Professor Isabel Capeloa Gil elected as the new President of SACRU

From left to right: Miki Sugimura, Elena Beccalli, Josep Antoni Rom Rodríguez, Pier Sandro Cocconcelli, Zlatko Skrbis, Luis Fernando Múnera Congote SJ, Isabel Capeloa Gil, Juan Carlos de la Llera, Fr. Anderson Antonio Pedroso

The Governing Board of the Strategic Alliance of Catholic Research Universities (SACRU) met on Sunday, July 27, 2025, at the Westin Hotel in Guadalajara, Mexico, under the chairmanship of SACRU President, Professor Zlatko Skrbis, Vice-Chancellor and President of Australian Catholic University.

Professor Isabel Capeloa Gil, Rector of Universidade Católica Portuguesa, was elected as the new President of SACRU for the three-year term 2025–2028. Alongside her, the Governing Board elected Professor Miki Sugimura, President of Sophia University, as the new SACRU Vice-President, succeeding Professor Elena Beccalli, Rector of Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore.

Isabel Capeloa Gil is Full Professor of Culture Studies and the current Rector of Universidade Católica Portuguesa (UCP). She holds a B.A. in Modern Languages and Literatures (1987) and an M.A. in German Studies (1992) from the University of Lisbon, as well as a Ph.D. in German Language and Culture from UCP (2001). She has served as Guest Professor in Germany (Saarbrücken, Munich), the United Kingdom, Ireland (National University of Ireland), Italy (Ca’ Foscari University of Venice), Brazil (PUC-Rio), and the United States (University of Pennsylvania and Stanford University). She is also an Honorary Fellow at the School of Advanced Studies of the University of London. From 2005 to 2012, she was Dean of the Faculty of Human Sciences at UCP. She founded The Lisbon Consortium network and leads the International Doctoral Program in Culture Studies. She is also a senior researcher and founder of the Research Centre for Communication and Culture.

The Governing Board wishes to thank Professor Zlatko Skrbis, the second President of the Alliance, for his leadership and to congratulate Professor Isabel Capeloa Gil on her appointment.