As Information Security Officer at CU Boulder, Sarah works to ensure that CU’s community, systems, and data are safe and secure. Through the administration of the information security risk management program, she focuses on creative solutions that balance strong security practices with ease of use. Sarah believes the most secure campus is one where everyone is empowered with relevant, timely security knowledge that can be applied wherever our lives take us. As a champion for a security-minded culture, Sarah works to ensure that CU is able to adequately identify and treat IT risks and meet data security compliance obligations. She oversees the Information Security team and Identity and Access Management team. Together, these groups perform a vital role strengthening the security posture of the campus.
Sarah started at CU System Administration as Assistant Information Security Officer in 2016 and quickly became an integral part of the Office of Information Security. In this role, she spearheaded security, compliance and privacy initiatives, with a special focus on vendor risk management and data governance.
In the 12 years that she’s been working in higher education information security, the landscape has changed remarkably. As technology has advanced, the campus has been inundated with ever-evolving threats. In security, as in life, change is the only constant – and Sarah works tirelessly to build a security-minded culture, resilience, and optimism for the future to ensure the safety and security of the CU community today and tomorrow.
Sarah hails from Georgia, where she was an IT Security Analyst Specialist at the University of Georgia (UGA) Office of Information Security before joining CU. She holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Management Information Systems from UGA and is currently pursuing a Master of Public Administration with a concentration in Emergency Management and Homeland Security at CU Denver. She maintains the Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) certification.