FR Staff Profiles

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Sarah Carle, Executive Director, Foundation Relations (she/her/hers): Sarah Carle is the Director, Foundation Relations at the University of California, Santa Cruz. As a collaborative leader with more than a decade of progressive experience in foundation, government, and corporate fundraising, she leverages her expertise in the higher education and nonprofit fields to build and manage comprehensive, holistic relationships with foundations on behalf of the university. Prior to UC Santa Cruz, Sarah served as Director of Foundation Engagement at UC Davis, where she managed strategic relationships with foundations including the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Henry Luce Foundation, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Koret Foundation and the Bernard Osher Foundation. She previously served as Director of Institutional Giving at the Armory Center for the Arts in Pasadena and Assistant Director of Development at the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles, where she directed foundation, government, and corporate fundraising. Sarah received her MA in Ethnomusicology from the University of Hawai`i, Mānoa, and BA in Music History from UCLA.

Samantha Forde (PhD), Associate Director, Foundation Relations (she/her/hers): Samantha holds a joint appointment as Associate Director of Foundation Relations and Research Associate in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department at  UC Santa Cruz. Sam earned her B.A. at UC Santa Barbara in Aquatic Biology, then conducted one year of graduate work at the College of Charleston in South Carolina. She returned to the California coast to complete her Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolution at U.C. Santa Cruz. Sam was a postdoctoral scholar at Stanford University, where she conducted research on the coevolution of microbes. Sam is also a co-founder of Women Evolving Biological Sciences, a national program dedicated to advancing women in science. She worked as program officer at the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation from 2011-2015 and as the scientific writer and program manager at a biotechnology startup in Santa Cruz from 2017-2019.

Caroline Margaret Rodriguez, Associate Director, Foundation Relations (she/her/hers): Caroline Margaret Rodriguez is pleased to rejoin Corporate and Foundation Relations, having worked with the team from 2014-2016. She has a background in nonprofit fund development, an undergraduate degree in classical piano, a Masters in environmental studies from Brown University, and a passion for communicating the complexities of research and various academic pursuits to general audiences.
Caroline’s past experiences include working as an environmental reporter at NPR, writing grants for national organizations that focus on at-risk youth, and teaching Pre-K-3rd grade music and dance in New York City.
She is currently focused on developing relationships with foundations in order to secure major funding for the campus. She is 100% remote and lives most of the year on the shoreline of Connecticut. 

Almut Wolf, Assistant Director, Foundation Relations (she/her/hers): Almut has worked in University Relations at UC Santa Cruz since 2013 supporting a variety of projects, such as the planning of the 50th Anniversary celebrations, the Chancellor’s Associates program, Campaign operations and the office of Corporate and Foundation Relations. Prior to coming to UC Santa Cruz, Almut worked for many years as project manager for Language Localization in Silicon Valley and as language lecturer in Monterey (MIIS) and Santa Clara University. Almut earned a Ph.D. in French Studies and an M.B.A. from the University at Albany in New York.

Shana Laurienzo, Prospect Research Specialist, Foundation Relations (she/her/hers):Shana is a public service professional with over 15 years of experience working in nonprofit, government, and higher education institutions. She has previously worked in development and institutional advancement at San Diego State University and Temple University. Shana has specialized in program development, project management, and research in her previous roles. She holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Metropolitan State University of Denver and master’s degrees in public administration and library sciences from San Diego State University and San Jose State University, respectively. Shana’s research interests include ethical urban planning and development, and recidivism reduction and reentry programs.