Susan E. Short inducted into Academy of Community Engagement Scholarship
For Susan E. Short, community engagement has always been about what becomes possible when people who might not otherwise share a table start learning from one another. That conviction, built over two decades of connecting Virginia Tech with the communities it serves, has now earned one of the field’s highest honors.
Short, senior associate vice president for outreach and international affairs, has been inducted into the Academy of Community Engagement Scholarship, a lifetime distinction recognizing scholars and leaders who have made significant contributions to community-engaged work and who commit to bringing that expertise to complex social, civic, and economic challenges.
Short joined 23 others in the academy’s 2026 class, adding to a network of more than 150 members from higher education and community organizations in the United States and abroad. Members are selected through a peer nomination and review process based on the significance and sustained influence of their work.
“Susan exemplifies the best of Virginia Tech’s land-grant mission and has long championed this commitment to our commonwealth and community partners,” said Julie Ross, Virginia Tech’s executive vice president and provost. “Her leadership and highly engaged approach to community service have strengthened our presence and reputation across Virginia. I congratulate Susan on her induction into the Academy of Community Engagement Scholarship and thank her for her continued contributions to Virginia Tech and the communities we serve.”
Suzanne Morse Moomaw, president of the academy and chair of urban and environmental planning in the University of Virginia School of Architecture, nominated Short.
“Dr. Short is a boundary-spanning professional,” Moomaw said. “She brings a tremendous community portfolio to ACES, but also deep-rooted organizational skills that will be instrumental in the organizational development of ACES. She is a valued colleague and leader in community engagement scholarship and practice.”
Short joined Virginia Tech in 2004 after a 20-year career with the Virginia Community College System. Moomaw said that experience helped shape Short’s understanding of how higher education institutions can connect with the communities around them.
Since then, Short has taken on increasingly broad leadership roles shaping Virginia Tech’s outreach and engagement strategy. As senior associate vice president in Outreach and International Affairs, she helps align the university’s teaching, research, and service missions with community and global needs. Her work has expanded opportunities for experiential learning, strengthened partnerships across sectors, and encouraged collaboration among faculty, students, university units, and community organizations.
“Those relationships can lead to new ideas, meaningful opportunities for students, and solutions none of us would have reached alone,” Short said.
Short provides strategic leadership for a wide-ranging portfolio of outreach, economic development, continuing education, regional engagement, and international programs. She also chairs Virginia Tech’s Engagement Leadership Council, which brings together leaders from across the university to strengthen and coordinate engagement efforts.
Her influence extends beyond Virginia Tech through service with national and regional organizations focused on community engagement. She serves on the board of the Engagement Scholarship Consortium and has helped advance professional development and institutional support for engaged scholarship across higher education.
Guru Ghosh, vice president for outreach and international affairs, said Short’s influence extends beyond the programs she leads.
“Susan has shaped the way Virginia Tech approaches engagement at every level,” Ghosh said. “She sees connections across disciplines, places, and people, and she knows how to turn those connections into lasting partnerships and meaningful opportunities for students.”
Among her recent accomplishments, Short led Virginia Tech’s successful 2026 application for the Carnegie Elective Classification for Community Engagement, a national designation recognizing the university’s commitment to mutually beneficial partnerships and the integration of engagement across its mission.
She also played a central role in bringing the Engagement Scholarship Consortium’s 2025 annual conference to Roanoke. The gathering drew nearly 700 scholars, practitioners, and community partners for more than 250 sessions focused on engaged teaching, research, and practice. At the conference, Short received the consortium’s inaugural President’s Award for Distinguished Service, recognizing her longtime leadership and contributions to the organization and the broader field.
For Short, the strongest partnerships are reciprocal. Faculty and students work with communities with curiosity and respect, while community members help shape the questions, methods, and solutions.
“Community engagement challenges us to think differently about who holds knowledge and how universities put that knowledge to work,” Short said. “It asks us to be present, to build trust, and to stay committed to relationships over time.”
Election to the academy carries an expectation that inductees will keep contributing their expertise to community and societal challenges — a responsibility Short welcomes.
“This recognition reflects the work of so many people who have shaped my understanding of engagement over the years,” Short said. “I have been fortunate to learn alongside community partners, faculty, students, and colleagues who believe that universities do their best work when we listen, build relationships, and create solutions together. I look forward to continuing that work with others across the academy.”
