Stefanie Sanford

Dr. Stefanie Sanford has held executive roles in federal and state government, philanthropy and nonprofits, including chief of global policy and external relations for the College Board; president of the College Board Foundation; and director of US program advocacy at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. She is currently president of civic ventures at Alithi Consulting and Humanitae Philanthropy Advisors, where she advises diverse clients on a range of issues to build effective partnerships, reverse polarization and spur effective engagement across difference. 

She began her career serving in both Republican and Democratic administrations in Texas, in various roles advising the governor, lt. governor, speaker of the house and attorney general. At the federal level, she was selected as a White House Fellow, serving in the White House Office of Cabinet Affairs. 

She currently chairs the Board of Trustees for the Institute for Citizens & Scholars, an organization working with over 100 university presidents from diverse ideologies and institutions across the country, united in preparing students for active civic engagement in today’s complex and divided world. She is vice chair of the America’s Promise Alliance, a trustee of the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation and a founding board member of Planet Word, the Museum of Language. She has held fellowships at the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University, the German Marshall Fund and the Aspen Institute. 

An accomplished public speaker, moderator and writer, her work has appeared in a wide range of outlets, including Stanford Social Innovation Review, Harvard Law and Policy Review, the Dispatch, Education Week, CNN and the Austin American Statesman. She is the author of the book Civic Life in the Information Age: Politics, Technology and Generation X, based on her dissertation research.

She holds a BS from Texas Christian University, an MPA from Harvard’s Kennedy School and a PhD from the University of Texas.

Appointment: 5/21/2025