Carrie Gonsor Sanderson is a Pierre, South Dakota native. She earned her Bachelor of Arts, Master of Public Administration and Juris Doctorate degrees from the University of South Dakota. Immediately after receiving her education, Ms. Sanderson served as the Executive Director for the South Dakota Association for County Officials where Ms. Sanderson represented South Dakota’s Auditors, Treasurers, and Registers of Deeds on a state and national level and coordinated training opportunities for officials. Ms. Sanderson soon entered private practice with the Moreno, Lee & Bachand, P.C. Law Firm in Pierre, South Dakota. Ms. Sanderson’s law practice focused on civil litigation and support of alternative sentencing courts. Ms. Sanderson served as the Chairperson for Mental Health Boards in 12 rural counties and assisted in management of the South Dakota State’s Attorneys Association. In 2014, Ms. Sanderson accepted a position with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of South Dakota, where she prosecuted violent crimes. As an Assistant United States Attorney, Ms. Sanderson became intimately familiar with the services many victims require but are hard to come by due to the rural nature of our state and recognized that South Dakota has the potential to do more for people who experience trauma in their lives. In 2017, Ms. Sanderson became the inaugural Director of the Center for the Prevention of Child Maltreatment as USD. Ms. Sanderson’s leadership style combines her extensive background in agency work with her first-hand knowledge of the justice system to positively influence policy and advocacy work surrounding child maltreatment in South Dakota. Ms. Sanderson is excited to continue working to protect South Dakota’s children and to create resilient families in our great state.
Ms. Sanderson lives in Flandreau, SD, with her husband Jared and their four daughters.