Engaged Scholar Community Impact Award

The Engaged Scholar Community Impact Award is presented to a scholar whose work transcends the traditional boundaries of the academy to make significant, tangible contributions to the broader higher education community. Inspired by Dr. jeni hart’s 2024 presidential theme "I Am A Scholar," this award recognizes individuals who embody the Association’s commitment to fostering scholarly inquiry in all its forms. It specifically honors those who apply their expertise to enhance policy, practice, and community well-being, demonstrating that impactful scholarship is not limited to tenure-track roles but is a vital force for change across diverse professional landscapes.

Nomination Evaluation Criteria

When reviewing nominations, the awards committee will make decisions based on the following preferred and demonstrated attributes:

• Evidence of community integration and collaborative design

• Impactful translation of research into practice or policy

• Breadth of scholarly contribution across diverse outputs

• Recognition of professional impact and leadership in the field

Awards Timeline

• Early May: Awards Nominations Open

• June 30, 2026, 8:00am Pacific: Awards Nominations close. Due to the number of submissions and the review process, no late submissions will be accepted; as such, nominators are encouraged to submit their nominations well in advance of this deadline. 

• June-September: Committee review of nominations

• Late September: Notification to nominators of committee decisions

• Mid-October: Association-wide announcement of recipients

• November: Awards Ceremony during ASHE 2026 Annual Conference

Nomination Requirements

To submit a nomination, you will need:

• Your ASHE website log-in credentials (as nominator).

• The name of your nominee as they have it listed with ASHE to be able to look them up in the nominations system.

• Agreement that the nominee is aware of the nomination, will attend the ASHE 2026 conference in San Juan, and will maintain continued membership in ASHE.

• The Nominee's CV to be uploaded as a PDF.

• A nomination statement up to 750 words that demonstrates the nominee's match to the award evaluation criteria. This should not be a nomination or support letter, but a summary of the nominee's qualifications for this specific award.

• 2-3 letters of support. For upload into the nomination form, these should be combined into one document as a PDF.

• Agreement to ASHE Policies including the requirements of membership and ethics policies.

Due to the increased number of nominations received in recent years, each nominee will be limited to one nomination. In the event multiple nominations are submitted, the committee chair will notify the coordinating nominators requesting they consolidate their nominations.

Questions about the award process can be sent to awards@ashe.ws.

Conflicts of Interest

ASHE's Conflict of Interest Policy aims to ensure the integrity of the process. In establishing this policy, the Association sets forth circumstances that require ASHE members to refrain or recuse themselves from participation and circumstances where ASHE members need to consider whether the nature of their relationship creates the actuality or appearance of a conflict. 

To avoid conflicts of interests, current members of the Board of Directors, respective Council Executive Committees, and/or respective awards committees are ineligible to be part of the awards process, including nominating colleagues, being nominated, and writing letters of support.