Biography

Mrs. Derbidge was born and raised in Salt Lake City. She currently lives in Midvale with her husband, brother-in-law, and her cute dog, Mocha. She enjoys playing Zelda games and will challenge any student to Mario Kart. She also enjoys puzzle games like Professor Layton.

When she was 14 years old, Mrs. Derbidge realized she wanted to become a math teacher. Her dream came true when she graduated with a bachelor's degree and began teaching at Provo Canyon School in 2003. After a year, she decided to move to a district school. She taught at Farrer Middle School for a year before they closed. It was then that Mrs. Derbidge applied to the Utah County Academy of Sciences (UCAS). She has worked at UCAS since 2005 and can't imagine being anywhere else. The students and teachers at UCAS are among the best in the state! Mrs. Derbidge was encouraged to pursue a master's degree and completed it in 2012. She was slowly given more administrative responsibilities at UCAS and was eventually hired as the Principal.

Administration has been a fun, new challenge. Although Mrs. Derbidge never would have pictured herself as an educational leader, she can't imagine doing anything else. The challenges help her to relate to her students as they pursue a rigorous education at UCAS. Mrs. Derbidge believes that students learn best when they can relate their education to their own life experience. Beyond science or humanities, it is important for students to understand how to communicate. In order to adapt to a fast-changing world, students need to learn how to understand and empathize with one another. Mrs. Derbidge hopes to instill the power of assuming the goodwill of others in her students so that as students navigate the world they are open to new ideas and perspectives.