Community development students gain practical experience through new program

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Scholarship, Sustainability and Civic Engagement Program, or SSCEP, is in its pilot year, and so far, it’s off to a great start. In 2014, a group of undergraduate students and faculty in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences developed a plan to get students working in community- and sustainability-related fields long before…

Celebration of the Penn State Center Pittsburgh: An Urban Platform for a Land Grant University

On September 2, 2015, years of planning came to fruition with the official opening of The Penn State Center Pittsburgh’s new office at the Energy Innovation Center. More than 250 guests, including local elected officials, Penn State leadership and community partners, celebrated the new location. The Penn State Center Pittsburgh, an office of Extension and…

Celebrating the Land Grant in Allegheny County Through Art

An art installation, “The History of the Land Grant in Allegheny County” was unveiled at the September 2nd Open House at The Penn State Center Pittsburgh. Penn State is Pennsylvania’s only land grant institution and the permanent installation details University services in Allegheny County via the development of Extension in 1914 through the opening of…

Participation in Comprehensive Community Development in the City of Pittsburgh – Hazelwood Nursery Assistance

The Penn State Center Pittsburgh, including Outreach and Extension, received funding from the Howard Heinz Endowments to provide business planning and marketing assistance for a local nursery owner, Elaine Price, as she positions her business for growth and relocation. Ms. Price is interested in relocating and expanding her business onto Second Avenue in the City…

Project 15206

A two year initiative known as Project 15206, will address stormwater mitigation through community outreach, public policy and ordinance examination, design, and construction of green infrastructure within zipcode 15206 (seven neighborhoods of the city of Pittsburgh – Morningside; Highland Park; Larimer; East Liberty; Lincoln-Lemington-Belmar; Stanton Heights; and Friendship). Project 15206 is a collaborative effort of…

Partnership to Prevent Flooding in Pittsburgh Neighborhood

Residents in Pittsburgh’s Four Mile Run neighborhood may see reduced street flooding from heavy rains thanks to an innovative green infrastructure project that planners hope will be a model for the rest of the city. The demonstration storm water mitigation project is a collaboration between the Penn State Center: Engaging Pittsburgh and the City of…

First Multi-Municipal Shade Tree Commission

The Penn State Center — Engaging Pittsburgh is excited to announce the development of the first multi-municipal Shade Tree Commission in Pennsylvania. The Commission is composed of the neighboring municipalities of Baldwin, Brentwood, and Whitehall. The Brentwood-Baldwin-Whitehall Multi-municipal Shade Tree Commission was finalized last night with an affirmative vote from Brentwood’s Council. Dr. Deno De…

Student Internships Offer Measurable Impact

In the summer of 2011, The Penn State Center employed five interns focusing on various aspects of the Center’s work. Two of the interns who became very engaged with community stakeholders were Lacie Schreiner, a landscape architecture major, and John Friend, a landscape contracting major. During Lacie’s internship, one of her projects closely involved her…

Native Plants Promise New Revenue

The Penn State Center staff and interns worked with the Rosedale Block Cluster Initiative and Allegheny County Cooperative Extension over the summer and fall to explore ways in which the community organization could expand its operation and develop a new stream of revenue. Rosedale has a solid footing in the landscaping business (using an on-the-job…