Sarah Stankey earned a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where she pursued interdisciplinary studies connecting the humanities and sciences through the Center for Culture, History and the Environment and earned a PhD certificate from the Nelson Institute. Her interest in museum collections and exhibition installation began during graduate school and has since developed into extensive experience working with museums and galleries.

Stankey has served as a curator for the Education Gallery in the UW-Madison School of Education and the Arts + Literature Laboratory in Madison. She has worked for the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art as a photographer and assistant preparator. Her combined experience in curatorial practice, exhibition installation, photography, and collections work informs her interdisciplinary approach to the arts and museum practice.