A Front Door to Pitt: Grounded in the Heart of the Community is a five-year retrospective celebrating Pitt's Neighborhood Commitments' work.
Our Impact
Caring with and about our communities
Across our Neighborhood Commitments
The impact of Pitt's Neighborhood Commitments often extends well beyond the four walls of the CECs.
Our success depends on being a strong community partner:
- to be an asset to the community
- to do work that is mutually beneficial
- to make a long-term commitment and build strong partnerships over time
Across the board, Pitt is committed to connecting regional economic growth and planning to opportunity at the local level.
This means that as avenues open up, there are positive implications for neighborhood-based preK-12 education, youth development, workforce development, and business development.
By the Numbers
2,000+
hours of programming were hosted at the CECs in calendar year 2023
10,976
people have visited the Homewood and Hill District CECs since opening
66%
of the CEC operating budget was spent with local Black owned businesses in 2023-24
163
full-time Pitt staff hired from Oakland, Homewood, the Hill District, and Greater Hazelwood in 2023-24
Stories of Our Impact
A Front Door to Pitt: Five Years of Engagement & Impact with Pitt's CECs
"Our most important asset is our people."
– Heidi Ward, Director of Planning for Community and Life Sciences Integration in Greater Hazelwood, Office of Engagement and Community Affairs
The Gismondi Foundation commits to more than $1 Million to support Pitt's community engagement efforts
"John and Lisa Gismondi originally supported the development of the PittEnrich program in our Homewood neighborhood commitment. By generously expanding their support, we are significantly expanding our impact in other communities."
- Lina Dostilio, Vice Chancellor of Engagement and Community Affairs
How a Pitt program in the Hill District is closing the digital divide in Pittsburgh
“Across the board, our job is to remove barriers to access.”
- Keith Caldwell, Executive Director of Place-Based Initiatives, Office of Engagement and Community Affairs
Putting community members in the driver's seat of health research
"Community-based participatory research ensures that the community is involved from the start – that those receiving the services have a voice in developing them."
– Dr. Janet Freburger, PT, PhD, Pitt School of Health and Rehabilitation Science
Good for business, good for the community
"I'm looking forward to the Community Engagement Center opening because we have a say in how Pitt works with our community. It makes a difference and I myself have experienced that positive impact."
– Emmett Smith, Owner, Golden Triangle Distributors
A model of civic-minded development
"Efforts from Pitt send a strong tone for community participation and bring stakeholders together to talk more specifically about how we see Pitt in the community."
– Rashad Byrdsong, MA’AT Construction and Community Empowerment Association