The Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind (USDB) has a new leader.

The Utah State Board of Education on Friday named Steven W. Noyce as USDB superintendent. Noyce most recently served as the executive director of the Tucker-Maxon Oral School in Portland, Ore., and formerly was an education program director at the Utah School for the Deaf, where he supervised both signing and oral programs.

"I am very supportive of families making a choice in what best meets a student's needs in education," he said in a statement. He also said large print and Braille books must be made available for students in a timely manner. Noyce beat out three other finalists for the job.

He will replace Timothy W. Smith, who has been acting superintendent since former superintendent Linda Rutledge retired in July 2007. Parents seeking reforms have long looked forward to the appointment of a new superintendent.

Over the past decade, USDB, which serves 2,200 students, has endured fiscal crises and allegations of mismanagement. Parents sued the school in 2006, accusing a teacher of abusing children, and more recently USDB has seen infighting over educational strategies and limited resources.

Tribune reporter Kirsten Stewart contributed to this story