Sara Childress named Title IX Coordinator

Dear UAA Community,

I am pleased to announce that Sara Childress has accepted the position of director of equity and compliance and Title IX coordinator. She will begin her new role today.

Sara brings a wealth of investigative experience coupled with trauma-informed care to this role. Since June 2017, she has worked as a civil rights investigator for the UAA Office of Equity and Compliance. Sara has helped bring UAA into compliance with action items outlined in the UA Voluntary Resolution Agreement with the United States Department of Education Office for Civil Rights that outlines specific steps the university system will take to improve safety and the campus climate.

Sara's experience includes work as the Anchorage regional manager in Alaska's Office of Children's Services where she was responsible for child protection outcomes for the state's largest region and oversaw a team of more than 175. While there, she constructed child welfare performance improvement plans that required strict adherence to federal guidelines and laws, as well as state statutes.

Sara has a strong track record of strengthening community relationships. Her background includes leading interdisciplinary community teams and co-chairing the Anchorage Tribal State Collaboration Group to address concerns such as disproportionality. She is deeply committed to transparency in the Title IX process and providing genuine respect and due process to those she serves.

I appreciate the work of the search committee for their thoughtful engagement throughout this process and want to give special thanks to Human Resource Services Director Ron Kamahele for serving as acting Title IX coordinator while this search was underway.

Sincerely, Samuel B. Gingerich UAA Interim Chancellor

March Archive