Service to Society Award
Sara L. Woods, Esq., ’96 Women’s Studies, is executive director of Philadelphia Futures, an organization providing low-income, first-generation-college students with the tools, opportunities and resources they need to gain admission to and succeed in college. She is also an adjunct professor at Villanova University School of Law. Sara previously served as executive director of Philadelphia VIP, a nonprofit that recruits, trains, and supports lawyers who volunteer to help low-income Philadelphians tackle critical legal problems. Sara also was director of public interest careers and pro bono programs at Villanova University, where she earned her MPA and J.D degrees. She began her legal career as a public interest lawyer representing survivors of domestic violence at Delaware County Domestic Abuse Project and Philadelphia’s Women Against Abuse Legal Center. Sara serves as vice president of Access Matters, which works to equalize access to sexual and reproductive health care for teens and adults in need, and on the advisory board of the Crime Victims Law Project. She has been a volunteer leader for Women’s Way, Community Legal Services, New Directions for Women. At Penn State, Sara has participated in the college’s mentor, law careers, and Women in Leadership programs; she also established a graduate fund in the women’s studies program.
Sara, her husband, William Enscore (PSU ’97), and their two children live in Philadelphia.