May 16, 2011
Sarah Steinberg is named vice provost for student affairs
Sarah B. Steinberg, an 18-year veteran of The Johns Hopkins University who rose through the ranks in the Whiting School of Engineering and Krieger School of Arts and Sciences to become interim vice provost for student affairs, has formally accepted the position of vice provost for student affairs.
An engineer by education and training, Steinberg has served as interim vice provost for the past nine months. She will continue to oversee areas of the Homewood campus that relate to student life, enrollment and academic services. She is responsible for matters associated with admissions, financial aid, registration and career services, student activities, counseling and health services, religious and residential life, athletics, and housing and dining services.
“Sarah has proven herself repeatedly as an outstanding leader, and she is admired by students, faculty and staff alike,” Provost Lloyd B. Minor said. “She is deeply committed to ensuring that the Hopkins student experience is second to none. I am grateful for Sarah’s vision, her energy and her passion for Johns Hopkins, and I am thrilled that she has accepted this position.”
Steinberg succeeds Paula Burger, who retired in August as vice provost and dean of undergraduate education after a 17-year career during which she is credited with improving the undergraduate experience for students both inside and outside the classroom.
“I love the diversity of my job,” Steinberg said. “In a single day, my meetings may cover such topics as admitting the class of 2015, meeting the financial need of our students, reviewing the design details for the new Cordish Lacrosse Center and discussing the latest research on the student experience at Hopkins. Each day is exciting and fulfilling. I thrive on the variety and the challenge.”
As she assumes her new role, Steinberg expressed enthusiasm about the opportunity to blend her knowledge of the two Homewood schools with her interests in spotlighting and enhancing the undergraduate student experience.
Steinberg was named interim vice provost in September 2010, following the departure of Burger, whose position was restructured so that student affairs and academic responsibilities were split between Steinberg and Steven David, who was named vice dean for undergraduate education in the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences.
Since that time, Steinberg has been busy working with the Homewood Schools deans, as well as with the deans, directors and managers within Homewood Student Affairs, to strengthen the university’s connections with students and their parents. Steinberg has traveled to a number of cities, including Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and New York, to meet and speak with parent groups, working closely with the National Parents Committee.
Steinberg said that she looks forward to strengthening the relationship between the activities of Homewood Student Affairs and Constituent Engagement, an arm of Alumni Relations, in an effort to bring young graduates back to Homewood as a resource for current students.
She has also worked to help the new Student Life Committee of the university’s board of trustees begin its work. “We have already had some great conversations this year about student satisfaction, admissions and career services,” Steinberg said. She added that President Ronald J. Daniels and Provost Minor have demonstrated their strong interest in the undergraduate experience by engaging the students in conversation and activities. “This direct support and engagement from the university leadership makes my job so much easier,” she said.
Katherine S. Newman, the James B. Knapp Dean of the Krieger School, praised the work Steinberg has done to enhance the student experience at Johns Hopkins.
“Sarah Steinberg has been a tremendous asset in this role,” Newman said. “She and her staff are making a remarkable difference in the lives of our undergraduates, from the career advising they provide to the student life enhancements they make possible. Sarah is a very effective leader, and we are grateful to her for assuming this responsibility.”
Steinberg has been with the university since 1993 in increasingly responsible roles. She spent 11 years with the Whiting School’s Part-time Engineering Programs (now called Johns Hopkins Engineering for Professionals), rising from program director to executive director. In late 2004, she moved to the Krieger School, where she served as senior associate dean, responsible for graduate professional programs while also overseeing the school’s information technology strategy and the integration of technology into teaching and research.
She also has worked extensively with several universitywide initiatives, including the Homewood Disability Services Advisory Council and committees and task forces designed to streamline student information systems and centrally manage distance learning courses. She currently chairs the University Committee on Part-time Education.
Prior to joining Johns Hopkins, Steinberg worked for 15 years as a geotechnical engineering consultant in Chicago and Northern Virginia. She earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in civil engineering from Cornell University, an MBA with a concentration in marketing and finance from Northwestern University and a doctorate in higher education management from the University of Pennsylvania.