TPN Top 5 of 2017: A year in review
By Amanda Reed | Online Engagement Editor
January 8, 2018
Most-Viewed Stories of 2017 Students tackle gun-toting assailants on Friday (Jan. 31, 2017) Three Pitt students fought off three assailants in January, striking back when one suspect pointed a gun at them. The three students thwarted the men by tackling them to the ground, and left uninjured — although s...
Going through the gap: taking time off before college
By Anna Borgandino | Senior Staff Writer
January 8, 2018
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
After realizing she waited too long to apply for a visa that would be ready in time for her first semester at Pitt, Iolanda Neto had a decision to make. She could either apply for entry in the spring 2015 semester — like her mother urged her to do — or take a gap year.a “I didn’t have a pressing urge to take a...
In case you missed it: News from winter break 2017
By News Editors
January 8, 2018
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, City, News
December 13 — Former Pitt professor Carol Stabile published an article in Ms. Magazine claiming there was widespread harassment and discrimination within the University's communication department in the early 2000s. University spokesperson Joe Miksch told The Pitt News Dec. 16 that Pitt’s Title IX office ...
Union will re-open tomorrow after water line break
By John Hamilton / Managing Editor
January 7, 2018
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
A water line broke in the William Pitt Union Sunday morning, flooding some of the bottom two floors. But the building will re-open Monday morning, as scheduled, according to a Tweet from Pitt. https://twitter.com/jham1496/status/950049243254984706 Water seemed to be coming from above the Union...
Gallagher responds to communication department harassment claims
By John Hamilton / Managing Editor
December 20, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Administration, Campus, News
Chancellor Patrick Gallagher responded to allegations of sexual harassment and discrimination in Pitt's Department of Communication Wednesday in an email to the Pitt community. The email is a response to a recent Ms. Magazine blog post, written by a former Pitt professor, alleging sexual harassment and d...
Pitt grad students file for union election
By John Hamilton / Managing Editor
December 15, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Administration, Campus, News
Graduate students at Pitt filed for a union election Friday, indicating that at least 30 percent of Pitt grad students have signed union cards. Students delivered union cards to the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board in Harrisburg Friday afternoon. An election could take place early next year if Pitt...
Making the grade: Professors set aside time to score student work
By Salina Pressimone, Caroline Bourque and Rachel Glasser | TPN Staff
December 11, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Last weekend you could probably find Leonardo Solano buried in the dissertation room of Hillman, or pocketed away somewhere in Panera Bread, grading 160 pages of undergraduate Spanish papers. While it usually takes graduate students such as Solano a long time to grade papers during the semester, finals...
Seniors secure plans in last semester
By Laura Howe | Staff Writer
December 10, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Speaking from experience, Aikta Rajput has some pretty simple advice for Pitt undergrads — be positive. “Don’t sweat anything. Don’t be upset for more than five minutes, don’t fight with your friends, don’t take anything too seriously because it goes by so fast,” she said. “You’re goi...
Students contend with Christmas
By Rose Luder | Staff Writer
December 8, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
The Cathedral of Learning is adorned with tinsel and stringed lights, Schenley Plaza is lined with luminescent Christmas trees and holiday songs can be heard in almost every building on campus. For many, this show of holiday spirit is part of the buildup to the biggest holiday of the year — Christma...
Toomey’s got mail: Grad students deliver letters
By Rachel Glasser | News Editor
December 7, 2017
The Grinch is best known for stealing Christmas, but he left Whoville and showed up on the doorstep of U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey’s Downtown office Wednesday. It was a blustery day, windy and in the low 40s, but Ph.D. epidemiology student Abby Cartus attributed the conditions to something other than ...
Pitt alum speaks about science policy
By Amanda Finney | Staff Writer
December 6, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Tech Science, Uncategorized
Women in STEM often leave their jobs mid-career to spend more time with their families, but then later struggle to integrate back into the workplace. To help women in this situation regain their careers, Martha Merrill worked to implement a STEM reentry workshop. This job is just one of the posi...
Athletes, educators discuss activism in sports
By Brian Salvato | For The Pitt News
December 6, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Sports, Sports Features, Top Stories
When former third-string Pitt kicker Ian Troost took a knee during the national anthem at the team’s Oct. 14 loss to NC State, his motivation was rooted in his background. “My reason, other than to highlight police brutality and social injustice in the United States, was because I came from a b...
Police arrest man after continued harassment claims
By Janine Faust / Assistant News Editor
December 5, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, Crime, News
Pitt police arrested a man Tuesday night after issuing a bulletin alerting students of his potential presence in Oakland and citing several female students who said he “made them feel uncomfortable.” “We would like our community to be aware of a suspicious subject identified as Daniel Dintin...
Hurricane brings Puerto Rican law students to Pitt
By Laura Howe | Staff Writer
December 4, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
When Hurricane Maria struck the island of Puerto Rico in September, it left almost the entire island without electricity, and residents had limited access to food and water. David Canino was thankful for the bare essentials. “Even though I didn’t have water or light, nothing happened to my house. S...
Holiday open house features plans for new Nationality Room
By Elise Lavallee, Contributing Editor
December 4, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Adorned with Christmas decorations, filled with the aroma of food and ringing with music and conversation, the Cathedral’s atmosphere matched that of a holiday bazaar. The Nationality Room and Intercultural Exchange Programs hosted their 26th annual Holiday Open House Sunday from noon to 4 p.m....
Union organizers talk tax bill, moving forward
By Remy Samuels | Staff Writer
December 4, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
Graduate students sexually harassed or assaulted by a faculty member have the option to file a claim with the Title IX office.But Hillary Lazar said a graduate student union would help hold Title IX and the University accountable, pressing the office and the administration to investigate these types ...
Asian student groups craft culture showcase
By David Soloman | Staff Writer
December 4, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Several students engaged in matches of Rock, Paper, Scissors on Saturday to see who would ascend Mount Everest first. This did not take place in the Himalayas, but rather as a game held in the O’Hara Student Center as part of the XSA Asian Culture Fair Saturday. Groups of students roamed around ...
Students reconcile religion, identity
By Sid Lingala | Staff Writer
December 1, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Bridget Duffy felt uncomfortable practicing her family religion of Catholicism when she found out same-sex couples could not get married in Catholic churches and infants of same-sex couples were not allowed to be baptized. “I’m a traditional person. But I need someone else to tell me that God does...
Student immerses in African cultures
By Hannah Schneider, Staff Writer
December 1, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
Speaking about his travels to Africa, Derric Heck described his experiences researching African cultures as “amazing.” “It was not only informative for me, it was transformative,” Heck said. About 20 students gathered in Posvar Hall Thursday afternoon to attend a discussion Heck led, titled ...
Share your experiences of hate and bias on campus
By John Hamilton / Managing Editor
November 30, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
The Pitt News is joining ProPublica’s Documenting Hate project to better report on incidents of hate, bias and harassment at Pitt — and we want to hear your stories. Reports of hate crimes are up nationwide, and college campuses are no exception. The Federal Bureau of Investigation received rep...
ASA, BAS explore racial identities, histories
By Anandhini Narayanan | Staff Writer
November 30, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
When Olivia Carter asked the 20-something students gathered in a single-file line in the William Pitt Union to step back if they’d ever “endured physical or verbal abuse due to [their] race,” the majority of them moved out of line. This “line game” was part of a larger conversation about rac...
Committee to consider sustainable investment
By Madison Hook | Staff Writer
November 30, 2017
Filed under Administration, Campus, News, Top Stories
Student activist Sarah Grguras says people often ask her what the money Pitt invests in the fossil fuel industry could go toward. Her response? “Literally anything.” “They could invest in the Pittsburgh public schools, or they could invest in us,” the junior environmental science and ...
Grad students rally against GOP tax plan
By Salina Pressimone | Staff Writer
November 30, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Administration, Campus, News
Andrew Bellesis faces new decisions about his career prospects as the recently introduced Republican tax bill looms over the potential cost of his next five years at Pitt. “We will defeat this bill,” Bellesis, a first-year biophysics Ph.D. student, said through his megaphone. “And in the lo...
Pitt political groups face off in first ‘great three-way debate’
By Madeline Gavatorta | Staff Writer
November 29, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
Ben Sheppard, president of Pitt’s Libertarian group Students for Liberty, went after both major political parties in his opening remarks during the first-ever three-way debate with the College Democrats and the College Republicans Tuesday night. “Tonight on stage, there are two other parties — on one hand...
Professor unearths Israeli heritage
By Zoe Pawliczek | Staff Writer
November 28, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Professor Jodi Magness embarked on a mission in 2011 to excavate the Huqoq synagogue in Israel with little idea of its contents — and with only an ancient village as its possible location. Unsure of whether they would find anything, Magness’ team randomly picked a square as their first dig site and d...
Students discuss porn industry’s repercussions
By Jaime Weinreb | For The Pitt News
November 28, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
According to the Pornhub’s 2016 Year in Review, nearly 92 billion videos were viewed in on the porn streaming website in 2016 alone. “We’ve all watched it, it’s everywhere,” junior Elena Stains said after presenting the statistic. About 10 people attended the “Let’s Talk About ...
Students dedicate time to developing drone
By Anish Salvi | For The Pitt News
November 20, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News, Tech Science
Levi Burner had dreamed of making a flying machine since he was 8 years old. The junior electrical engineering student finally got his chance when he started to build a drone for the International Aerial Robotics Competition more than a year ago. “The fact that we have found a competition that ...
Pitt and CMU students pitch products
By Nina Kneuer | Staff Writer
November 19, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Christopher Dumm made an auditorium of 50 people laugh when he pulled an old surgical retractor out of a bag and tossed it on the ground in front of him. Dumm wasn’t a comedian, but rather a student innovator trying to pitch his idea for a new form of surgical retractor in less than 90 seconds ...
SASA, BAS converse about colorism
By Hannah Schneider, For The Pitt News
November 19, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Until about two weeks ago, Anvit Rai wasn’t familiar with the concept of colorism. “I had heard of [colorism], but I didn’t know how pervasive or important it was,” Rai said. “To a degree, I always thought that colorism was racism. I didn’t know it was a completely separate entity.” ...
Students demand disarmament
By Janine Faust, Assistant News Editor
November 19, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
A group of students marched throughout Oakland Friday afternoon waving flags and signs with slogans such as “Disarm the police, arm your desire” and chanting “A.C.A.B., all cops are bastards.” Their words elicited varying reactions from observers. “Go home commies!” someone yelled fro...
Student rally concludes “occupation” peaceful
By Janine Faust | Assistant News Editor
November 18, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
About 50 students participated in a rally held on Towers patio Friday afternoon. The rally marked the end of an “occupation” of the Cathedral of Learning which began. A small group of students went to Chancellor Patrick Gallagher’s office Tuesday with a letter of 15 demands, including disarming the Pi...
Student renters raise the bar off-campus
By David Solomon and Olivia Kolesar | For The Pitt News
November 17, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
In his spare time this summer, Garrett Heid got crafty with some IKEA furniture he had lying around, a few pieces of wood and a 22-gauge stainless steel door from a fridge he found during his part-time construction job. “I don’t know if you know what 22-gauge steel is?” Heid said. “It’s basic...
Try before you buy: rentable items in Oakland
By Zoe Pawliczek | Staff Writer
November 17, 2017
For Pitt students of all ages, the end of the fall semester is a time for studying, planning vacations and searching for rentals — and not necessarily housing rentals. Students looking to try before they buy can check out a variety of rental services that fit into a college budget. While some ...
Student arrested in Hillman
By Janine Faust and Caroline Bourque | News Editors
November 16, 2017
Filed under Campus, Crime, News, Top Stories
Pitt police charged a student with obstructing administration of law or other government function and tampering with evidence at Hillman Library Tuesday night, according to University spokesperson Joe Miksch. Miksch said officers were investigating suspicious activity on a computer on the first floo...
Like father, like son: Barry Goldwater Jr. visits Pitt
By Brian Salvato | For The Pitt News
November 16, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
After college, Barry Goldwater Jr. decided to become a stockbroker, while his best friend studied to be a doctor. Their lives diverged from this point forward — and so did their income. “Does that mean that the government should come and take much of what he has earned? I say no,” Goldwater Jr. sai...
Student protestors stage Cathedral sit-in
By Janine Faust | Assistant News Editor
November 15, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
A small group of students entered Chancellor Patrick Gallagher’s office Tuesday morning with a letter of 15 demands, including disarming University police. The letter also demanded the University vocally endorse a graduate student union, divest from fossil fuels, install a $15 Pitt-wide minimum wage ...
Panel discusses women’s menstrual hygiene
By Anandhini Narayanan | Staff Writer
November 15, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
When Pittsburgh City councilwoman Natalia Rudiak received an email from the Department of Public Works — an organization dedicated to maintaining Pittsburgh’s infrastructure — about putting pad dispensers in the vicinity of public pools, she had to explain to them why their idea wouldn’t work....
Club hosts series on dating violence
By Remy Samuels | Staff Writer
November 14, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
A Pitt student’s death is still leaving a mark on campus, more than a month after her passing. In light of Alina Sheykhet’s death, Pitt Unmuted — a club created for survivors of sexual assault to share their stories — held a series of three events discussing the topic of intimate partner viol...
Law student sues Pitt, claiming Title IX complaint was mistreated
By The Pitt News Staff
November 13, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Administration, Campus, News
A former Pitt law student has sued the University, claiming Pitt employees mistreated her when they responded to a Title IX complaint she filed. Hannah Rullo filed a lawsuit Oct. 25 in the U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh against the University of Pittsburgh saying she was subjected to gende...
Pitt alum potential CNN Hero of the Year for humanitarianism efforts
By Anna Bongardino | Contributing Editor
November 13, 2017
Filed under Campus, Health, News, Top Stories
At the age of 22, Samir Lakhani spent several long and laborious days cleaning, sanitizing and compressing used bars of soap with one young Cambodian woman. The woman, Prornh Thearang, spoke no English, but the duo sat side-by-side for hours, listening to Cambodian folk music as they worked. Lakhan...
Panel sheds light on refugee mental health
By Amanda Finney | Staff Writer
November 13, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
If you had to make a list of your four most important things, tangible or intangible, what would they be? This is the question panelist Sarah Faulx posed to 40 audience members Friday night in William Pitt Union Dining Room B. After encouraging them to take out their phones and make the list, she...
Asian-American entertainer discusses representation
By Hannah Schneider, For The Pitt News
November 13, 2017
After her sister committed suicide in 2007, Anna Akana felt she had no purpose in life — until she was drawn into the world of stand-up comedy. “It’s the only thing that made me feel alive,” Akana said. But she wasn’t even aware comedy was a viable career path for her until she saw A...
Law professor underscores reproductive rights
By Laura Howe | For The Pitt News
November 10, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
An older man in the audience of a reproductive rights lecture looked around the room and commented on the lack of people like him. “You know, I think Rep. [Tim] Murphy summed up the whole problem, and that is men sort of abandon the issue or exclude themselves from the discussion until it immediate...
Student scores scholarship to start LGBTQ+ on campus
By Remy Samuels | Staff Writer
November 9, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Amy Kelley said she was “living the life.” Why? Because she got to hear Hillary Clinton speak and had people drive her around the nation’s capital as part of her invitation to attend the Human Rights Campaign’s National Dinner in Washington, D.C. Oct. 28. “It was really awesome,” Ke...
Student dissatisfaction aired at Master Plan focus groups
By Elise Lavallee | Contributing Editor
November 9, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
When asked at a Campus Master Plan focus group meeting about what kind of future aesthetic students want Pitt to have, students made it clear that functionality comes before aesthetic for them. “Functionality first,” one student said, before others chimed in agreement. Students convened in the U...
Students lament low voter turnout at local elections
By Hannah Schneider, For The Pitt News
November 8, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
After last year’s presidential election results, Zoe Kovacs didn’t expect to be one of the only people at the polls Tuesday. But when she showed up at Posvar Hall at 2 p.m., she was “appalled” to find she was only the 40th person to show up. “[The poll workers] were all cheering, ...
Gubernatorial candidate gives take on economy, health care at Pitt
By Rose Luder | Staff Writer
November 7, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
When Paul Mango was at U.S. Military Academy at West Point, he had calculus six days a week. “I hope sitting here and listening to me is less painful than calculus at West Point on a Saturday morning,” the Republican primary candidate for governor joked before a crowd of Pitt students Monday ni...
Students simulate marginalized experiences
By Elise Lavallee | Contributing Editor
November 7, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
A young man sat at a table behind two black curtains in the William Pitt Union Assembly Room Monday night. Across the table, two individuals intensely interrogated him. “What religion do you practice?” asked one. “What does your name mean?” followed the other. This scenario was part of Bo...
Hijab-wearing model advocates for modesty, Muslim women
By Zoe Pawliczek | Staff Writer
November 5, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
Model Mariah Idrissi asked where she could buy a hijab in Pittsburgh while speaking at the William Pitt Union Saturday night. “Fashion is present very prominently in all of our lives, especially growing up in the [United States],” Amal Saeed, a junior molecular biology major and president of Muslim S...
7-Eleven’s closing leaves students conflicted
By Nina Kneuer | Staff Writer
November 1, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
Regina Brecker said 7-Eleven “saved [her] life” on more than one occasion when she pulled all-nighters in the library. “Without it, I would have had to walk all the way to the McDonald's for food,” Brecker said. “This was so important, especially when I was living in the dorms and didn't...
Pitt shoots for bigger basketball crowds
By Bailey Frisco | Staff Writer
November 1, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Tanisha Brown is a longtime college basketball fan — she started watching with her dad growing up. When she began attending Pitt, the Panthers quickly earned a place in her heart and her presence at the Petersen Events Center. “I really got into it when I came to Pitt,” Brown said. “I began root...
Amazon opens pickup location on Pitt’s campus
By Caroline Bourque | Assistant News Editor
October 31, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
A new Amazon pickup location opened on Pitt’s campus Tuesday. Located at 209 Oakland Ave. next to Crazy Mocha, Amazon@Pitt will allow customers to pick up or return their Amazon orders. Amazon Prime members will have free one-day pickup for millions of items and next-day arrival for orders placed be...
Students prepare to scare: Holland haunts with 8 spooky themes
By Anna Bongardino | Contributing Editor
October 31, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
Students covered in blood shrieked cries for help in the tunnels beneath the Schenley Quad residence halls Sunday night. Other students filed through the tunnels, anxiously clutching each other’s hands and screaming in fear as they awaited lurking figures around each corner. About 800 student...
Pitt’s first female AFROTC commander encourages leadership
By Zoe Pawliczek | Staff Writer
October 30, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
Hidden from civilians on floor 29 of the Cathedral of Learning, Pittsburgh's Air Force ROTC detachment is only accessible from two elevators. Tight hallways decorated with training schedules, cadet headshots and motivational posters lead to several small rooms. The cadet wings at Pitt are organized the wa...
Event explores conflict over climate change
By Madeline Gavatorta | Staff Writer
October 30, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Highlighting the existing political lines at Pitt was not what Samuel Ressin had in mind while planning his Polarization vs. the Planet event. Ressin — the president of the Climate Stewardship Society — said the event was supposed to showcase climate change and ways to show bipartisan support on the ...
Social work dean steps down
By Rachel Glasser | News Editor
October 26, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Pitt’s dean of the School of Social Work Larry E. Davis will step down at the end of the 2017-2018 academic year. Davis is the third University dean this year to announce he will step down in the spring. Swanson School of Engineering dean Gerald Holder and School of Law dean William M. Carter, Jr. annou...
Professor discusses gun violence with students
By Xinyu Lu | For The Pitt News
October 24, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Richard Garland, an assistant professor of Public Health Practice at Pitt, has spent a total of 23 years incarcerated — almost two-thirds of his life. “Believe it or not, I have a real good relationship with law enforcement,” Garland said. “Never thought I’d say that.” Today, Garland w...
Pitt’s 10th PMADD highlights culture of service
By Caroline Bourque and Janine Faust | News Editors
October 24, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
Shea Krause is confident she and about 50 other members of Pitt’s Jumpstart chapter had the Brightwood Civic Group’s Pumpkinfest under control Saturday morning. “If anything, there were maybe too many people. I don’t think there were enough jobs,” she said. Krause and her peers helped ma...
‘Guardian’ helps people on the brink
By Madeline Gavatorta | Staff Writer
October 24, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
Kevin Briggs thinks his unofficial title — “guardian of the Golden Gate Bridge” — sounds “egotistical.” “I’m not a big fan of the name,” Briggs said in an email. “I think there are many ‘Guardians’ all over the world, both first responder and citizen.” Briggs, a Californ...
Sigmas scrutinize race, masculinity
By Sarah Frumkin | Staff Writer
October 24, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Gabby Yearwood said he tells people all the time he wasn’t born a feminist. Toxic forms of masculinity impacted his own life as a youth, he said. But going to college helped undo his preconceptions that cultural constructs had taught him — such as his aversion to gay people. “I was homopho...
Quick Zone decreases prices, extends hours
By Rachel Glasser | News Editor
October 24, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Quick Zone is extending its hours and dropping its prices after 7-Eleven closed Sept. 28. Panther Central announced Oct. 13 that Litchfield Towers Quick Zone would be extending its hours from a 24-hour, five-day-a-week schedule to 24 hours, seven days a week, beginning that day. “Do late-nig...
Poet connects race, culture with verse
By Lauren Forsythe | Staff Writer
October 22, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
The bumping and bouncing beat of rap music filled Nordy’s Place Saturday evening as students snapped and clapped along to live music and slam poetry. G Yamazawa rapidly spit lyrics rooted in personal stories about race and culture. “When you forget where you’re from, you truly become America...
Student struggles illuminated at mental health vigil
By Madeline Gavatorta | Staff Writer
October 22, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
After sustaining a concussion playing street basketball during his junior year of high school, Wyatt Macejka’s life would never be the same. The senior psychology major was diagnosed with depression and anxiety as a result of the concussion, and he struggled through his recovery. “I couldn...
Students wrestle with returning home
By Nina Kneuer | Staff Writer
October 22, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Aarthi Pookot remembered her first moment of “reverse” culture shock when she returned home from spending a year abroad in Japan. Pookot — a first-year Japanese major — was at an airport in Atlanta, Georgia, and was trying to buy a hot chocolate while waiting for her connecting flight home. ...
Author advocates for immigrants
By Remy Samuels | Staff Writer
October 20, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
From watching “Dennis the Menace,” “Beverly Hills, 90201” and “Saved by the Bell,” Julissa Arce’s American dream began at a young age. Growing up in Mexico, Arce watched American television shows with wonder and curiosity. She especially identified with Dennis from “Dennis the Me...
Israelis and Palestinian find common ground in the environment
By Nina Kneuer | Staff Writer
October 20, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
From a Palestinian point of view the Arava Institute is located in Palestine, and from an Israeli point of view the Institute is located in Israel. Students and faculty from the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies — a university that focuses on intercultural research and environmental work — led a ...
Senate council focuses on funding
By Nolan Roosa | Staff Writer
October 19, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
Chancellor Patrick Gallagher opened his report at the University Senate Council meeting Wednesday by addressing the killing of Pitt student Alina Sheykhet. This was the chancellor’s first public statement regarding the tragic death. “Our community was heartbroken at the loss of Alina Sheyk...
Husband relates story of wife’s Holocaust survival
By Laura Howe | For The Pitt News
October 19, 2017
Renee Sachs was hardly old enough to read when she realized that, if she made a mistake, it could cost two lives — hers and her aunt’s. When she was 4 years old, Sachs went to live with her aunt in Vichy, France, so she — a young girl of Jewish descent — could escape the genocide being car...
Students speak out about mental health
By Amanda Finney | Staff Writer
October 19, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Emiola Jay Oriola said he’s not native to writing poetry — and he didn’t used to like art — but in the eulogy he wrote for his father’s funeral, he found that a poem came out. “It was very brand new, so I started to cultivate it, seek God and ask ‘what is this?’ and more poetry cam...
Takei recounts experiences, encourages activism
By Anna Bongardino | Contributing Editor
October 18, 2017
Shortly after his fifth birthday, in 1942, George Takei and his family were forced out of their home in Los Angeles at gunpoint. Along with 120,000 other Japanese Americans, Takei’s family was sent to a Japanese internment camp. Takei and his family spent a few months in a camp on the West Coast before m...
Taking back the night: students share stories of abusive relationships
By Bailey Frisco | Staff Writer
October 17, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
Dana Good held a handmade sign above her head that read “I’m not ovary-acting” as she marched through the streets of Oakland Tuesday night. More Pitt students walked alongside her, waving posters saying “reclaim the streets” and “I march for those who can’t,” while being escorted by Pitt Po...
Podcast hosts return to talk traveling
By Zoe Pawliczek | Staff Writer
October 17, 2017
Reality TV stars and podcast hosts Susie Meister and Sarah Rice think they might be qualified for Donald Trump’s current job — given that he also has a reality TV background. “This is just the beginning. Podcast at Pitt, next thing you know I’m running for president,” Meister said. ...
Students disconnect to connect to people
By Lauren Forsythe | For The Pitt News
October 16, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Your social media activity can’t ever really be deleted, Kathleen Bracken learned in her computer science classes at Pitt. “Usually whenever you click the delete button it’s not actually taking the thing out of memory, it’s not like you take an eraser and you smear it out and it’s gone,” B...
New Pitt office to encourage communication across faiths
By Sarah Frumkin | For The Pitt News
October 16, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Kyle Wyche was peacefully meditating in the prayer and relaxation room on the third floor of the William Pitt Union when a group of Muslim students walked in to pray. The junior ecology major struck up a conversation with one of the Muslim students afterward, who turned out to be as interested i...
Alina Sheykhet remembered by friends as kind and loving
By Rachel Glasser | News Editor
October 15, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
In a seventh grade stage production of “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” Isabel Scrabis’ grandfather mistook Alina Sheykhet — who starred as Millie — for his granddaughter. “The whole entire time he thought I was Alina, and he was so impressed. My mom had to break it to him that I was just swa...
Students face encouragement, difficulties when coming out
By Remy Samuels | For The Pitt News
October 13, 2017
Decked out in suits and dresses, Pitt’s LGBTQ+ alumni and current students congregated in the Gold Room of the University Club Wednesday, reminiscing about the evolution of the community and discussing plans for future growth. Pitt’s LGBTQIA+ Alumni Affinity Council hosted a reception at the University Club...
Alumni reflect on Cathedral’s youth
By Bailey Frisco | Staff Writer
October 13, 2017
Filed under Campus, Top Stories
As a child, Edward Murphy used to walk through the muddy construction site of the Cathedral of Learning on his way to Schenley Theater — the current site of Hillman Library — with his younger brother to watch movies. Murphy often wondered what the inside of the structure would look like, but he didn...
Big changes may come to Bigelow
By Madison Hook | For The Pitt News
October 13, 2017
Filed under Campus, City, News
The City of Pittsburgh closed Bigelow Boulevard in 1996 for 29 days. Then-Mayor Tom Murphy said they felt closing Bigelow “would make for ... a more attractive campus.” The trial program didn’t continue after those 29 days. According to city councilman Dan Gilman, “it posed a lot of issues f...
Gallagher meets with Gov. Wolf amid Pitt funding uncertainties
By Rachel Glasser and John Hamilton / TPN Staff
October 12, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Administration, Campus, News
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf met with Chancellor Patrick Gallagher Thursday morning amid a state budget impasse that's making Pitt's state funding uncertain. Wolf met with Gallagher to "reassure him of his commitment to the state-related universities," Wolf's Press Secretary J.J. Abbott said in an email....
Students Cope with Invisible Illnesses
By Amanda Finney | Staff Writer
October 11, 2017
Filed under Campus, Health, News, Top Stories
Most people wouldn’t say walking with a cane is glamorous. But to Pitt grad student Jessica Benham, “it’s a fashion statement.” Sporting her bedazzled cane — black with sparkly rhinestones — Benham shows she is not ashamed of her connective tissue disorder. But she is quick to point o...
Pitt Students Pitch Against the Clock
By Madeline Gavatorta, Janine Faust and Caroline Bourque | The Pitt News Staff
October 9, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
In the corner of the O’Hara student lobby Saturday morning, Jacob Saletsky practiced his pitch for an app, stopping to listen to the critiques and suggestions of his teammates. “You speak too much on this slide,” Veysel Gokbel said. “Can I just — real quick — we never directly asked that...
Original Milano’s Pizza receives consumer alert for code violations
By Janine Faust / Assistant News Editor
October 7, 2017
Filed under Campus, City, News, Top Stories
Original Milano’s Pizza was issued a consumer alert from the Allegheny Health Department Friday for numerous code violations. Malfunctioning refrigeration, evidence of mice and a lack of soap at the handwashing sink were among the violations the health department found at the restaurant located on the 3600 b...
Susan Rice discusses U.N., Iran Deal
By Madeline Gavatorta | Staff Writer
October 6, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
The crowd burst out laughing when Susan Rice pointed out that NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden talked at another Pitt Program Council event held last year. “That guy pissed— ruined a lot of my days,” Rice said. Rice — a former United Nations ambassador and national security advisor to the ...
Christensen concentrates on couples conflict
By Sarah Frumkin | For The Pitt News
October 6, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Couples looking to get to the root of their problems may have found just the man to help them. Andrew Christensen — a professor from the University of California Los Angeles and a licensed clinical psychologist — shared his latest research on a method of couples therapy he developed at the Weste...
Poets and performers explore black futures
By Anna Bongardino | Contributing Editor
October 5, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Projected onto a screen behind the stage of the Frick Fine Arts building, images of demolition were overlaid with the slow motion image of a woman twirling in a bright blue skirt. Colors shifted from negatives to sepia tone to a washed-out golden color which reflected the clouds of dust and destruct...
Pitt, Rainbow prep for Westboro protest
By Janine Faust | Assistant News Editor
October 4, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
With the Westboro Baptist Church planning to protest on Pitt’s campus Thursday, the University and campus organizations are preparing. The WBC is known for its hateful speech against the LGBTQ+ community, Catholics, Orthodox Christians, Muslims, Jews and American soldiers. According to its onlin...
Pitt students minds at work, hearts at home
By Ellie Yoon | For The Pitt News
October 4, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Audrey Chen can’t help but feel a twinge of nostalgia every time she walks into the Subway on Forbes Avenue and sees how thin the sandwiches are. “Whenever I go to Subway — we also have the same store called Subway in Taiwan — it makes me think about the difference in thickness,” she said...
Students talk cultural beauty perceptions
By Bailey Frisco | For The Pitt News
October 2, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Maria Beniaminova said many Americans have an interest in big butts that people in her home country of Russia would find peculiar. “There is a small population [in Russia] that is into curvier women, but I think that has to do with the fact that Russia used to be the USSR, so there are people fro...
Degrees of age: Professors young and old talk teaching
By Nina Kneuer | For The Pitt News
October 2, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
Some professors look like they should be sitting with their students rather than standing in front of them. Others fit the teen movie stereotype of the gray-haired intellectual with wire-rimmed glasses. Professors on both sides of the spectrum have different ways of using technology and interactin...
SGB hosts fair for student safety and wellness
By Xinyu Lu | For The Pitt News
October 1, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Nicole Gormley was strolling out of the Cathedral when she saw people putting out fires on the Union lawn. With her interest piqued, the first-year English writing and communications major walked over and allowed a demonstrator to show her how to pick up an extinguisher, aim it at the base of the ...
Sweet success: Donut Dash exceeds $500,000 goal
By Bailey Frisco | For The Pitt News
October 1, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, City, News
Fried dough and philanthropy were on people’s minds this weekend in Schenley Plaza. Crowds of people dressed in donut costumes and donut headbands — even a man wearing a sparkly silver dress adorned with donuts — packed into the plaza Sunday morning for the ninth annual Donut Dash. The event wa...
Pitt students on wheels deliver meals
By Caroline Bourque and Rachel Glasser | News Editors
September 28, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
On the first night of her new job, Harley McCain witnessed a high-speed car chase. “This big black SUV comes flying by at like 75 mph, and of course it’s a 25 mph street, and I’m like what the heck,” she said. “And I turn around ... like, what is happening. All these cop cars going flyi...
Reduce, reuse, recycle: Pitt community mitigates food waste
By Anna Bongardino | Contributing Editor
September 28, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Joe’s decision to dumpster dive for the first time was based on pure impulse. It helped that he wasn’t completely sober. “I wasn’t really looking for anything, I was a little bit drunk and I saw the dumpster and thought, ‘Hmm, I bet there’s some good stuff in there,’” he said. Jo...
Students soldier on to future
By Jesse Madden | For The Pitt News
September 27, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
Caitlyn Gibbs’ schedule requires her to be at Bellefield Hall at 5:45 a.m. three days per week, where attendance is taken. Then she and 150 other Pitt students head over to the Cathedral lawn for running and weight-training activities until 7 a.m. No, she’s not just a fitness freak. She’s preparing for a ca...
Pitt talks tobacco-free at Healthy U Fair
By Madeline Gavatorta and Janine Faust | News Staff
September 26, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
Standing among students petting therapy dogs and getting flu shots, Student Government President Max Kneis thanked the CVS Health Foundation and the American Cancer Society for giving the University of Pittsburgh a $20,000 check for one of the University’s health initiatives — curbing tobacco use at Pitt...
Fall Fest fires up Bigelow
By Joanna Li and Sarah Connor
September 25, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
Large, green and decorated with white trim and orange circular designs, a Chinese dragon sat in the middle of the William Pitt Union on Saturday. One student held up the dragon’s head while another took the rear. The dragon danced to a quick drum beat, sidling up to the student spectators and ...
Pitt celebrates late professor’s life and work
By Lauren Forsythe | For The Pitt News
September 25, 2017
Filed under Campus, Top Stories
Students studying on the ground floor of Hillman Library Saturday afternoon may have been a bit surprised to hear African drumming, poetry readings and the sounds of stamping feet and clapping hands coming from the Digital Scholarship Commons room. All this performing was in honor of Robert Johnson, a Pittsburgh...
Service dogs help students succeed
By Nina Kneuer | For The Pitt News
September 25, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
Claire Ozolek’s best friend, Lexi, has big eyes and a hard-working disposition. She also has a tail and four legs and works as Ozolek’s service dog. “I mean it sounds cliche, but she is really my best friend,” Ozolek said. Ozolek — a senior psychology major at Pitt — and Lexi ha...
Students skate through school streets
By Ellie Yoon / For The Pitt News
September 21, 2017
Filed under 2. Featured, Campus, News
Some Pitt students trek to their classes on foot. Many more bike or pray the bus comes on time. But a handful can sometimes be seen rolling down Forbes or Fifth avenues with a textbook-filled backpack sagging and a skateboard or longboard beneath their feet. Robert Benjamin, who graduated fro...
Pitt-owned grocery store to replace 7-Eleven
By Rachel Glasser | News Editor
September 21, 2017
Filed under Campus, News, Top Stories
A Pitt-owned grocery store will move into the 7-Eleven space on Forbes Avenue, University spokesperson Joe Miksch said Thursday. After confirmation from Miksch, The Pitt News reported Wednesday that 7-Eleven will close to make room for Pitt’s Oakland Bakery. He later said Thursday that the 7-Eleven isn’t being turned into just ...