In The News

Point Park University has received a $130,000 grant from The Pittsburgh Foundation to initiate “Bridge to Your Future: Explore the Possibilities,” a two-year pilot program that will address the problems of access to, and success in, college for underrepresented, at-risk students. A group of faculty are collaborating on the multidisciplinary program, in which Point Park will partner with Pittsburgh-area school districts to provide dual-enrollment opportunities and other support for high school seniors as they prepare to transition to college.

Host Sheila Hyland talks with Kate Dewey, Pres., The Forbes Funds and Kenya Boswell, Pres., BNY Mellon Foundation of Southwestern Pennsylvania about Innovating in the Nonprofit Space.

One is getting to need a scorecard to keep track of the initiatives announced in the region that focus on promoting the care and vibrancy of older adults, postponing their reliance on nursing homes and assisting the family caregivers they rely upon. This week United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania announced that it expects under its “United for Seniors” five-year plan in Allegheny County to bolster existing services to seniors and press for the needs of family caregivers to become a new priority among employers.

The Pittsburgh Promise — which has a 2.5 GPA requirement and 90-percent attendance requirement — has also shown positive results. There was a 14 percentage-point increase among students who said they would enroll in college, and a 17 percentage-point increase among students who said they would enroll and persist into their second year, according to Jennifer Iriti, director of the Evaluation for Learning Group at the University of Pittsburgh.

Lead artist for "Holocaust heroes, Chutz-Pow! Superheroes of the Holocaust Volume 2" is Pittsburgh-based illustrator, graphic designer, photographer and educator Marcel Walker, who is the recipient of a 2016 Advancing Black Arts in Pittsburgh grant from The Pittsburgh Foundation and The Heinz Endowments. 

On October 8, Rep. John Lewis discussed his life of public service and his recent graphic novels on stage at the August Wilson Center for African American Culture in Pittsburgh, PA. This event was a collaboration between the Pittsburgh ToonSeum and Sweetwater Arts Center and was sponsored by Carlow University and The Pittsburgh Foundation. Joining Rep. Lewis in front of a full auditorium were his March co-creators Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell.

Don Block, executive director of the literacy council, echoed that sentiment: “It’s been a lifelong mission of mine to work with people who didn’t have educational opportunities through no fault of their own, whether it be because of war like in Hindreen’s case, or other cases in which people had to leave school.

Because the repertoire of the concert presents themes of hope, peace, and unity, the choirs are donating a portion of the proceeds to the Fox Chapel Area School District telethon charity, Live Like Lou. It is a fund of the Pittsburgh Foundation, which focuses on raising money for scientific research to find a cure for ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig's Disease), and to support ALS patients and their families. The charity was started by Fox Chapel Area parents Neil and Suzanne Alexander in 2012. When Neil passed away in 2015, his wife continued the work in his honor.

The proposed $2 million amyloidosis research funding plan is dedicated to late Mayor Richard S. Caliguiri.

 “We owe it to future generations to make this film,” Linda Massaro said. “It is a one-of-a-kind documentary. Alzheimer’s deteriorates your mind and your body. And it takes a long time to run its course. The questions you don’t know you’ll be faced with — there are so many of them.” Massaro is busy raising funds for the film, she said, which she hopes will provide a roadmap for families navigating Alzheimer’s disease.