from the permanent School Fund through districts and charter schools to all public schools in the state.
The annual distribution from the School LAND Trust program has grown from $4.95 million in the 2001-2002 school year to a planned distribution of $101,803,346.85 million for the 2023-2024 School Year. That is an average of $150.27 per student.
Learn More
Land
Over 3.2 million acres of land held in trust for Utah’s K-12 schools is managed by the State of Utah Trust Lands Administration (TLA). TLA is overseen by a Board of Trustees. Michelle McConkie is the Director. There are three revenue groups at TLA tasked with land management and revenue production. They are the Energy and Minerals, Property and Planning Development, and Surface groups. The annual revenue from the land, minus expenses to manage the land, is deposited into the permanent State School Fund.
In the 2022 Fiscal Year, SITLA generated and deposited $119,704,882 in the permanent State School Fund for Utah public school students and an additional $148,363 for the School for the Deaf trust and $105,726 for the School for the Blind trust. SITLA manages twelve trusts, of which Utah’s public schools is the largest.
For questions about school trust lands, please contact Marla Kennedy, Director of Communications and Legislative Affairs at (801) 538-5102 or via e-mail at marlakennedy@utah.gov.
Fund
Funds generated from school trust lands are transferred to the Utah School and Institutional Trust Funds Office (SITFO). SITFO is overseen by a Board of Trustees chaired by Utah State Treasurer Marlo Oaks.
The Utah Enabling Act and Utah Constitution require the establishment of a permanent State School Fund. The fund has grown from $18 million in 1983 to over $3 billion in 2024 because of the involvement of the education community, support of the legislature, increasing land revenue, and prudent investment of the fund. The SITFO office and fund management are self-funded without a cost to taxpayers.
The earnings from the fund provide an annual distribution for the School LAND Trust Program. In 2023-2024, Utah public schools received $101,803,346.85 million through the School LAND Trust Program.
Utah Land Trusts Protection and Advocacy Office
The Utah Legislature created the Land Trusts Protection and Advocacy Office (Advocacy Office) to represent the beneficiary interests of the school and institutional trust and to advocate for:
- Productive use and optimal revenue of school and institutional trust lands by the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration
- Prudent and profitable investment of trust funds by the School and Institutional Trust Fund Office
- Effective distribution of funds to public schools through the School LAND Trust program
- Optimization of revenue to all beneficiaries
Administration
Kim S. Christy, Director
Land Trusts Protection and Advocacy Office
310 S. Main St., Suite 1275, Salt Lake City, UT 84101
Phone: (801) 201-7480 | e-mail
Jessie Stuart, Executive Assistant
Land Trusts Protection and Advocacy Office
310 S. Main St., Suite 1275, Salt Lake City, UT 84101
Phone: (385) 315-1892 | e-mail
Deena Loyola-Merrill, Communications Specialist
Land Trusts Protection and Advocacy Office
310 S. Main St., Suite 1275, Salt Lake City, UT 84101
Phone: (385) 480-6826 | e-mail
Five-member Committee
The Advocacy Committee provides policy oversight to the Land Trusts Protection and Advocacy Office that monitors the State of Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration (TLA) as they manage lands granted in trust to benefit public schools, and oversees the investment of the permanent State School Fund by the Utah School and Institutional Trust Fund Office (SITFO).This five person committee oversees the activities of the director and provides the director with policy direction.
For more information on the Land Trusts Protection and Advocacy Committee:
Utah Schools & Institutional Trust Lands System
Roger Barrus
Chair
Appointed by the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA) Board
Paula Plant
Vice-Chair
School Children’s Trust Director
Richard Ellis
Appointed by the State Treasurer
Louie Cononelos
Appointed by the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA) Board
Brad Benz
Appointed by the School and Institutional Trust Funds Office (SITFO) Board
Trust Lands Advisory Committee (TLAC)
The School Children’s Trust section also staffs the Trust Lands Advisory Committee (TLAC), an official advisory committee to the Utah State Board of Education tasked with advising the Board regarding School Community Councils, the School LAND Trust Program, and issues related to school trust lands and funds that may affect the program. TLAC is comprised of education stakeholders including local school board members, parents, principals, educators, superintendents and district staff members.
The Utah State Board of Education reconstituted and recognized the Trust Lands Advisory Committee (TLAC) in November 2016 Board Resolution 2016-4 and then reaffirmed support with the Utah State Board of Education Policy 5007 in November of 2021.
Board Policy 5007: Trust Lands Advisory Committee (TLAC)
Utah State Board of Education Policy, Law and Professional Practices
Upon the recommendation of TLAC, the Utah State Board of Education has adopted an official position on School Trust Lands and Funds.
The purpose of TLAC is to advise the Board regarding school trust lands and funds, school community councils and the School LAND Trust program, and assist the School Children’s Trust section of the Utah State Board of Education to disseminate information to the education community about the implementation of the Board’s policies, programs, rules, and procedures. TLAC Meetings are held the third Monday of each month, except for February, July, and December, from 12:00-2:00 p.m.
Meeting Agendas and Minutes
Find agendas and minutes for past Trust Lands Advisory Committee meetings in the link below. These documents provide a transparent record of the committee's discussions and decisions regarding trust land management. Stay informed about the committee's work by reviewing these records.
Members
A current list of the members of the Trust Land Advisory Committee and their contact information can be found here.