Cynthia Sánchez

Cynthia Sánchez, Institutional Practices Manager, Excelencia in Education

Cynthia Sánchez

Senior Manager, Institutional Practices

Current Position:
Cynthia is the Senior Manager of Institutional Practices at Excelencia in Education. She provides technical assistance to institutional program leaders with the goal of enhancing institutional capacity to empower Latino students. Her work focuses on supporting the Examples of Excelencia annual cycle and the Growing What Works database.

Past Experiences:
Cynthia joins the organization with a range of experiences in higher education. She has held various roles in academic and student affairs across various large public four-year universities. Most recently she was an Academic Advisor in STEM. She supported undergraduate students through advising, implementing programs, and advancing strategic initiatives to ensure that students met their academic and professional goals.  Cynthia is a proud first-generation college graduate. She received her BA in Psychology and Social Behavior from the University of California, Irvine, and her MA in Higher Education Administration from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

Why are you bringing your talent to Excelencia?
As a team, our goal is to advance Latino student success in higher education. Being able to work with and highlight programs that are intentionally serving Latino students is important to me. As a first-generation Latina in higher education, navigating my institution was a challenge, but in the process, I gained so many amazing mentors. I strive to work with and collaborate with the many mentors on college campuses and in community organizations making a difference in the lives of their students through evidence-based practices.

How would you describe working at Excelencia?
Commitment and passion are a few of the words that come to mind to describe the team. We are all committed to working in a common cause to transform higher education and intentionally serve Latino students. I am fortunate to be able to work with so many talented individuals within the Excelencia team and with our partners!