Virginia Tech CIO Sharon Pitt appointed as new board chair for EDUCAUSE
Sharon Pitt, Virginia Tech’s new vice president for information technology and chief information officer, has been appointed as chair of the EDUCAUSE board of directors.
EDUCAUSE is a nonprofit association dedicated to advancing the strategic use of technology and data to support higher education. The organization works to connect and empower member communities, sharing insights, anticipating trends, and strengthening the overall practice of information technology at universities and colleges.
The appointment comes at the same time that Pitt joins Virginia Tech, where she oversees the university's information technology operations across all areas and directs the strategy and efforts of the Division of Information Technology. Pitt will report to Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Amy Sebring and will serve on the President’s Council. Her leadership is expected to expand the university’s efforts to enhance digital capabilities and drive technological innovation while also providing a steady hand to complete a variety of initiatives already underway, including the Google and Microsoft license changes and the migration to Zoom Phone.
“I am delighted to be returning to my alma mater and the university where I began my IT career, and honored to be taking on a leadership role at Virginia Tech and for EDUCAUSE,” Pitt said.
Another critical initiative currently in progress, IT Transformation, will move under Pitt’s leadership as she begins her work. The program took shape in 2022 within University Operations as an effort to bolster enterprisewide information technology and cybersecurity at Virginia Tech. This strategic shift will align resources, leverage the existing strengths of each team, and foster deeper collaboration for the multiple projects currently under the IT Transformation umbrella. The change will also enable the division to lead transformational projects into the future.
“IT Transformation grew out of a recognition by the Board of Visitors regarding the criticality of technology to meeting the university’s strategic objectives. In order to truly transform the university’s use and distribution of technology, IT Transformation must result in approaches that guide investments in software, systems, security, and technology personnel to meet the needs of our faculty, staff and students,” Sebring said. “By bringing the IT Transformation office under Sharon’s leadership, my goal is to facilitate the coordination of the IT Transformation initiative with the day-to-day operations of the Division of IT.”
