Matthew Little

Director, Community-Engaged Learning & Leadership
Matthew Little
they/them/theirs

Summary

Matthew (they/them) is a queer/feminist practitioner-scholar committed to critical community engagement and place-based curriculum, teaching, and knowledge sharing. As a first-generation (GEAR UP) student and two-time graduate of the University of Nevada, Reno, their approach to community engagement highlights the urgent need to turn theory into evidence-based practice through collaboration, critical reflection, and fostering mutual benefit and reciprocity for everyone involved. They deeply honor and incorporate queer and Black feminist thought and theory to guide their principles of community engagement, leadership, and scholarship.

By integrating these frameworks, Matthew has actively engaged with and supported diverse communities through nonprofit leadership and academic efforts for over ten years, emphasizing the importance of equity and justice in education, especially for historically underrepresented and first-generation college students. As the Director of the Office of Community-Engaged Learning & Leadership, they aim to utilize these approaches to help all participants build an effective University-Community Coalition focused on social progress and community innovation at local, state, and national levels.

Expertise

  • Application of queer and feminist thought and theory
  • Critical community engagement and engaged scholarship or research
  • Leadership development and building workplace or organizational capacity
  • Youth and adult educational programming, development, and assessment/evaluation
  • Public service, nonprofit, and community or place-based collaborations
  • Grassroots coalition building and community organizing
  • Volunteer and community service management and coordination

Experience

  • University of Nevada, Reno
    • Office of Community-Engaged Learning & Leadership
      • Community-Engaged Learning Council – Chair
      • Faculty Senate – Community Engagement Committee
      • Office of Government and Community Engagement – Community Engagement Committee
      • Center for Student Engagement – Silver Paw Award Committee
      • Bonner Leadership Program Coordinator
    • College of Engineering
      • K12 Outreach – MAKE Nevada Coordinator
    • Residential Life, Housing, & Food Services
      • Residential Assistant
      • Residence Hall Association
      • Residence Hall Leadership Council
    • Boys & Girls Club of Truckee Meadows
      • Club Directors Academy Certificate, 2019
      • School Site Coordinator
      • Project LEARN Tutor
      • Program Aid
  • The Walt Disney Company
    • Disney College Program

Awards

  • President’s Faculty of the Month Service Award – June 2026

Presentations & Panels

  • “On Reproductive Justice, Gender Affirming Care and Moral Panic,” Panel Member, Thought on Tap Public Engagement Series, 2024
  • “Queering Spaces,” Bonner Foundation, Summer Leadership Institute, 2023

Publications & Projects

Book Reviews

  • Matthew Little (06 Feb 2025): Undoing Suicidism: A Trans, Queer, Crip Approach to Rethinking (Assisted) Suicide, Women's Studies in Communication.

Projects

  • A Portfolio on Queering Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Initiatives in Higher Education: The Bonner Leadership Program (2022). University of Nevada, Reno.
  • Re-Classification for Community Engagement: The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching (2026). Co-author. University of Nevada, Reno.

Education

M.A. in Gender, Race, and Identity Studies, University of Nevada, Reno, 2022
B.A. in Gender, Race, and Identity Studies, University of Nevada, Reno, 2017