After ten years at CSU—and a professional life spanning publishing, tourism, nonprofit work, and literacy administration—Mary Ellen Sanger is retiring, leaving behind a body of work defined by collaboration, care, and community connection.
As Associate Director of the Community Literacy Center (CLC) and program coordinator for English, Sanger played a vital role both behind the scenes and alongside students, faculty, and community partners. Her work ranged from mentoring students and facilitating literacy workshops to grant writing, reporting, compiling the annual SpeakOut! anthology, and maintaining close relationships with community organizations. Within the department, she provided long‑standing program and administrative support, including faculty search assistance, promotion and outreach for the Creative Writing Reading Series, and tenure and promotion review coordination.
As she reflects on her “encore career” at CSU and looks ahead to retirement, Sanger shares what mattered most, what inspired her, and what comes next.
Q&A with MES
As you look back on your career, what are you most proud of?
My partner often calls our campus careers our “encore” careers – as we both arrived on campus after long careers in other fields. Mine, in big chunks, wended from publishing (in California) to tourism (in Mexico) to nonprofit (in Manhattan) and then administration in the field of literacy, here on campus for the past ten years. Though the chapters may seem disparate in space and skill, they have in common a respect for – and dependence on – forming teams that create internal learning loops.
At CSU, from English Department faculty search committees to brainstorming in meetings with interns, I’m proud of having shared in the energy of passionate and compassionate teams. Heading toward retirement, I’m buoyed to carry with me a network of people from whom I continue to gain energy and learn.
Who inspired you and why?
Much of my inspiration has come from a “what” rather than one particular “who.” I realized early on, when I ugly cried at age 10 for the community love displayed in It’s a Wonderful Life, that I am inspired by solidarity (see above: teamwork). It’s why I have respect for Zapatistas, bees, volunteers, and the work of community literacy that I have been privileged to witness as part of the Community Literacy Center.
What are you most excited about in retirement?
All the usual – time for travel, creative stuff (art, photography, writing, cooking). My partner and I are Mexico‑centric so we are likely to spend more time there. I lived in various spots in Mexico for 17 adult years and the country still holds more than a few beats of my heart.
Also, I swear, honestly, for real – I will finally for sure no kidding la neta read Don Quijote in Spanish for the second time. I’ve been promising myself that since I turned 40. More movies, more books, more leisurely mornings, tea/wine with friends, more postcards for democracy, fewer timecards.
A Lasting Impact
Across her roles at the Community Literacy Center and Department of English, Sanger brought kindness, creativity, and a deep respect for collective work. Whether supporting student interns and faculty, coordinating complex administrative processes, or nurturing long‑term community partnerships, her contributions helped sustain the programs and people around her.
Thank you, Mary Ellen, for your years of dedication to community literacy, student mentorship, and the CSU community. We’ll miss you!