Leader in Higher Education to Give Principal Address at University of Scranton Graduate Commencement

Apr 11, 2017
Kathleen Curry Santora ’80, president and chief executive officer of the National Association of College and University Attorneys, will serve as the principal speaker at The University of Scranton’s 2017 graduate commencement ceremony Saturday, May 27, on campus.
Kathleen Curry Santora ’80, president and chief executive officer of the National Association of College and University Attorneys, will serve as the principal speaker at The University of Scranton’s 2017 graduate commencement ceremony Saturday, May 27, on campus.

Kathleen Curry Santora, Esq. ’80, president and chief executive officer of the National Association of College and University Attorneys (NACUA), will serve as the principal speaker at The University of Scranton’s 2017 graduate commencement. She also will receive an honorary doctor of laws degree from the University at the ceremony, which will take place on Saturday, May 27, at 10:45 a.m. at the Byron Recreation Complex.

 “Through decades of service in executive positions at national higher education organizations, Kathleen Curry Santora has been a visionary leader and voice in higher education,” said University of Scranton president Kevin P. Quinn, S.J. “A Scranton graduate from NEPA, we are pleased to welcome back one of our own as the principal speaker at our graduate commencement.”

Before coming to NACUA in February 2001, Santora was vice president and chief operating officer of the American Association for Higher Education (AAHE). She also served in various capacities at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. There, she was secretary of the university, assistant to the president for external relations, and assistant to the president/chief of staff.

From 1982 until 1986 and from 1987 until 1992, Santora worked for the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU) as vice president for operations and counsel, as executive director and counsel for state relations, as associate director of government relations and associate general counsel, and as its legislative representative. In 1986-87, she served as director of public policy and external relations at the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges (AGB).

Santora earned her bachelor’s degree in political science from the University and her J.D. from the Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law.  She is a member of the Pennsylvania Bar and serves on the board of the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), the Association Mutual Health Insurance Company and the National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements.

Santora previously served on the boards of The University of Scranton, EDUCAUSE (the association for information-technology professionals), the American Council on Education, and Academic Search. She also was a member and chair of the Washington Higher Education Secretariat Steering Committee, a member of the Council of Higher Education Management Associations Steering Committee and a member of the Western New England College board.

Santora, a native of Hazleton, now resides in Annandale, Virginia.

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