WSU Salutes 2023 Honorees

Weber State honored nine outstanding individuals for their contributions to the campus and community at the 2023 WSU Salutes ceremony.

Back row: Betty Sawyer, Brett D. Nelson BA ’99, Jesselie Barlow Anderson, S. Neal Berube BS ’79, Morgan Saxton BS ’13; front row: Tony Justman BS ’88, Deanna Sparrow Kleyn, Ed Kleyn BS ’72, Sydnee Dickson

“WSU Salutes is one of the many highlights for me during homecoming week where we celebrate a select group among our many alumni, community leaders and changemakers for their great, Great, GREAT accomplishments,” said Brad Mortensen, WSU president.

Emeriti Homecoming Royalty

Edward G. BS ’72 & Deanna Sparrow Kleyn

Ed Kleyn and Deanna Sparrow Kleyn attended Weber State until Ed completed his degree and was drafted into the Army. Ed relied heavily on his WSU education and previous church service to fulfill his duties as a counselor in the Army prison system at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. He also started work on a master’s degree at Pope Air Force Base. Following his military service, Ed accepted a job at a bank and gained a passion for banking. He finished his MBA in 1976, cultivated meaningful associations with his customers, supported numerous community organizations and served on several boards. In 2010, Ed received the Wall of Fame Award from the Ogden-Weber Chamber of Commerce. Deanna assumed primary responsibility for raising the couple’s six children, four of whom graduated from WSU. She also worked at her family business, Sparrow’s Home Furnishings, for 49 years. Deanna and Ed have been married 54 years and appreciate how much WSU has enriched their lives. They give back to the university through a scholarship fund and Ed’s service on the John B. Goddard School of Business & Economics Business Advisory Council.

Emeriti Alumni Lifetime Achievement Award

S. Neal Berube BS ’79

Neal Berube is a lifelong resident of Weber County and a proud graduate of Weber State. As a student, he served as vice president of Academic Affairs. While campaigning for this office, Berube met fellow student Jeana Hancock, and they were married in February 1979. Upon graduating, Berube went to work for Deloitte in Salt Lake City and obtained his CPA. He was subsequently employed by the Goddard family at United Savings Bank in Ogden. He spent the last 30 years of his career at Associated Food Stores, where he served a decade as CEO. Berube, a former commissioner for the Utah Department of Alcoholic Beverage Services, was invited to serve on Gov. Gary Herbert’s committee for efficient and effective government. Currently, he is mayor of North Ogden and serves on Intermountain Health’s board of trustees. Berube lends his time and expertise to the WSU Alumni Association Board of Directors and the John B. Goddard School of Business & Economics Business Advisory Council. He and Jeana have three sons, all of whom are WSU alumni. In honor of their oldest son, Ryan, who has muscular dystrophy, they established a scholarship for WSU students who may have a disability. Berube was also instrumental in obtaining scholarship funding for students with a family history of renal disease.

WSU President’s Award

Jesselie Barlow Anderson

Jesselie Barlow Anderson credits her parents for influencing her commitment to education and serving her community. Her father, former Utah State Senate President Haven J. Barlow, and mother, Bonnie Rae Barlow, were powerful role models for their six children and set an inspiring example of community engagement and public service. Anderson attended Davis High School and earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Utah. She took a summer job in the Washington, D.C., office of Utah Sen. Wallace F. Bennett and remained on the East Coast for 12 years, working for Rep. Laurence J. Burton, Rep. Dan Marriott and Sen. Jake Garn. She married Scott Anderson in Tokyo, Japan, where he worked for Bank of America. The couple also lived in the San Francisco area before moving to Salt Lake City in 1991, when Scott accepted a position with Zions Bank. Anderson worked for her family business, Barlow Companies, for 30 years and currently chairs its board of directors. An advocate for higher education, she served on the Utah State Board of Regents, which later became the Utah Board of Higher Education, from 2013 to 2023. At WSU, Anderson is actively involved with the Olene S. Walker Institute of Politics & Public Service. Anderson chairs the state’s Executive Residence Commission. Previously, she served on the Governor’s Mansion Foundation, the Natural History Museum of Utah associates board, and Salt Lake County’s Zoo, Arts & Parks Preservation Committee.

Lewis W. Shurtliff Award for Contributions to Education

Sydnee Dickson

Sydnee Dickson has served Utah children for 42 years. In 2007, she joined the Utah State Office of Education, which became the Utah State Board of Education and oversees public K-12 education in Utah, and was named Utah superintendent of public instruction in 2016. Her previous roles have included teacher, counselor, and school and district administrator. Dickson’s education began in a two-room schoolhouse in rural Utah. She went on to earn master’s degrees in school counseling and school administration, as well as a doctorate in education leadership and policy. Dickson has served on numerous state and national committees, task forces and boards and is frequently called on to present at national convenings. Currently, she serves on the Council of Chief State School Officers Board of Trustees and WestEd’s Board of Directors, along with many state councils and commissions. She is passionate about developing education ecosystems of support to ensure all students are given access and opportunities for success through a high-quality education.

Outstanding Young Alumni Award

Morgan Saxton BS ’13

Morgan Saxton credits Weber State for helping her launch her career as an award-winning broadcast journalist. Saxton recognized her professional path in seventh grade, and WSU nurtured her passion by helping her graduate from high school with an associate’s degree. After earning her bachelor’s degree at age 20, Saxton was hired at the Standard-Examiner newspaper. Six months later, she landed her first broadcast position as a reporter in the Midwest, where she brushed shoulders with several presidential candidates during the 2016 Iowa caucuses. She moved back to Utah to marry Chase Saxton, whom she first met while covering a story as a student journalist, and to work at KUTV Channel 2 as a morning reporter. She stayed at KUTV six years before giving birth to the couple’s first child. Today, Saxton is a host for FOX 13’s lifestyle show, The PLACE.

Distinguished Alumni Award

Brett D. Nelson BA ’99

Brett Nelson has worked on all seven continents with organizations such as Doctors Without Borders, UNICEF and Physicians for Human Rights. Weber State set Nelson on a path toward a global healthcare career. In addition to benefiting from excellent teaching, Nelson served as a teaching assistant for multiple WSU courses. He also assisted with clinical research at McKay-Dee Hospital, used electives to join a surgical mission to Mali, and participated in service projects that laid the foundation for his passion in addressing health disparities among vulnerable communities. Nelson went on to receive medical and public health degrees from Johns Hopkins University, clinical training at Harvard University and a tropical medicine diploma in London. One of his first positions out of training was chair of pediatrics and senior pediatrician for Liberia’s Ministry of Health, where he established curricula that trained the first pediatricians in post-conflict Liberia. Nelson has authored more than 100 peer-reviewed articles and is the editor of a textbook on clinical global health. He has obtained millions of dollars in grant funding for training programs to equip healthcare providers across Africa with life-saving skills. He also codeveloped low-cost clinical innovations that continue to save lives.

Distinguished Alumni Award

Anthony John “Tony” Justman BS ’88

Tony Justman grew up on a family farm in Colorado. In high school, he became active in speech and debate, which led him to Weber State’s nationally recognized debate program. As a student representing WSU, he traveled across the country, winning awards and tournaments while building skills that would shape his professional life. Justman completed majors in political science and communication. With strong support from WSU faculty mentors, he pursued a law degree at Stanford University. After law school, Justman clerked for the Honorable Herbert Y.C. Choy of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, the first Korean-American appointed to the federal bench. Justman then practiced law for more than a decade in San Francisco, learning from lawyers in respected firms. In 2007, he joined Sony Interactive Entertainment, the headquarters for Sony Corporation’s PlayStation division. He advises global teams and executives in intellectual property, antitrust law, data privacy, e-commerce and consumer protection. He helped launch products like PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PlayStation Store and PlayStation Plus. Recently, Justman provided executive leadership in industry efforts to ensure video game player well-being and online safety. He supports diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives within SIE, in SIE’s products and services and the legal community. He has been an executive sponsor of PlayStation’s Latinx employee resource group and supports young, aspiring attorneys through organizations like the National Hispanic Bar Association.

Distinguished Service Award

Betty Sawyer

Betty Sawyer has been at the forefront of many civil rights, justice and equity initiatives in Utah’s public and private sectors. She moved to Utah from Maryland in 1975, and later earned her second bachelor’s degree and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Utah. As director of the Governor’s Office of Black Affairs, Sawyer worked to gain passage of the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday and the establishment of the Utah Martin Luther King Jr. Commission. She collaborated with legislators and members of the Board of Regents, which later became the Utah Board of Higher Education, to gain $1 million to support a minority scholarship endowment and funding to develop strategic economic development initiatives, including Ethnic Young Achievers and the Marketing & Advertising Program. In 1991, Sawyer helped launch Project Success Coalition, a nonprofit supporting education, health equity, cultural arts, leadership and job opportunities for Ogden youth. For 33 years, Sawyer led the movement to have Juneteenth Freedom Day recognized as a Utah holiday. She founded the Utah Black Roundtable, a think tank and policy organization that brings individuals, congregations, organizations and businesses together to provide proactive solutions to pressing issues. Sawyer is a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and serves as president of the Ogden branch. She led a community effort to preserve the city’s historic Marshall White Community Center, and has received many awards for serving the community. She is married to Gerod “Butch” Sawyer.