David Sapp

David Alan Sapp, Ph.D., professor of educational leadership, serves as vice provost for academic administration at Loyola Marymount University. Dr. Sapp joined LMU in 2015 following 14 years at Fairfield University in Connecticut, where he served as associate vice president for academic affairs and professor of English. During his time at LMU, Dr. Sapp has served as vice provost for academic affairs (2018 to 2024), dean of graduate education (2020 to 2024), and as an appointed member of the state superintendent’s Task Force on College Affordability for the California Department of Education. Dr. Sapp earned his Ph.D. in rhetoric at New Mexico State University and has studied in the Institute for Educational Management at Harvard University. He is a member of The Phi Beta Kappa Society and a recipient of a Fulbright grant to support research at the Universidad del Norte in Colombia.

As a specialist in technical writing with expertise in civic and community engagement and educational program development, Dr. Sapp has conducted fieldwork along the U.S.-Mexico border, as well as in Brazil, Spain, and Uruguay. His disciplinary research includes co-authored books published by Johns Hopkins Press and Bedford/St. Martin’s Press, and a co-edited special issue of the Journal of Rhetoric, Professional Communication, and Globalization. In addition, Dr. Sapp’s research on academic leadership has been published in the International Journal of Communication, Dean & Provost, Communication Education, Academic Leader, Journal of Communication Studies, and The Department Chair. In 2016, Dr. Sapp was recognized as a seminal scholar in the field of technical communication.

Since arriving at LMU, Dr. Sapp has collaborated with colleagues across its campuses on a variety of matters vital to the success of undergraduate, graduate, and continuing education (e.g., accreditation, new program development, fundraising). Since 2012, Dr. Sapp’s grant writing and fundraising accomplishments have included over $13M to support institutional priorities and mission. His current responsibilities include administrative oversight of or institutional partnerships with LMU Extension, AFROTC Det 040/Department of Aerospace Studies, LMU’s chapter of The Phi Beta Kappa Society, and the Academy for Jewish Religion California. Dr. Sapp also serves as the primary liaison between LMU’s academic affairs division and the Board of Trustees Academic Affairs committee. He reports to LMU’s provost and executive vice president.