As we begin 2026, we’re reflecting on a year of growth, collaboration, and impact at the Franco Harris Pittsburgh Center at Penn State. Throughout 2025, the Center continued its work to strengthen regional partnerships and provide meaningful opportunities for students to learn, connect, and lead in Pittsburgh. Together with several campuses, industry partners, local governments, and community organizations, we helped students gain real-world experience, build professional networks, and contribute to projects shaping the region’s future.
Here’s a look back at some moments and milestones of 2025.
Pittsburgh Connect: Student Networking Summit
Over fall break, more than 90 students across Penn State campuses and colleges joined us at the Energy Innovation Center in Pittsburgh for the third annual Pittsburgh Connect: Student Networking Summit. The event provided an intimate environment where students could engage directly with more than 30 employers, alumni, and community partners to explore career pathways and build meaningful professional connections.
The day also featured workshops with Penn State Career Services, focused on career readiness, navigating AI in the job hiring process, and building a personal brand on LinkedIn. Employers and organizations including American Eagle, 84 Lumber, Burson, Exus Renewables North America, Highmark, Pittsburgh Penguins, and more spoke with students about their companies and what they look for when recruiting Penn State talent.
I really enjoyed the personal branding workshop I attended because it allowed me to see the importance of having a strong presence on LinkedIn. I learned how to give myself a competitive advantage and stand out amongst other candidates. As for the event itself, I was extremely grateful to meet and network with professionals in Pittsburgh. This opportunity left me feeling more confident and motivated as I continue to prepare for a future career in public relations.
This event gave students a unique chance to see all the pathways available to them in Pittsburgh as Penn State students and graduates. In 2025, the Penn State Center Philadelphia also hosted a Student Networking Summit with more than 140 student attendees and employers like Philadelphia Eagles, Cintas, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Teach for America, and more.
City Semester Pittsburgh
Summer 2025 marked the tenth semester of City Semester Pittsburgh, with a cohort of six students living, learning, and working in the city. The students represented five Penn State colleges—Liberal Arts, Information Sciences and Technology, Engineering, Earth and Mineral Sciences, and Arts and Architecture—demonstrating that students from any discipline can engage meaningfully in community-based work, contributing over 2,400 hours of support for our local partners.
Throughout the summer, each student interned with a community partner, then the group gathered weekly for a class on urban sustainability. Internship partners included Green Building Alliance, City of Pittsburgh, Tree Pittsburgh, Allegheny County Conservation District, Riverlife, and Studio for Spatial Practice.
Through the EARTH 412 course, taught by Penn State Greater Allegheny instructor Dr. Evaine Sing, the cohort engaged weekly with local practitioners in addition to exploring Pittsburgh’s sustainability landscape, with field trips to the Living Building Challenge-certified Phipps Center for Sustainable Landscapes and Frick Environmental Center as well as Tree Pittsburgh’s modular brownfield redevelopment at their office and Heritage Nursery.
At the end of the semester, students each presented a video connecting their experience to a United Nations Sustainable Development Goal, highlighting how local action contributes to global impact.
This experience broadened my understanding of how sustainability can be woven into planning and design, and it reinforced the importance of community involvement and long-term stewardship in creating landscapes that thrive well into the future.
In 2025, City Semester continued to serve as a powerful bridge between academic learning and real-world application, giving students the experience and connections needed to make an impact in their careers.
High-Performance Building Summer Program
The 2025 High-Performance Building Summer Program brought together three Penn State students and ten students and instructors from South West College in Northern Ireland for a unique international learning experience based in Pittsburgh.
Participants explored the future of sustainable building design through hands-on classroom learning and conversations with industry experts on LEED, Passive House, Living Building Challenge, and other building standards. These practices were seen in-field with tours of:
- Perkins Eastman’s LEED Gold Pittsburgh office
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater and Kentuck Knob
- Penn College of Technology Clean Energy Center
- the LEED Platinum Hillman Library at the University of Pittsburgh
- Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh – Carrick, the first Passive House-certified library in North America
- and several other sites across the region
This cross-cultural exchange deepened students’ understanding of global sustainability challenges and highlighted how Pittsburgh is contributing to cleaner, smarter, more efficient building design, in both operations and cost.
Community-Based Learning in Action: Student Visits and Field Trips
Throughout 2025, the Franco Harris Pittsburgh Center welcomed numerous Penn State student groups for experiential learning across the city. In addition to hosting these visits, the Center’s team curated, coordinated, and scheduled site visits, speakers, and community connections, ensuring each experience aligned with academic goals and exposed students to Pittsburgh’s industries, neighborhoods, and cultural assets.
Resident Assistant Leadership Training
Resident assistants from Penn State Beaver and Penn State Greater Allegheny spent a full day at the Center for their training. Their experience included:
- a Restorative Practice Workshop with Candace Okello from Carnegie Mellon University
- a guided tour of the August Wilson Museum and “The Writer’s Landscape” exhibit
- a visit to the August Wilson House at 1727 Bedford Avenue
Smeal College of Business Student Sustainable Business Association (Net Impact PSU)
Penn State students from the Sustainable Business Association spent an all-day field trip exploring circular economy and sustainability efforts across Pittsburgh, including:
- Covestro, for insights on circular economy and supply chain for sustainable materials
- Energy Innovation Center, highlighting high-performance building redevelopment
- Dollar Bank, exploring sustainable business practices as the nation’s largest independently owned community bank
- New Sun Rising, focused on community entrepreneurship, nonprofit innovation, and neighborhood resilience
GeoPEERS Research Experiences for Undergraduates Program
With a focus on the nexus of land, water, and energy, rising researchers from Penn State’s GeoPEERS program joined us in Pittsburgh to tour urban farms and community green spaces to learn how leaders are using land, food systems, and community infrastructure to drive change in the city. Their visits included Sankofa Village Community Garden, Oasis Farm, Shiloh Farm, Garfield Community Farm, and the Energy Innovation Center.
Landscape Architecture Pittsburgh Studio: Designing for the Hilltop’s Future
In spring 2025, the Center again partnered with the College of Arts and Architecture’s Landscape Architecture Pittsburgh Studio. Over the semester, students worked closely with residents and stakeholders to design community-driven visions for Pittsburgh’s Hilltop neighborhoods.
Students:
- walked the neighborhoods with residents
- met with city planners, community development corporations, and local leaders
- held community conversations to hear directly from Hilltop residents
- developed 10-year plans focused on transit, green space, public gathering areas, and addressing urban vacancy
Their proposals demonstrated the power of community-informed design and gave students firsthand experience in planning, engagement, and long-term visioning.
Because of Pittsburgh Studio, I have clear aspirations to work alongside underserved communities, whether work is done through city-level planning or local projects. I now realize the sheer scope and significance of our work. Our designed spaces have the potential to reshape and improve entire systems at a widespread scale.
Careers in Action: Insights from Industry Pros (Webinar Series Launch)
In 2025, the Center launched Careers in Action, a new virtual series connecting Penn State students with industry experts across fields.
The inaugural session featured engineers from Exus Renewables North America, who shared their career journeys, internship advice, industry insights, and tips for thriving in the energy sector. Students gained practical guidance about how to navigate early career decisions, especially in the engineering and energy industries.
The Global Impact Forum (TGIF)
2025 marked Pittsburgh’s first time hosting The Global Impact Forum (TGIF), a major convening led by Penn State Outreach that brought together global leaders in education, technology, government, and workforce development. TGIF highlighted Pennsylvania’s role in addressing global challenges while showcasing Pittsburgh’s strengths in robotics, manufacturing, sustainability, critical thinking, and community innovation.
The Franco Harris Pittsburgh Center supported student engagement and outreach efforts, including High School and Higher Education Student Spotlights. More than 220 students attended TGIF to network with leaders, learn from experts, and share their own ideas and innovations.
The spotlight gives students the chance to present real-world solutions to global leaders. That builds confidence and prepares them not just for college, but for their careers. Penn State is helping lay the foundation for lifelong success.
National Green Infrastructure Certification Program (NGICP)
In partnership with the City of Pittsburgh’s Department of Permits, Licenses, and Inspections and an ongoing commitment to Landforce, we continued supporting local professionals and workforce through the National Green Infrastructure Certification Program (NGICP). This ANSI-certified training prepares participants with the technical knowledge and practical skills needed to plan, install, and maintain green stormwater infrastructure.
As part of the course, participants explored real-world stormwater and green infrastructure projects through site visits to:
- ALCOSAN’s wastewater treatment plant
- Pittsburgh Water’s Aspinwall water treatment plant
- Pittsburgh Water GSI projects: Wightman Park, Lawn & Ophelia, Centre & Heron, Liberty Green Park, and others
- UpStream PGH projects in Wilkinsburg and the Rosedale Block Cluster
- And other local GSI projects such as Negley Run and Etna Borough’s Green Streetscapes
Looking Ahead to 2026
Reflecting on 2025 at the Franco Harris Pittsburgh Center highlights a year defined by collaboration and impact. Across workforce development, sustainability leadership, community planning, and local and global convenings, the Center created opportunities that connected Penn State students with Pittsburgh’s people, places, and challenges.
What stood out most in 2025 was the power of mutually beneficial partnerships. When Penn State students are connected to real challenges, real communities, and real opportunities, they learn and meaningfully contribute to the work of community partners who improve the lives of Pittsburghers every day.
As we move into 2026, the Center remains committed to expanding access, opening doors, and building partnerships that help Penn State students succeed and help Pittsburgh thrive.