Dr. Sally A. White

Sally A. White, Ph.D., is Principal and Owner of SAW Consulting Services that focuses on providing strategic guidance and assistance to Colleges and Universities as well as Non-Profit organizations. Specifically, Sally analyses and develops plans that enhance how and where an organization might gain more efficiencies and resources. Before that and for 15 years, she served as senior vice president and advisor for firm-wide strategic initiatives at McAllister & Quinn. Her work included a focus on expanding the services of the company, coordinating internal policies and procedures around diversity, equity and inclusion, hiring and mentoring staff, and overseeing marketing and social media strategies. In addition, she managed a large portfolio of clients ranging from small and mid-sized public and private colleges and universities. From 2009-2021, Sally developed and led the higher education practice division at McAllister & Quinn. She created a grant service that uses best practices from higher education and provides clients with a robust and proven methodology in how to secure private foundation and federal agency monies. During her time at McAllister & Quinn, Sally worked with colleges and universities to secure over $400 million for student scholarships, student support services, new curriculum at the undergraduate and graduate levels, faculty research grants as well as faculty grants to promote innovative pedagogy for higher student learning.

Dr. White has over 20 years of experience in higher education as both a professor and academic administrator. She served as vice president for academic affairs at College of Notre Dame, where she initiated a number of significant developments, including the integration of separate Schools of Pharmacy and Education, successful pre-candidacy status for School of Pharmacy from ACPE, and revamped the governance structure of the College. While Dean at Lehigh University, Dr. White led the expansion of graduate programs into the Middle East, Asia and Europe and created a unit-based decision-making approach to leadership that was tied to strategic planning and outcomes assessment. She also created a corporate board that raised millions of dollars in endowment and annual giving, as well as oversaw the College into US News and World Report’s Top 50 for five consecutive years. Dr. White formerly served as Dean of the Graduate School and Associate Vice President for Research at Towson University where records were set for research expenditure and she developed a more research-oriented faculty culture. She was Professor at Illinois State University and began her career as Assistant Professor at the University of New Hampshire in 1988.

Dr. White is an accomplished scholar who studied achievement motivation in various contexts, including sport, exercise and academia. She has published and presented over 100 book chapters, articles and scientific papers, has secured millions of dollars in federal and foundation grants, and has been honored with teaching and national research awards. Sally worked closely with USA Volleyball from 1996-2000, chaired a national sports commission and has been a sport psychology consultant for the U.S. Olympic Committee. She won a distinguished early career professional award from AAHPERD and was chosen to attend the Harvard MLE program in 2003. Dr. White has given keynote addresses at national and international conferences and is quoted frequently in national media outlets, including The Associated Press, LeMonde, Health, Philadelphia Inquirer, WebMD and Ladies Home Journal.

Sally is a community activist and has served as a board member for Community Services for Children and Dream Come True of the Lehigh Valley. Also, she was on the Executive Committee for the Council of Academic Deans from Research Education Institutions, Board of Directors for the Philadelphia Area Consortium for Education, and a Board member for the Fort@Sandy Hook Foundation. In Baltimore, she was an advisory member of the Johns Hopkins University Peabody Conservatory and sat on an Alumni board for the University of New Mexico, her alma mater.

Dr. White earned a bachelor’s degree in European history at the University of Greenwich-London, a master’s degree at the University of Texas and a doctorate in social psychology at the University of New Mexico.