Blog Post

As a community of learners, seekers, students, teachers, and peers, we are passionate about impact. Defining, paving, creating, and implementing. For SCUP as an association, this process is led by volunteer leaders who offer their time and expertise to shape our community’s future, namely our board of directors. 

That said, I’m happy to announce that Sarah Cantrell will serve as SCUP’s new board chair.

Sarah is the assist vice-president in the Office of Institutional Planning and Analysis at York University (ON). She has been an active member of SCUP for the last ten years. Most recently, Sarah served as vice-chair of SCUP’s board of directors, where she worked with the board to develop and implement SCUP’s new strategic plan. 

Sarah’s commitment to SCUP goes beyond board service. Over the course of her membership, she has also served as a member-at-large of SCUP Council, chair of the SCUP Professional Development Committee, as a member of the Annual Conference Program Committee, and served as the program and conference chairs for the North Central region.

Sarah’s 20-plus years of higher ed experience represents many of the disciplines we see across our SCUP membership—integrated resource planning, data systems integration, large budget planning, enrollment planning, capital planning, and academic program and strategic planning. 

As an expert in managing large, complex projects with multiple stakeholders throughout her career, she has been a driver of institutional and faculty-level change initiatives. At York, she led the implementation of the integrated resource planning framework and restructuring of the planning and institutional research functions to build a stronger culture of performance and accountability through evidence-based decision making. This experience is sure to serve SCUP as the strategic plan is implemented across our committees and within our membership, driving impact throughout the greater higher ed community.

At SCUP, we know the future of planning relies on the strength of ideas and the passion of individuals that make up our community. It’s where planning comes together to unleash the promise and potential of higher ed. We’re excited to have Sarah lead this charge.