Short receives ASU Distinguished Community Partner Award

ASU’s School of Geographical Sciences & Urban Planning this year initiated a new award that recognizes a community member who’s provided ongoing leadership support to ASU’s planning program. The first recipient of the Distinguished Community Partner Award is Ron Short, a planner with distinguished accomplishments in Arizona and nationally.

Short has been a strong friend to ASU’s planning program, and most recently led in developing and establishing a professional mentor program for the Masters in Urban and Environmental Planning Program (MUEP).

The professional mentor program, which pairs MUEP students with local planning professionals, began this fall with 23 student-mentor pairs. Mentors meet regularly with their mentees, allowing ample opportunity to discuss questions ranging from decisions about coursework to current planning practice. 

Short worked for the City of Glendale, Ariz., in the Planning Department, from 2000-2010, retiring in 2010 as deputy planning director. In the last few years, he’s been involved in numerous civic activities, especially as an influential advocate for historic preservation. He is president of the Glendale Arizona Historical Society, an active board member of the Arizona Preservation Foundation, and planning committee member of the Annual Statewide Historic Preservation Conference. 

In the course of his career, Short has been a public planner in eight states, holding 13 positions, including serving as executive director of the Hillsborough County-City County Planning Commission of Tampa, Florida, planning director for the City of Phoenix and planning director for Albuquerque, N.M.. He is active in the American Planning Association (APA) at both the state and national levels. In Florida, he served as APA Chapter President and President of the Florida Planning and Zoning Association. He was a director at large on the National APA Board.

In Arizona, Short was elected as chapter president and also served as vice-president for professional development for two terms. Very few planners in the United States who have served as presidents of two state chapters. In 2002, Short was inducted by the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP) to its College of Fellows – the highest level of recognition given to professional planners in the United States.

Short accepted the Distinguished Community Partner Award at the school’s April 30 Awards Reception.

“The AICP Code of Ethics calls for professionals to “give back” and contribute to the education of the next generation of planners,” comments ASU planning professor Jay Stein. “Perhaps more than any other planner I know, Ron has done this by his efforts to develop a student mentor program, give guest lectures, organize professional development workshops, and support our program’s reaccreditation. Most important, Ron is a great role model for our students.”