Pitt’s influence now reaches across the Atlantic in the form of the Macedonia Center for… Pitt’s influence now reaches across the Atlantic in the form of the Macedonia Center for Public Policy and Management, an extension of Pitt’s Graduate School of Public and International Affairs.

Located within Saints Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, the capital of Macedonia, the center features two main programs. The programs offer a master’s degree in public policy, for students with five years of academic experience, and a certificate in public policy management, which is designed for students with an undergraduate degree.

The center is the culmination of years of work by William N. Dunn, a professor of public policy management at Pitt and the director of the center.

Funding for the center came in the form of a $1.4 million grant from the U.S. State Department, $350,000 from the government of Macedonia, and $1 million from Pitt.

Classes will be taught by a “dual faculty” consisting of staff from Cyril and Methodius and instructors at Pitt. The Pitt professors will teach via live feeds using computers in addition to pre-recorded lectures.

Because the classes are to be taught in English, incoming students will be required learn the language before attending class. These classes will include general conversational English as well as specialized vocabulary for a student’s field of study.

GSPIA chose to work with Macedonia because of Dunn’s work in the country, and because it is a central location in Eastern Europe. Dunn anticipates that students from surrounding areas will enroll at the center.