Lauri Updike is the oldest daughter of ten children. She grew up in the western states. She graduated from BYU in 1971 with a bachelor's degree in English and German. She is the mother of seven children, three sons and four daughters, and grandmother to twelve amazing grandchildren. Mrs. Updike is passionately involved in church, family, politics, civic affairs, and education. For the past 35 years, she has been an advocate of principle-based education. Mrs. Updike home schooled her own children from 1985 to 1999, served on the Arizona Governor's Commission on Children, conducted research for the Utah Legislature's Senate Education Committee, taught a high school co-op for three years, was a trainer of faculty for the Utah Boys Ranch, and inservice director for American Heritage School Mrs. Updike values the privilege to teach seventh grade scholars at AHS. Each summer she conducts American Heritage Tours for students and their families to the Historic Triangle in Virginia and to Washington, D.C. Mrs. Updike loves to read, research, hike, travel, and eat chocolate chip cookies!