SUU Was Life Experience and Hands On Learning for Sara Greener

A native of Layton, Utah, Sara England Greener (’05) fell in love with Southern Utah University during a high school recruiting event hosted by Sandra Lord Thomas (’93) at Layton High School. That’s all it took for Sara to know that SUU was exactly where she wanted to attend college.

And once on campus, she loved everything Sandra had told her to expect: amazing professors who knew her name, on-campus housing, great roommates, student activities, clubs, an amazing community, and the natural beauty of southern Utah.

“The education I received at SUU was more than opening a book and reading a chapter; it was life experience and learning hands on,” she says of her academic experience.

During her junior year, and with the encouragement of friends, Sara began to reach beyond her comfort zone and decided to become more involved on campus. “That was the year that changed my life forever,” she says.

Student government became a natural venue for her involvement, and she ran for vice president of student activities, and won. She learned important life lessons during her time serving students that prepared her for future work in event planning, leading and working a group, and being a positive force in connecting with people.

“I also learned I am more capable than I ever gave myself credit for, and that I can do things I never dreamt of doing,” she says.

Following graduation, Sara worked for the Utah Shakespeare Festival as guest services manager and was on the front-line of customer service with thousands of guests. After 14 years with the Festival, she moved to the SUU Advancement Office in 2014, where she is the executive assistant to Vice President Stuart Jones (’86), who can also point to a rich training ground in leadership fostered by SUU. He was the 1985-86 student body president.

“I am so proud to be involved with the team that works tirelessly to fundraise for the University,” Sara says. “It’s amazing the support I see come in from not only the community, but also alumni who give back to support scholarships, programs, and in making our campus a first-class educational institution.”

Sara and her husband Justin, a 2008 graduate of SUU, are the parents to five children and live in Enoch, Utah. She enjoys spending time with her family outdoors and going on adventures.