Sandra Vargas

Sandra L. Vargas is a senior executive leadership fellow at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota, where she shapes the Humphrey School’s engagement initiatives, with a particular focus on communities of color and new immigrants. Formally, she was the president and CEO of The Minneapolis Foundation, one of the oldest and largest community foundations in the country, where she oversaw the management of assets, the administration of charitable funds, and the distribution of millions in grants each year. Sandra previously served as Hennepin County administrator, where she created and implemented a new strategic plan for the county with a greater emphasis on measurable results. She is active in several Twin Cities organizations and serves on numerous boards, including MinnCAN, St. Catherine University, and the Downtown Council. She was profiled in the book Heroes Among Us and received the WomenVenture’s Pioneer Award, the Medal of Honor from St. Catherine’s University, and the Caux Roundtable’s Outstanding Citizenship Award in 2012. She earned her bachelor’s in business administration from the College of St. Catherine and holds a master’s in public administration from Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.