Wes Curtis
Executive Director of Regional Services
Wes Curtis is Executive Director of Regional Services at Southern Utah University, and is also the Director of the Utah Center for Rural Life, which is housed within the Office of Regional Services. Wes has a long involvement in numerous rural issues and in working to improve rural economies. He has served as State Planning Coordinator for the State of Utah, and as rural affairs senior staff to Governors Michael O. Leavitt and Olene Walker.
Some of the programs initiated by Wes while in the Governor’s office include the Utah Smart Sites Initiative, which helped bring 1400 technology based jobs to rural Utah; the County Resource Management Plan Toolkit, helping rural counties address resource management issues on federal and state lands; and the 21st Century Communities Program – dedicated to encouraging and supporting rural communities, counties, and Indian Tribes in meeting the challenges, changes, and opportunities of the 21st Century through local planning.
In his role as Executive Director of Regional Services, Wes is dedicated to engaging SUU as a partner and a resource to businesses, communities and governments throughout the region through such means as the annual Utah Rural Summit, the SUU Business Resource Center, and various region-wide economic development, outdoor recreation and natural resource planning partnership activities.
Wes is actively involved with numerous boards and organizations, including The Governor’s Rural Partnership Board, the Envision Utah Board of Directors, Emery Telcom Board of Directors, and Co-chair of the Southwest Utah Planning Authorities Council.
Brian Cottam
Associate Director of Regional Services
As the Associate Director
of Regional Services at Southern Utah University Brian works closely with rural counties and communities across southwest Utah on natural resource and public lands policy and planning as well as community and economic development planning and projects. His current primary on-campus assignments are oversight of the Utah Prairie Dog Recovery Implementation Program and Intergovernmental Internship Cooperative, management of the SUU Mountain Ranch and Mountain Ranch Resource Advisory Council, and participation with both the Southwest Utah Renewable Energy Center, which is funded by a federal Department of Labor appropriation under his management, and Utah Cluster Acceleration Partnership, a Utah System of Higher Education economic development initiative.
Brian’s previous professional positions include Interim Director of Regional Services at SUU; Rural Program Specialist in the State and Local Planning Section of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget for Governor Jon Huntsman, Jr.; Economic Development Director for Wayne County, UT; Coordinator of the Greater Flagstaff Forests Partnership, Flagstaff, AZ; Director of the Southern Utah Forest Products Association, Lyman, UT; and Coordinator of the Entrada Institute in Torrey, UT. He has also been a small business owner and manager.
Brian received a B.S. in Social Science with a minor in Environmental Studies from Westminster College of Salt Lake City (1995), and an M.S. in Forestry with an emphasis on natural resource and environmental policy from Utah State University (1999). His master’s thesis focused on the Southern Utah Forest Products Association and the development of forest and wood-worker cooperatives.
Kathleen McDowell
Executive Assistant to Regional Services & Assistant Attorney General, SUU Counsel
Kathleen is the Executive Assistant to Regional Services and SUU’s Counsel. Kathleen has worked 40 years in multi-faceted disciplines, including law enforcement, human resources, labor contract negotiations, accounting, mental health, public health, and urban and rural economic development. In between raising a family and working she acquired 96 quarter units of higher education but never completed her degree.
Kathleen assists the Regional Services program directors and coordinators with their numerous contracts and grants as well as provides other administrative services. In the past, she has written successful grant award proposals for public health, mental health, homeless, domestic violence and substance abuse. She enjoys never having the same day twice in her work life.
Kathleen is active in supporting fundraising efforts for women’s cardiac care, scholarships, and cancer research. She advises young women in the SUU Alpha Phi Sorority who support the same goals.
Jim Crisp
Southwest Utah Advisor for Special Projects
Jim Crisp presently serves as Regional Services’ Advisor for Special Projects in southwest Utah. From 1995 to 2008 he served as Manager of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s St. George, Utah, Field Office, where he directed management of 635,000 acres of public lands in Washington County, Utah. His BLM career spanned 33 years involving assignments in Utah, Arizona, Colorado and Washington, D.C., with a focus on land use planning, resource management and community development.
Jim received his undergraduate degree in geology from Brown University and his Master’s of Public Administration degree from Central Michigan University while serving as a Rescue C-130 pilot for the U.S. Air Force during the Viet Nam conflict.
Jim is active in the Boy Scouts of America and other community affairs. He serves as a member of the executive committee for Vision Dixie, as a commissioner on the Santa Clara City Land Use Authority, and as a volunteer coordinator for the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve in Washington County. He resides in Santa Clara with his wife, Neidra.
Learn more about Jim's work with Regional Services.
Paul Husselbee
Media Relations Specialist
Dr. Paul Husselbee is the Media Relations Specialist for the office of Regional Services. He is the liaison with area mass media outlets, cooperating with local news editors and ad representatives to get the Regional Services message to the public.
A 1985 SUU graduate, Paul was a newspaper reporter and editor for 10 years, working as managing editor, international editor and sportswriter at newspapers in Oregon, Utah and Pennsylvania. He earned a master’s degree from BYU in 1994 and a doctorate from the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University in 1999. He remained active in newspaper journalism as a copy editor in Ohio while in graduate school, and later as an assistant city editor in Texas while teaching journalism at Lamar University from 1998 to 2000. He returned to Cedar City in August 2000 as an SUU faculty member. Currently, Paul is an associate professor of journalism in SUU’s Department of Communication, where he teaches print journalism, communication law, ethics, mass media theory, and media research methods.
An avid sports fan, Paul remains active in sports journalism by covering SUU football and basketball for the Associated Press and several newspapers. His consulting firm, Southern Utah Newsline, provides media-related services throughout the region. In his spare time, Paul officiates high school athletics as a football referee and baseball umpire for the Southern Utah Officials Association.
Craig Isom
Director of the Southern Utah University Business Resource Center
Joni Anderson
Assistant Director of the Southern Utah University Small Business Development Center
Joni Anderson is the Assistant Director of the Southern Utah University Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC). Joni provides in-depth, high quality, one-on-one business counseling sessions to entrepreneurs and potential entrepreneurs. She also assists companies who are seeking to do business with the government by providing quality bid-matching solutions and government contracting guidance. Joni develops and coordinates business training and counseling as needed for both pre-venture and existing business clients throughout Iron, Beaver, and Garfield counties.
Joni has been with the SUU Small Business Development Center/Procurement Technical Assistance Center since 1997. She received a B.S. in Business Administration from Southern Utah University (1998), and an M.B.A. from Southern Utah University (2006). She has also been co-owner/manager in a small family-owned business. Joni is involved in the local Chamber of Commerce and Women in Business Committee.
Janet Calliham
Administrative Assistant
Janet is the Administrative Assistant for the SUU Business Resource Center. She greets visitors, manages the phones, schedules appointments and works directly with the Executive Director on miscellaneous projects. Janet coordinates business owners' needs with the Cedar City Chamber of Commerce, the Utah Science, Technology and Research Initiative, the Procurement Technical Assistance Center, and the Small Business Development Center.
Ed Meyer
Associate Director of the Southern Utah University Business Resource Center
Ed Meyer is the Associate Director of the Southern Utah Business Resource Center. In this capacity, he helps existing businesses and potential entrepreneurs in Kane County, Utah, access the unique resources available through the Center. Ed also hosts the Kanab Chamber of Commerce Entrepreneur Forum, which is funded by Southern Utah University’s Office of Regional Services.
Ed directed the State of Utah's rural development programs for 23 three years as an appointee of five governors. He moved to Kanab when he retired in 2005 where he also runs a small community and business consulting business. He received a B.S. degree in Social and Cultural Anthropology from the University of Utah, a MPA degree from Brigham Young University, and completed a fellowship from Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government. In 2003, President Bush awarded the Excellence in Economic Development Innovation Award to Ed and his team for Utah's Smart Site Program. This program promoted small business technology development in rural Utah.
Prior to his service with the State of Utah, Ed was City Manager of Mt. Pleasant, Utah. He also established and directed Mt. Pleasant's Redevelopment Agency and chaired their Planning Commission. He was also the first director of the Utah Heritage Highway 89 Alliance, a non-profit organization promoting heritage tourism in southern Utah.
Learn more about Ed's work with Regional Services and the SUU BRC.
Virginia B. Higbee
SUU Head Start Executive Director
Virginia B. Higbee has served as the Director/Executive Director of Southern Utah University’s Head Start and Early Intervention programs from 1974 to the present. As such, Virginia provides overall leadership and direction to the Head Start and Early Intervention programs. She is specifically responsible for budget, program monitoring and assessment, human resources, working with governing bodies, and communication with University and funding sources. She also provides oversight for all other program areas. The service area for SUU Head Start includes six counties—a 23,500-square mile service area—across southwestern Utah. As of January 2009, SUU Head Start serves over 400 children in two cities and several rural communities, while the Early Intervention program serves 140 infants and toddlers who have identified disabilities.
Virginia received B.S. degrees in Psychology and English Literature from Southern Utah University (then, Southern Utah State College) in 1973. She has also completed a two-week Fellowship at the Johnson and Johnson Head Start Management Institute at the Anderson School of Business at UCLA in 1993, and she has attended Advanced Management Training refresher courses at UCLA’s Anderson School in 1998, 2002, 2007, 2008 and 2009.
Virginia served as President of the Utah Head Start Directors’ Association from 1990 to 1992 and 2003 to the present. Other activities and service include: SUU Staff Association President, 1985; BPW Young Woman of Achievement, 1985; Southwestern Utah Mental Health Board, 1986-1991; Head Start Program reviewer 1990 to present; Utah State Board of Child and Family Services, 1991–2000; Cedar City Kiwanis Club President, 1995; reader for Early Head Start grants in Washington, D.C., 1997-2003; and, Voices for Utah Children Board, 2000 to present.
Steve McCarthy
Intergovernmental Internship Cooperative Agency Coordinator
As the SUU Intergovernmental Internship Cooperative (IIC) Agency Coordinator, Steve McCarthy is an on-campus National Park Service-Cedar Breaks National Monument employee and representative who works with the IIC Campus Coordinator to develop and manage the IIC. The IIC’s purpose is to provide career-track internships and work experiences to SUU students with the state and federal land management agency members of the IIC. The IIC Agency Coordinator represents the agency partners in concert with the IIC Campus Coordinator to serve as a resource to SUU students, faculty and administration by developing and marketing internship and other academic opportunities while streamlining the process for accessing these positions. Steve also serves as an agency liaison to and participant with numerous other SUU initiatives and programs, providing agency perspective, support, coordination and technical assistance for the collaborative development and delivery of these outdoor-oriented programs.
Steve received a B.A. in Geography from California State University, Chico, Chico, CA, in 1989, and he has also served as an instructor in the GIS Programs at the University California Riverside Extension and Palomar College.
Steve’s previous professional positions include GIS Project Manager for Psomas Engineering out of Riverside, CA; GIS consultant to San Diego Geographic Information Source (SanGIS) and the San Diego Zoological Society (Wild Animal Park & Zoo) San Diego, CA; and, Associate Planner for Yuba County, Marysville, CA.
Steve is an experienced Project Manager, Consultant, System Architect and GIS Developer with over ten years of project management and application/system development experience. He also has over nineteen years of experience in the field of GIS and twenty years of experience in state and local government. Most important, Steve is a big T-Birds athletics fan!
Seth Ohms
Intergovernmental Internship Cooperative Campus Coordinator
Seth Ohms is the SUU Intergovernmental Internship Cooperative (IIC) Campus Coordinator. He works closely with SUU students, faculty and administration to meet the IIC Partners' internship needs by facilitating the recruitment and placement of SUU’s quality students. He collaborates with the IIC Agency Coordinator to develop and manage the IIC program.
Seth is a native to Iron County and literally grew up in the halls of SUU and, as a student, obtained a B.S. degree in Biology with an emphasis on Botany. He went on to earn an M.S. in Range Science from Utah State University’s College of Natural Resources where he studied aspen and tall forb ecosystems in the Intermountain West, with emphasis on Cedar Mountain. Prior to coming to the IIC, Seth worked for USU as an Agriculture Extension Agent. Seth serves as the Student Activities Chairman and Plant Identification Competition coordinator for the Utah Chapter of the Society for Range Management. Through his education and work experiences, he has interacted on multiple levels with the government agencies and SUU personnel that are now IIC’s Partners.
Taking his education to heart, Seth grows an amazing garden and is also an avid outdoorsman, spending much of his time with his family pursuing activities such as camping, fishing, hunting, and hiking. He is a small business owner and enjoys training hunting Retrievers.
Dennis Moser
Utah Center for Rural Health Executive Director
Dennis Moser is the Executive Director of the Utah Center for Rural Health at Southern Utah University where he has directed health careers awareness, exploration, clinical training and retention programs under the federal AHEC program for the past eleven years. The Center links rural communities with academic medical resources and is home to the Rural Health Association of Utah and the Utah Rural Health Scholars Program. The Center coordinates about 120 rural clinical training rotations each year for medical students, residents and allied health students.
Dennis, a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and licensed radiology technologist, has served a wide range of clinical and administrative positions. He holds an M.S. degree in Health Administration from the University of Colorado. Dennis represents rural Utah on a number of statewide boards and committees and serves as a commissioner on the Utah Digital Health Service Commission.
Dennis was born and raised in Wyoming and has lived in rural southern Utah for the past 35 years. Next to rural health, mountain biking on the red rock trails of southern Utah is his greatest passion.
Rita Osborn
Associate Director for the Utah Center for Rural Health
Rita Osborn is the Associate Director for the Utah Center for Rural Health at Southern Utah University. In this position, Rita coordinates graduate student clinical rotations as well as the Rural Health Scholars programs at SUU and Dixie State College, directs the Cedar City Low-Income Clinic, and supervises other functions of the Center. Rita has a Bachelor's degree in Public Administration and a minor in Recreation Administration from Cal State University, San Bernardino, and she received her M.B.A from SUU in 2002. Her thesis addressed the health care shortages in southern Utah.
Rita serves on numerous boards and organizations and has received awards such as the Utah Campus Compact's Engaged Scholar in 2007 and the SUU Advisor of the Year in 2007. She has written multiple successful grants and developed contracts to support the Center's programs.
Prior to working at SUU, Rita worked for the Five County Association of Governments, the City of Redlands, CA, and the City of San Bernardino, CA. Her passion is working with students and community partners to help each achieve their goals.
Carrie Torgersen
Youth Programs Coordinator for the Utah Center for Rural Health
Carrie Torgersen is the Youth Programs Coordinator for the Utah Center for Rural Health at Southern Utah University. Carrie works with junior and senior high school counselors and teachers who advise students interested in health careers. She has developed and coordinates numerous programs including the annual SUU Health Career Exploration Camp, regional Health Career Days workshops, yearly publication of the Directory of Utah Health Professions Training Programs, publication of the CTE Health Careers CD for middle school teachers, coordination of presentations by medical students to all rural Utah high schools, and numerous other projects targeting rural students.
Carrie received a B.S. in Communications from Southern Utah University in 1998. She began working for the Utah Center for Rural Health in August of 1999.
Elissa Black
Utah Prairie Dog Recovery Implementation Program Coordinator
Elissa is the Utah Prairie Dog Recovery Implementation Program (UPDRIP) Coordinator, a position hosted by SUU and funded through a cooperative partnership comprised of 20+ local, state, federal, & Tribal agencies and non-governmental organizations from across the region and state. Elissa works closely with UPDRIP Partners and regional stakeholders to coordinate various efforts that are aimed at balancing the needs of private landowners while working towards Utah prairie dog recovery. Specifically, she is charged with overseeing the implementation of the Utah Prairie Dog Recovery Plan. Being a native of Southern Utah, Elissa is familiar with the long history of the prairie dog issue and understands the contentious nature of recovery; she is dedicated to working towards a solution that that ultimately benefits landowners and sufficiently recovers the Utah prairie dog population.
Elissa's prior professional experience includes working as a community planner for a Washington County (UT) non-profit, Form Tomorrow, where she provided support and technical assistance to small municipalities to improve town planning and build consensus on development and growth issues. Elissa also worked previously as a land use planner with the San Luis Obispo Council of Governments in California.
Elissa holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Studies from Humboldt State University and a Master’s degree in City and Regional Planning from California Polytechnic University. The focus of her Master's Thesis was the U.S. Green Building Council's (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Neighborhood Development (LEED-ND) rating system and it's applicability to development in rural western regions.