Kathryn Boyd will be the next president and CEO of the Planned Parenthood Association of Utah.
She is the successor to Karrie Galloway, who is retiring on March 24 after 40 years with the organization.
Boyd held previous roles with Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, which offers care in Iowa and Nebraska, and served as the vice president of operations for Carafem, a nonprofit operating in Atlanta, Chicago, Nashville and D.C.
“I am thrilled to be joining PPAU at this critical time,” Boyd said in a statement. “We have hard work ahead of us. Threats to reproductive rights and bodily autonomy are happening across the country.”
Those threats, she said, push the association to work harder to protect reproductive rights and provide care in the state. Even though Utah’s trigger law that bans abortion with few exceptions is currently tied up in court, an earlier restriction that limits abortions to the first 18 weeks of pregnancy is in effect. Additionally, lawmakers recently passed new restrictions that move abortions to hospitals and ban clinics entirely in 2024, among other changes.
Galloway said the organization “needs this new energy to move forward” and Boyd has the same creativity and drive she had 40 years ago. She also gave some advice to the incoming CEO.
“Enjoy it. Don’t get bogged down,” she said. “Enjoy the incremental fights that we win in making sure Utah has a better future for families.”
Boyd will start her role in May, so Sarah Stoesz was recruited to serve as interim CEO. She was the longtime CEO of Planned Parenthood North Central States. Now retired, Stoesz said she was excited to aid in the leadership transition.
