Trisha Thomas
President | Reading Horizons
What accomplishments are you most proud of?
I’m most proud of contributing to work that helps students learn how to read. Literacy changes the trajectory of a life, and in turn, the future of families and communities. Being part of efforts that help more students read proficiently, build confidence and succeed in the classroom is deeply meaningful to me.
That’s what makes Reading Horizons feel like more than a job. We have a reach of over 200,000 educators across 6,000 school communities worldwide, and behind every one of those numbers is a teacher who feels equipped to reach a striving reader and a student who’s starting to see themselves as capable. Hearing those stories is what gets me out of bed every morning.
I’m equally proud of how I’ve led. Building trust, developing strong teams and creating environments where people feel supported and capable of doing their best work have been central to my approach to this role since joining Reading Horizons in 2020. That same ethos shapes how we think about serving educators: We try to show up for teachers the same way we ask teachers to show up for their students.
As a woman leader in a Utah-based organization, I’ve been intentional about showing what steady, values-driven leadership can look like and expanding what leadership can look like for others coming up after me. And personally, raising my children alongside my husband while building a meaningful career is something I hold close to my heart.
Can you share a pivotal moment in your career that significantly shaped your path?
A pivotal moment in my career was stepping into broader leadership, where I was responsible not just for the work, but for the people and outcomes around it. It required me to let go of having all the answers and instead focus on creating clarity, building trust and guiding others forward. That experience shaped the kind of leader I strive to be: someone who brings steadiness in uncertainty, holds a high bar and helps others rise into their potential.
I’ve held leadership positions at multiple education companies, and every step was about helping children access education. Joining Reading Horizons as chief revenue officer was when things really came into focus. I prioritized impact over profit, leaned into learning, and over time, was promoted to president. What keeps me here is the culture and the mission. This is a company that genuinely puts students first, and after years of working toward that across different organizations, I feel like I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be.
What key advice would you offer to other aspiring leaders?
Start before you feel ready. Clarity comes after action, not before it. I’ve never waited until I had all the answers, and I’d encourage anyone stepping into leadership to resist that impulse. The learning happens in the doing.
Be someone others can rely on. Trust isn’t built in the big moments. It’s built in the small, consistent ones, especially when things are hard and it would be easier to look away. In my experience, the leaders people remember are the ones who showed up steadily, not just when it was convenient. That’s true whether you’re leading a team, serving a school district or trying to create conditions where teachers can do their best work for students.
And perhaps most importantly, your impact is ultimately measured by how many people grow because of your leadership. Not the deals closed or the milestones hit, but the people who are more capable, more confident and more themselves because you invested in them. That ripple effect is what makes leadership meaningful. It extends well beyond your own work, and in education especially, it reaches all the way to the students and communities we ultimately exist to serve.