Sara Cody

Photo Credit: Adam Glanzman
By Kacey Connolly '21

Sara Cody ’10 is the Communications Officer for the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT AeroAstro), where she gets outsiders excited about the work her department does, and sometimes even gets to work closely with astronauts and NASA.

“I feel like I owe it to my department to give them the best work that I can do,” Cody said. “Seeing my people, MIT faculty, staff and students, and how good they are at what they do and the quality of work that they produce motivates me to want that same output.”  

Cody is from Franklin, Massachusetts and now lives in Norwood, Massachusetts. While studying at the University of Massachusetts, she majored in Journalism and minored in Biology, combining her passion for storytelling and love of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). 

During her four years at UMass, Cody worked in both the STEM and journalism world. She spent time as a laboratory technician for the University of Massachusetts Medical School, UMass Memorial Hospital, and was involved with science outreach through the Massachusetts Academy of Science. She was also an intern for the Daily Hampshire Gazette and Managing Web Editor for The Massachusetts Daily Collegian.  

“I didn’t ultimately end up in journalism, but that sort of mindset to just give yourself over to learning whatever it is that I need to learn has helped me develop this sort of weird skillset that has come in handy with every job that I’ve ever had.” 

Before working at MIT, Cody landed jobs at a startup and in healthcare before ending up in higher education. Her roles included production, digital communications, editing and writing, and managing websites for external and internal audiences. Cody now leads departmental internal and external communications to promote AeroAstro's research and academic programs. She coordinates the communication and public relations efforts and manages the department’s brand via print, digital news channels, and social media.

Today, Cody spends her time with her three cats, dog and husband, Jeffrey R. Larnard '10, a fellow alum of the UMass Journalism Department and the Daily Collegian. She credits the Collegian’s basement office for harboring her fondest UMass memories. In her home, a framed photo of a Collegian story she uncovered together with Larnard hangs on the wall, a sentiment that belongs to their college life and their campus wedding that followed after graduation.

This profile was written as a part of the 2021 Alumni Spotlight Series by students in the Writing for Public Relations course.

Cody is now the director of employee communications and engagement at Harvard University for the Faculty of Arts and Sciences.