OPDC discusses stormwater management, future CMU and UPMC plans

The recent increase in rainstorms isn’t just ruining your walk to class — storm water is actually a major pollutant in Pittsburgh’s rivers, and according to Beth Dutton, managing it can improve public health.

“Stormwater is the number one pollutant in urban areas,” Dutton, senior group manager for stormwater for the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority, said. “If we can better manage stormwater, we can reduce the amount of sewage and pollution entering our rivers, which is a public health win for us and our neighbors downstream.”

Besides the PWSA’s stormwater management plan, the Oakland Planning and Development Corp. discussed Carnegie Mellon University’s Institutional Master Plan and UPMC’s proposal for a new bed tower on the intersection of Fifth Avenue and Atwood Street at Wednesday evening’s meeting.

Dutton — accompanied by Rebecca Zito, PWSA’s senior manager of public affairs — said Pittsburgh’s current system is not built to face the impacts of climate change. Pittsburgh has a combined sewer system, meaning both wastewater and stormwater travel through one pipe to the Allegheny County Sanitary Authority. Due to more pavement and hard surfaces, the City’s system is no longer able to effectively combat the threat of stormwater runoff. 

To combat the issue, PWSA implemented a plan to update the stormwater management system. Construction and maintenance of drains aim to keep as much stormwater as possible out of sewers, so river basins are not backed up with sewage during storms. 

Dutton said PWSA constructed 13 green infrastructure sites around the City to absorb and slow down the flow of stormwater. With several more projects currently slated for design, Dutton said PWSA will need an additional revenue source — the stormwater fee — to help complete the projects.

The PWSA received pushback in response to the fee, specifically from nonprofits or entities that don’t pay for water bills, such as school districts, churches, parking lots or vacant land owners.

Beginning in 2022 and pending approval from the Public Utility Commission, residential property owners will have to pay a monthly rate, according to Dutton. With this revenue, the PWSA will secure the funding necessary to finish its projects, and ensure that stormwater is effectively managed. 

The meeting also included a discussion of UPMC’s newest proposal — a bed tower on Fifth and Atwood. According to Mike Scheshler, the project manager, the new tower will house 636 patient beds and include a 450 car parking garage. Schesler also said the building would occupy the hillside directly to the left of the Pitt Public Health Building on Desoto Street. 

Scheshler said the distinct architectural choice for an all-glass exterior occurred because research “tells us that patient recovery is improved by access to views and natural light.”

Scheshler also said the glass allows for the building to capture the spirit of Oakland.

“By picking up different colors and light patterns that change throughout the day, the building will be a bit chameleon-like, in that the colors and reflections from surrounding buildings will actually show up quite significantly throughout the day,” Scheshler said.

Scheshler added that UPMC will prioritize the need for public space and pedestrian accessibility. The ground floor of the proposed building includes a Lifestyle Village, complete with restaurants, fitness suites, garden terraces and spiritual centers. He said construction for the project is slated to start in summer 2022, with an active facility hopefully opening in fall 2026.

On the opposite side of Oakland, CMU discussed its Institutional Master Plan, which aims to construct, renovate and maintain spaces on CMU’s campus, according to Bob Reppe, senior director of planning and design at CMU. The plan is split into four different districts on Carnegie’s campus — the Historic Core, North Campus, South Craig Street and Schenley Park. 

Reppe said renovations within the Historic Core aim to introduce new academic buildings, while maintaining the architecturally significant corridor built in the 1900s. Within North Campus, Reppe said CMU is prioritizing an increase in housing space to ensure on-campus housing for all undergraduate students.

In the South Craig Street district, Reppe said the Master Plan aims to maintain and expand upon the mixed-use nature of the area, as well as both the academic buildings and the denser urban areas for permanent City residents.

Reppe also said plans include a new anchor building — a structure serving as a central hub for all University scientists. Despite the planned addition of a major academic building, Reppe said the University still prioritizes South Craig Street’s accessibility. 

“Mobility goals define all of the University’s plans,” Reppe said. “There’s a whole host of ways that we want to accomplish this, including improving pedestrian pathways and connections, adding bicycle amenities and working with our institutional partners to develop shared shuttle systems.”

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Opinion | The relationship between state system, state-related universities and the Pennsylvania legislature is toxic

Are you there God? It’s me, India. I’m fed up with the Pennsylvania state legislature again.

Many of us experienced an altered version of college these past 18 months. We’ve observed some of our schools’ shortcomings in the face of a crisis. We’ve seen just how easily standards and practices we accepted as gospel could be eliminated, such as the widespread removal of SAT/ACT requirements. We’ve taken a leap of faith and moved away from home during a pandemic, trusting that our university will do all it can to keep us safe.

But a problem arose as conversations turned to the intersection of public health and funding — the state legislature’s toxic relationship with the state system and state-related universities. Both the Pennsylvania House of Representatives and Senate have a Republican majority. Subsequently, the decisions coming out of Harrisburg have not been in favor of mask or vaccine mandates.

State Senate Republicans proposed legislation in May that would cut funding to state-funded universities who required proof of COVID-19 vaccinations to attend in-person classes or events. It originated as a call to ban “vaccine passports” to enter college campuses, but soon snowballed into a bill that restricted the state government’s authority during public health crises.

An amendment added later would have prevented Pennsylvania’s secretary of health from ordering closures, social distancing, face masks, quarantines or even hygiene practices. Gov. Tom Wolf said at the time that it was “probably a little far” to prohibit the health secretary from telling people to wash their hands.

The bill passed in both the House and Senate along party lines, but Wolf vetoed it. So, once again, Wolf’s veto power is single handedly holding this state together. But there is still a possibility of similar legislation emerging or retaliatory efforts, such as funding cuts, against public institutions who choose to mandate vaccines.

Since then, state-related universities such as Temple, Penn State and Pitt have grappled with what to do. Money from the state makes up about 7% of Pitt’s budget, 14% of Temple’s budget and 4.2% of Penn State’s budget.

Despite both Pitt’s Faculty Assembly and Senate Council voting in favor of a vaccine mandate this spring, Pitt announced this summer it would not be mandating proof of a vaccine. Instead, incentives were raffled off to those who voluntarily disclosed their vaccine status, such as tickets to sporting events or cash prizes.

Other Pittsburgh universities, such as Duquesne and Carnegie Mellon, which are both private, are requiring COVID-19 vaccines. Currently, over three-quarters of Pitt undergraduate students uploaded proof of vaccination, but it is still important to take every precaution as Allegheny County cases are on an upward trend.

This is not the first clash over funding Pitt has had with the state legislature, either. Members of the House Health Committee raised concerns over Pitt’s research, including work done with stem cells.

Another state-related school made a different decision. Temple announced it would be mandating vaccines on Aug. 13. A letter addressed to the school community stated that students will be required to receive their first dose by Sept. 10 and their second by Oct. 1. It came on the heels of directions from the Philadelphia Board of Health that all college students and healthcare workers in the city had to be fully vaccinated by Oct. 15.

Penn State’s administration decided not to mandate vaccines for the fall semester and instead opted for incentivizing vaccine disclosure. Students, faculty and community members have protested this by holding multiple rallies. In a letter published Aug. 12, President Eric Barron admitted that the decision was partially based on state funding.

He wrote about how responses to the pandemic have been met with controversy, and that they “reflect state-level political realities.” He also discussed that the university’s funding requires a two-thirds vote of the Pennsylvania legislature, meaning it “relies on strong bipartisan support.”

Jake Corman, president pro tempore of the State Senate, responded to the letter by saying he believed Penn State would likely face “pushback in Harrisburg” if it mandated vaccines.

The situation is even more dire for the 14 schools within Pennsylvania’s State System of Higher Education, which are fully state owned. Instead of just potential cuts to state funding, these schools’ leaders said they need direct legislative approval to mandate COVID-19 vaccinations, the precedent being a 2002 law that required college students to get a meningitis shot.

Michael Driscoll, Indiana University of Pennsylvania president and PASSHE Presidents Commision chair said that, for state schools, requiring vaccines is not a question of funding but authority.

That being said — we’re in deep. The lines between funding and authority, public and state institutions are blurred. GOP leaders are still gesticulating about individual freedom and privacy even as thousands of COVID-19 cases are reported each day in the state, and we have a solution available to us.

So I ask Republicans in the state legislature — can you grow up? So many students did, much faster than we should’ve had to this year. We stayed isolated in our dorms, missing out on milestones and having difficulty making friends. We lived in fear of our loved ones getting sick. Now that we’re back on campus, we know that not all of us will be responsible. And after all that, you are attempting to manipulate universities’ abilities to mandate vaccines. 

The FDA approved the Pfizer vaccine. Stop the bullying and stop the threats, Harrisburg Republicans. And let universities protect their communities. 

India writes primarily about politics for The Pitt News. Write to her at ilk18@pitt.edu or follow her on Twitter @indialarson_.

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Pitt students attend ‘Welsfest’ block party amid pandemic

About 1,000 Pitt students sang “Let’s go Pitt!” in the chorus of “Sweet Caroline,” supposedly broke a front porch and stood shoulder-to-shoulder this weekend at “Welsfest” — a block party on Welsford Street in South Oakland.

The block party took place on Saturday between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. It was supposed to go until 7 p.m., but according to City police spokesperson Maurice Matthews, Pitt police shut down the party at 6 p.m. “due to complaints regarding the unreasonably large crowd.” The party also garnered the attention of many local media outlets.

According to Matthews, the City’s Special Events office issued the party’s permit under the impression that the party would be limited to Welsford Street residents — estimated to be about 100 people. With the permit, guests “within reason” were also able to attend. The office estimated there would be about 200 to 300 people altogether.

Matthews said the City’s public safety department believes the applicant “did not adequately represent the true intent of the event.” He also said Special Events will review the parameters of future block parties.

Matthews added that “the crowd turned out to be far more than the highest estimate,” with about one to two thousand people in attendance.

Andrea Boykowycz, assistant director of the Oakland Planning and Development Corp., responded to a Pitt Barstool tweet about Welsfest, saying “Welsford is no Coachella.”

Oh, darlings. I’m glad you had fun but no way is this going to be permitted next year. Or ever again. And no, Central Oakland is not your campus. And Welsford is no Coachella. And for gods sake https://t.co/nTjsLCC0vm

— andrea boykowycz (@bwycz) August 29, 2021

“Oh, darlings. I’m glad you had fun but no way is this going to be permitted next year. Or ever again. And no, Central Oakland is not your campus. And Welsford is no Coachella. And for gods sake [mask emoji],” Boykowycz said.

Many maskless people also attended Lantern Night on Sunday, which Pitt hosted outdoors on the Cathedral lawn. In response to the Pitt Barstool tweet and a tweet from Chancellor Patrick Gallagher about Lantern Night, Boykowycz said she’ll “leave it at that.”

Just going to juxtapose these two tweets and leave it at that. https://t.co/ZlFoli9njO https://t.co/Yfx2OKxh1n

— andrea boykowycz (@bwycz) August 29, 2021

 

“Just going to juxtapose these two tweets and leave it at that,” the tweet said. 

Pitt spokesperson Kevin Zwick said the University expects students to “demonstrate civically responsible behavior at all times” toward non-Pitt residents, including during parties. He also said both on- and off-campus students are expected to live by “common values expressed in the Pitt Promise.”

Zwick said Pitt will engage with students through campaigns starting Tuesday evening and “direct conversations.”

“Pitt will continue to engage with students through our Celebrate Responsibly and Be a Good Neighbor campaigns, which includes Oakland Safety Walks — the first of which begins this evening — and direct conversations with the student body,” Zwick said

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Opinion | Western cultures need to stop normalizing violence in the Middle East

Young people in western cultures often think of the Middle East, Central Asia, Southwest Asia and North African regions as violent places, full of terrorists and unsafe for travel. They view the people there as poor and their homes as disaster-ridden places. Every time conflict in the region escalates, these stereotypes are perpetrated.

The last U.S. military planes left Kabul on Monday, leaving thousands of Afghan citizens who helped American soldiers under the Taliban’s control. Many Americans are avoiding discussing their own country’s involvement in the conflict — convincing themselves that the Middle East is just a violent place.

These views aren’t a mistake. Think about how the media presents this region, especially during our lifetimes — famine, war, poverty, discrimination against women and more. While they are the same problems every other nation faces, there is too much focus on them in these regions in the media.

For example, dozens of significant advances in archaeology and anthropology are made in the region every year, Lebanon legalized medical marijuana and an all-girl Afghani robotics team made cheap mobile ventilators to help the fight against COVID-19.

Our generation wasn’t often exposed to media that says otherwise — that the Middle East is more than just the world’s center of war. If you’re in your early 20s like me, world history was basically defined by the ongoing war in Afghanistan. Most of the soldiers that were killed in the Kabul airport suicide bombing on Aug. 26 were babies when the war in Afghanistan started.

My generation is more than familiar with Islamophobia. However, Islamophobia was nothing new even before 9/11. The western fear of the eastern “other” has existed for centuries. Western ideas about the Middle East are simple and narrow-minded — originating from persistent ignorance of the region’s cultures and religions. 

Ideas of east versus west have existed for thousands of years. As far back as the fifth century BC, during the Greco-Persian war, Greece — in the west — deemed themselves the norm. They viewed the Persians in the east as violent, barbaric and unsophisticated.

Not surprisingly, the empires of the east and west weren’t monoliths and those stereotypes often were untrue. For example, the Persian Empire leaned heavily into religious freedoms, while Greece was home to the infamous Spartans — some of the most violent and formidable warriors of the time. It almost seems as though the stereotypes should have been reversed, and these motifs of east versus west still exist in the media today.

The Middle East, Central Asia and the SWANA region were highly sought after territories for hundreds of years. From battles over religion, to the waxing and waning of empires, the area has gone through many transitions of power. Arguably, it would make sense for it to be the fragmented, politically insatiable region that frequents the evening news today.

Although it may be presented as such, the Middle East wasn’t always this way. In fact, we owe some of humanity’s most important scientific innovations, literature, artwork, architecture and Islam — the second largest religion in the world — to the Middle East.

Despite hundreds of years of on and off conflict, there are plenty of time periods in the Middle East comparable to life in the Golden Ages of Paris, Rome, London or New York. In fact, just 50 years ago, Afghanistan experienced its very own golden age.

Cultural differences are always going to be difficult for people to tackle, but they can be found everywhere — between New York and Los Angeles for example, which are, funnily enough, another example of cultural differences between east and west. And there is absolutely a large cultural difference between, say, Pittsburgh and Kabul. 

But just because there are differences doesn’t mean that we aren’t all people in need of food, water, safety and shelter. It doesn’t mean that violence in the Middle East should be accepted as normal or that violence should be the only thing presented about the Middle East in the media.

Dalia Maeroff writes primarily about issues of psychology, education, culture and environmentalism. Write to her at DAM291@pitt.edu.

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Pitt Tonight ready to return in-person for next season

Nothing compares to a late night comedy show’s introduction — a live audience applauding to a jazzy melody and spotlights on the stage as the host emerges from behind a curtain. The experience is especially thrilling when it’s filmed from the basement of the Cathedral of Learning, and the production is put on entirely by Pitt students.

Pitt Tonight host Victoria Chuah, a senior computer science major, said it takes a village to make it all happen. Pitt Tonight has marketing, writing and production departments that generate monthly episodes for the show.

“There are so many moving parts to the show,” Chuah, who is returning as host for a second year, said. “I get to meet with so many great, talented people who I wouldn’t normally work with or have classes with except through this organization.”

Pitt Tonight will return to the Cathedral’s Richard E. Rauh Studio Theatre for its seventh season on Oct. 2. The show is expected to film in front of a live studio audience — a change from last year’s production which consisted of sketches on YouTube or guest interviews over Zoom. In an effort to enforce some social distancing measures, the studio will hold 50% of its normal capacity this year.

Chuah said she’s looking forward to Pitt Tonight’s upcoming season because the team is returning to indoor in-person activity for the first time since the University’s initial shutdown.

“I think everyone at Pitt Tonight is just so excited to be in a theatre space and to actually hear people laughing at our jokes,” Chuah said. “Last year, when we would record the monologues or desk pieces, it was so weird because there would only be three production people and some writers there to laugh.”

Chuah joined Pitt Tonight in February 2020, meaning she’s spent the majority of her tenure as host online. According to Kaitlyn Dawson, a production executive, Pitt Tonight will continue producing online content throughout the show’s seventh season.

“We are keeping that online presence we had last year because some people in our club still aren’t comfortable with meeting in person,” Dawson, a junior film and communication major, said. “For every single guest that we have, we’re coming to them, wherever their comfort zone is, and we’re going to be doing more exclusive interviews.”

Dawson joined Pitt Tonight’s production team during her first semester. She is now an intern at ACC Network and said Pitt Tonight helped her make connections with people who share similar career goals.

“Pitt Tonight gave me a group of people that I can always rely on and go to if I need help with a creative project — they’re always willing to help me out if I need advice,” Dawson said. “It’s definitely a very welcoming community to meet people with the same goals as you.”

But you don’t need to be dead set on a career in entertainment to join Pitt Tonight, Dawson added. She said the team is also actively seeking people who are new to the many aspects of television production.

“We want everyone to find their niche in their given department,” Dawson said. “There’s a lot of training for people to know what to expect out of the production crew, so we have people that are either novices or masters of television production.”

Although the special guests for this season of Pitt Tonight have yet to be revealed, the show has a history of featuring famous Pitt alumni ー such as “The Bachelorette” contestant Ed Waisbrot 一 school-wide clubs and even Chancellor Patrick Gallagher.

Carson Pieper, a sophomore marketing major, is the marketing executive director and talent manager. He selects various guests to interview and play games during the show. Pieper said he’s grateful he joined Pitt Tonight last year, since he often struggled to meet people outside of his pod during his first year at Pitt.

“Pitt Tonight was the first thing I got involved in here,” Pieper said. “It was great to get to know people who weren’t in my immediate pod or dorm room.”

According to Pieper, the first episode of season seven was originally scheduled to be filmed last week. Due to inclement weather, the Pitt Tonight production team postponed the episode’s release to October. Presuming that it will be safe to do so under the University’s COVID-19 guidelines, the crew will enter the theater by the time the episode is scheduled to come out in October.

Executive producer Benjamin Asciutto, a junior film and business major, said one of the best parts of Pitt Tonight is that it gives students real-world experience in television production in a college environment.

“[Pitt Tonight] is a combination of real-world experience where we take the same development process as ‘The Tonight Show,‘ or Cohen or Colbert, but we bring it down to the student level,” Asciutto said.

Asciutto said he looks up to Jesse Irwin — who served as Pitt Tonight’s first host from 2015 to 2017 — because of the classy, live show atmosphere he created, starting in the very first episode.

“In my position, I’ve been trying to emulate the mood of the first episode within the new season,” Asciutto said. “Now that we had a lot of sketches over YouTube last year, I’d like to get back to that late night vibe and experience — we’re all so ready to have a live audience.”

According to Chuah, Pitt Tonight is recruiting new members to work in all departments. Applications are now open for writing, marketing and production positions on the show’s website and are due on Sept. 17.

Asciutto said he wants prospective members of Pitt Tonight to be just as passionate about the show as the rest of Pitt Tonight’s team.

“Everyone in this organization thinks of Pitt Tonight as larger than just a student club or organization,” Asciutto said. “If you feel like you’ve had that passion to make Pitt Tonight the best show it could be, then you’ll have a great time and a lot of fun.”

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Editorial | Pennsylvania schools are right to mandate masks

Reactions by parents to school mask mandates have been harsh in the Pittsburgh area in the past few weeks. A man raised a Nazi salute before the Fox Chapel school board and the Bethel Park school board recieved harsh criticism from parents after changing their stance on an optional mask policy, mandating them for all students and staff.

Gov. Tom Wolf announced Tuesday that Pennsylvania will mandate masks in all schools, regardless of the opinions of parents and individual school districts. Many schools were mask optional, and those that did have mask mandates received criticism. 

Wolf made the right decision to mandate masks. Many students are not old enough to be administered a COVID-19 vaccine, which makes a vaccine mandate not yet feasible for schools. While waiting for a vaccine that can be administered to children younger than 12, there is not much else one can do to protect their child other than to have them wear a mask. 

The debate over mask mandates in Pittsburgh-area schools comes at the worst time. School starts for most districts within the next few weeks and Delta variant cases are higher than ever. Additionally, the number of children hospitalized from COVID-19 just hit a new record number in the United States which means the Delta variant is especially dangerous for kids and young adults.

Regardless of the opinions of parents, schools should follow CDC guidance that all individuals, vaccinated or not should proceed to wear a mask indoors at all times, and outdoors in crowded spaces, such as the recess courts. These rules shouldn’t just be followed for liability reasons, but also just out of care for their student and staff body, which can transmit the disease to others and cause cases to rise.

If nothing else, mask mandates will help to prevent another online school year, in which many children struggled to keep up in their classes, and parents struggled to find childcare for their students attending Zoom classes. Mask mandates will allow students to have a somewhat normal school year, so they can get back to being children again.

Of the 43 school districts in Allegheny County, 70% mandated masks before the Aug. 31 announcement, while the other 13 school districts are mask optional. In those school districts, hundreds of students and staff would have been put at risk. Pittsburgh Public Schools begin their school year on Sept. 3, and had intended to have a mask mandate in place at all schools to protect both students and teachers alike. 

The decision to mandate masks will work toward an in-person school year and puts teachers, children and their families in a much safer position. Pennsylvania schools will not weigh the wishes of anti-mask parents over the lives of the people within their districts.

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‘How’s everybody doing?’: Tre Tipton works to end mental health stigma for athletes

Redshirt senior wide receiver Tre Tipton, gleaming with sweat, sauntered toward reporters assembled on the outskirts of Pitt’s practice field. The seventh-year wide receiver started his Q&A differently than most other players — he was the one asking a question when he got to the microphone.

“First question,” Tipton said, “How’s everybody doing?”

He looked around at the assembled media, waiting for answers. Tipton meant it. His question wasn’t an obligatory social norm — he seemed to genuinely want to know how everyone was doing.

It was a hot and humid afternoon — the type of weather that few would want to wear football pads in. The rest of the team had already shed their pads and made their way to the locker room for ice baths and a fresh set of clothes. Tipton made his trip to the group of media alongside fellow receiver first year Jalen Bradley.

Bradley struggled on this particular day of practice, with at least three drops, and was visibly frustrated during the allotted practice time for media viewing. Tipton, in his seventh and final year with the Panthers, stayed in the heat to talk and work with Bradley while lending some advice to the struggling first year after practice. 

“[I’m] just trying to keep him from beating himself,” Tipton said. “We can’t have weak links and I’m trying to make sure we don’t have any by giving him as much knowledge as I personally have and give it back to him.”

The Apollo, Pennsylvania native gathered plenty of wisdom over the years, not just on the football field, but in the real world from a young age. Tipton began experiencing suicidal thoughts at just seven years old and lost several family members in his childhood, including his stepfather.

But football was something that kept Tipton going — it gave him something to look forward to and it kept him sane, he said in a segment on UPMC Pitt Livewire. He’s had his fair share of pitfalls on the gridiron, from several knee injuries to fallouts with head coaches. According to Tipton, there’s no love lost for the game of football, and he’s trying to savor every moment. Because once a football player plays their last snap, it’s over.

“One sport that’s like death is football,” Tipton said. “What I mean by that is the day you pick up that football, you have a death certificate when you stop playing that game … football is the one sport, once you put it down, it’s over. So, as long as I’m able and these legs keep running I’m trying to play … I just love the game, the game has been my best friend.”

Back when Tipton was a first-year, he struggled himself — but his battles weren’t on the football field. Tipton played well until he sprained his PCL and LCL in his knee and was relegated to the sidelines.

When his knee injury kept him off of the field and away from his “best friend,” he started experiencing feelings of depression and worthlessness.

“I was so deep in my own depression, there was no coming out,” Tipton said in the same segment on UPMC Live Wire. “I ended up doing some things to myself and the people around me that I would never ever wish upon anybody.”

Eventually, Tipton reached a breaking point.

Tipton stood on the Fort Duquesne Bridge and looked out over the water, prepared to take his own life. As he looked out over the water and toward Heinz Field, something in the back of Tipton’s mind told him not to jump, that it wasn’t his time. He took his shirt off, threw it in the water — promising himself he would never be in that position again.

Through prayer and building strong relationships, Tipton learned ways to fight off the feelings of depression and anxiety that he battled for much of his childhood. Head coach Pat Narduzzi gushed with pride at the obstacles the seventh-year receiver overcame.

“Tre is an incredible success,” Narduzzi said. “The measuring stick isn’t big enough to measure what that guy has overcome… it’s amazing what he’s gone through, the things he’s survived when a lot of kids would have just hung their cleats up and said ‘I’m done.’”

Tipton adopted a new mindset — rather than bottling up his emotions, he would be open about his mental health. He uses a metaphor to explain why talking about mental health is paramount to his continued prosperity — the glass cup theory.

“I always used to use the same theory, it’s called the glass cup theory,” Tipton said. “If you take a glass cup and you fill it up with water over and over and over again, what begins to happen? It overflows, right? … And the scary part is with that glass cup is if you begin to overflow and it tips over and breaks, then what? … In order for me to keep my cup half empty but also half full I had to share my experiences, I had to share what I was going through.”

And that’s just what he did.

Tipton started his own organization called L.O.V.E. — an acronym for “Living Out Victoriously Everyday” — to give college athletes a space to talk about their own battles with mental health. Athletes speaking up about mental health is a relatively recent concept, and one that even draws criticism from fans who claim athletes should stick to sports. Tipton aims to do away with this harmful and outdated stigma and give athletes the freedom to speak out through his organization 

We don’t get a chance to speak up about our situations and if we do we get looked at differently,” Tipton said. “To give athletes that opportunity to speak up and say, ‘I’m not okay,’ I want to be the person that does that. If I could be, I’d be the Michael Jordan of mental health.”

Other prominent athletes are also working to end the stigma surrounding mental health. Tennis player Naomi Osaka opted out of the French Open this past May after concerns about the negative impact that playing in the spotlight and talking to the media were having on her mental health. United States Olympic gymnast Simone Biles also opted out of the final event at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics — saying she had to focus on her mental health. 

“We also have to focus on ourselves, because at the end of the day, we’re human too,” Biles said. “So, we have to protect our mind and our body, rather than just go out there and do what the world wants us to do.”

Two athletes at the top of their field opted out of major events to focus on their mental health — whether people liked it or not — catching the attention of the entire world and signifying a change in the way people view athletes.

Tragedy struck once again for Tipton this summer. His mother, Kim Tipton, who he said loved nothing more than seeing her son play football, passed away. Tre’s “glass cup theory,” prayer and strong relationships kept his head above water in a time of need and ensured his glass didn’t tip over and break. As Tipton gets ready to strap it up for one last year with the Panthers, he said this year is for his mom.

“Everyday I go out here it’s me playing for my mom,” Tipton said. “I can’t let her down. I know she’s watching me every chance that she gets.”

Just as Tipton was wrapping up his time with the media, he was asked what his plans after football entailed. A smile crept across Tipton’s face and he began to speak.

“Can I be honest with you?” Tipton said with a grin. “I want to be a superhero. Whatever that entails … I’m going to change lives and I’m going to make a difference.”

Students can reach the University Counseling Center 24/7 by calling 412-648-7930. LifeSolutions, the Faculty and Staff Assistance Program, is available 24/7 by calling 866-647-3432.

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Garage Door Saloon forced to close after City condemns building

The city of Pittsburgh’s Department of Permits, Licenses and Inspections condemned the building which houses the popular Garage Door Saloon on Monday.

The bar, located at 223 Atwood St., has been operational since 2006. The City notice on the bar’s door stated that the building is not fit for human occupancy and the structure either needed to be demolished or repaired.

The City assigned an investigation into the building on July 15 according to public data, and performed the investigation on July 21. An engineer’s report from Taylor Structural Engineers, Inc., found unsafe conditions, including ceiling collapse and roof deterioration. The City inspected the building again on Aug. 18, where unsafe conditions were found again due to a partial ceiling collapse. The official notice of condemnation was posted on the bar’s doors Monday.

Kate Gold, a graduate student in Pitt’s speech language pathology program, graduated from Pitt in 2020 and has memories at the bar, including spending her 21st birthday there and enjoying G Door’s signature pickle shots. According to Gold, the bar was always packed with a line around the corner. She said she was surprised to hear that the building was condemned as she never felt unsafe while in the building.

“I never felt like [the roof] would collapse. It was just kind of gross because it’s a smoking bar. But I never felt unsafe like that,” Gold said.

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Pitt works to make room for largest ever first-year class

Gayle Rogers, professor and chair of Pitt’s English department, saw his department grow in response to Pitt’s largest-ever first-year class of 5,195 students. Rogers said the department added more class sections to accommodate the new students.

“You can imagine the effect for us,” Rogers said. “We are a department that thrives on that for early career students, so we’ve opened up new sections for a whole lot of courses. If I had to ballpark it’d probably be 15%-ish more classes across the board at the intro/first-year level.”

With more than 880 students over the goal of 4,315 enrollees, Pitt struggled to accommodate the large class, with departments resorting to hiring new staff and adding new class sections, as well as the University leasing a hotel for housing.

The English department — which is the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences’ largest undergraduate department — has a handful of classes that first-years typically flock to. Along with seminar in composition, Dietrich students are also required to take two writing intensive courses and one literature course to fulfill their general education requirements — which both have classes that fall within the English department.

There are also a slew of introductory courses that Rogers said are popular with first-years, including Introduction to Poetry Writing, Introduction to Film and Introduction to Shakespeare.

Rogers said the English department’s new hires were brought on mainly to accommodate the first-year class. As enrollment grew over the past few months, the English department opened new sections in their low-level classes and hired new staff to teach them.

“We had to do a lot of hiring over the summer because we just didn’t have enough people to teach the new sections,” Rogers said. “So we hired some new visiting lecturers and we hired some new part-time faculty to come on board and teach more classes.”

While the English department added sections to accommodate increased enrollment, they did not increase the enrollment cap on their classes.

“Most of our classes are writing-based intensives — which are hard capped.” Rogers said. “A professor can not plausibly grade 20% more written essays in the same amount of time. It’s just not humanly possible. It’s going to degrade the quality of instruction and feedback, etc. So we kept the caps the same, we just opened up more sections.”

According to Rogers, the department focused on increasing training and support to the new hires.

“I would say our major investment has just been increasing training and increasing our visibility for orientation,” Rogers said. “That’s where we just basically have to double down our investment and make sure that people we’re asking to come on board and take on new teaching assignments on pretty short notice feel supported and ready to go on day one.”

According to Jonathan Rubin, professor and mathematics department chair, his department saw a similar surge in enrollment and opted to add sections — similar to the English department — though they did push a few classes “above their usual caps.”

“We have some extra sections and more of our classes are at capacity than usual,” Rubin said. “All sections are jam-packed and we have even pushed a few above their usual caps, which we normally do not do.”

While all mathematics classes were assigned an instructor, Rubin said the department struggled to fill recitations with graduate and undergraduate teaching assistants. He said the department completed the process “only at the last minute,” including after classes began.

“This process was only finalized Sunday night — this was after the first day of classes, but luckily there were no recitations on Friday,” Rubin said.

Though some Dietrich departments made notable changes to accommodate the first-year class, the Swanson School of Engineering didn’t have to.

According to Bopaya Bidanda, professor and industrial engineering department chair, his department witnessed a moderate increase in enrollment this year and did not have to make any substantial changes for this year’s first-year class. Unlike Dietrich, Bidanda said Swanson “already operat[ed] to capacity,” as it accepts a limited number of students each year. 

“Engineering is a little bit of a different situation,” Bidanda said. “We were already operating to capacity. There’s no absolute hard and fast rule, but we usually have a limit in terms of quality as to how many students we can accept.”

Matthew Sterne, Pitt’s vice chancellor of business services, said housing the first-year class proved to be a challenge. He said that his department pursued “housing expansion options to best serve students” in the spring when it became clear that Pitt anticipated high first-year enrollment.

In order to house first-year students, Pitt partnered with the Residence Inn University Medical Center. According to Sterne, the Residence Inn lease gave Pitt an additional 171 rooms and 346 beds — allowing the University to house 5,260 first-year students. 

While he was “unable to detail specific costs” and declined to comment on the exact cost of Pitt’s lease, Sterne said it costs less than Pitt’s $22 million spent on three Oakland hotels to de-densify student housing last year. 

As for how Pitt plans to house students next year, Sterne said “additional campus housing is part of the Campus Master Plan in planning for future long-term growth.” Pitt’s Institutional Master Plan, which the City recently approved, includes several housing projects, such as de-densifying Litchfield Towers, redeveloping Bouquet Gardens and adding 600 new suite-style beds in a Hillside development.

Sterne said he is “honored” to support Pitt’s incoming class. 

“It was exciting to welcome Pitt’s first-year class on campus!” Sterne said. “We see this year’s enrollment as a testament to the University’s academic strength and appeal, and are honored to provide housing accommodations to support Pitt students.”

Rogers said while accommodating the first-year class was “pretty crazy,” he is excited to see so many new Pitt students.

“We love to see more incoming, more first-year, more early career, more transfer students. That means more students in our classes and more exposure to our professors, who we think are awesome, more of our ideas, more of our material, more of our pedagogy,” Rogers said. “So, for us, this is a net win. Does it require some logistical hurdles? Of course. But we’ll handle that any day of the week. So, it’s good news, and it’s certainly been a pretty crazy August, but … I signed up for the job.”

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‘We Not Me’: Pitt football embraces selfless 2021 mantra

Football is exceedingly team oriented — perhaps more so than any other collegiate sport. Each of the 22 players on the field have a particular job to execute on every snap. While some may be more glamorous than others, if one player fails to do their job, well-designed plays turn to shambles.

Under the sweltering August sun, Pitt football took to the field for their final round of training camp last Thursday — the team’s closing preparations prior to the Saturday season opener against UMass.

While each player’s name, appearance, jersey number and position may differ, there was one constant among each athlete on the field that Thursday and every day of training camp thus far — the word “TEAM” was on the back of their jerseys instead of the players’ last names. The addition is a first for the program and a tangible representation of their 2021 mantra — “We Not Me.” Redshirt senior quarterback Kenny Pickett feels that the newly designed practice uniforms further drill home the new slogan.

“I think that’s where it all comes together,” Pickett said. “Building off each other, trying to take the next step with it — all moving on the same page.”

The Pitt football program used a number of mottos in the past — “Lock the Gates” from the 2018 season was one of the more notable ones. But this year’s motto focuses solely on always putting the team before yourself. 

Its inception is timely. It almost directly follows the announcement of new name, image and likeness rules. When asked at an Aug. 19 press conference about how the mantra started, head coach Pat Narduzzi said Pitt football’s leadership council, nicknamed the Eagles, came up with it after the NIL rules were released over the summer. 

“It was just being more about ‘we not me’ … I just think the world we’re living in — everyone thinks about them[selves] … Our guys have to focus on when they come through those doors that it’s all about the team — the team comes first,” Narduzzi said. 

The challenge for players and coaches alike this year will be finding the balance between self-promotion while remaining dedicated to creating a winning program. Athletes at every school will be enticed by the potential opportunities NIL presents — especially after seeing Alabama sophomore quarterback Bryce Young already eclipse $1 million in endorsement deals.

Although on the surface it seems that the rise of NIL deals in NCAA football are the main reason for the birth of “We Not Me,” redshirt junior defensive lineman Habakkuk Baldonado downplayed its impact. He said players are thinking about the mantra in their NIL opportunities as well.

“[We not me] is one of our main things this year, to put the team first and the well being of the whole team rather than put ourselves first,” Baldonado said. “NIL is a little corner — even with that we can see Kenny Pickett bringing the whole [offensive] line to dinner every weekend, so [we not me] has its little part even in these NIL deals.”

So far, Pickett has reaped the benefits of the NIL deals earlier than anyone else in the program. From taking his offensive linemen out for weekly “hog dinners” at the Oaklander Hotel, to receiving a brand-new GMC Sierra pickup courtesy of Bowser Automotive, he’s had no shortage of success in the new arena.

Regardless of how many endorsements and opportunities the NIL rules provide Pickett, his focus is still locked on the start of the season.

“It’s really just a team mindset — I think it’s one of my favorite mottos that we’ve had since I’ve been here,” Pickett said. “It’s all about the team and I think we have that mindset going into the season … a lot of the team [has] really bought into it so far.”

The wide receivers — now led by first-year coach Brennan Marion — are some of the most public examples of how Pitt is living the mantra. Every day the unit walks on and off the field together. 

The new mantra applies to both players and members of the coaching staff according to Narduzzi, who made it very clear that he wants his coaches to stay locked into their current job when asked about Marion’s future.

“Just be in the moment — be the best receiver coach you can, don’t worry about anything else,” Narduzzi said. “Do a great job where you are, and good things will happen — people will come to you … You don’t have to worry about ‘me’ — it’s the same thing, it’s ‘we not me’ for the coaches too.”

Out on the field, problems are solved with a group effort. First-year players are often guided and instructed by more experienced ones, such as redshirt senior wide-receiver Tre Tipton — who once again is taking a leadership role with his younger teammates and uses it as a means of embodying the “We Not Me” mantra.

At practice one day last week, first-year wide receiver Jaden Bradley struggled to catch the ball during drills. Tipton was the first to walk over and offer some advice. 

“Just trying to keep him from beating himself — as a freshman, it’s hard to realize that you’ve been playing the game for so long — you’re trying to impress everybody,” Tipton said. “We can’t have no weak links in our room, and I’m making sure that we don’t have any by giving him as much knowledge as I personally have and giving it back to him.”

With optimism for the upcoming season running high, players and coaches hope that this mantra is more than just a rosy life lesson about the collective good. Tipton thinks “We Not Me” will translate into wins as well. 

“The team overall is just so close,” Tipton said. “We have the same goals and aspirations as we’ve had in the past, but I think this year is definitely our year.”

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What to expect at Heinz Field for Pitt football’s 2021 opener

“Lock the Gates” is an enduring rallying call for Pitt football during Pat Narduzzi’s time as head coach. It’s an ode to the game’s inherent violence. Football is, after all, “the gladiator sport,” seventh-year senior receiver Tre Tipton said during training camp last week. You walk out victoriously or in defeat, but not before the final whistle blows.

For at least one season, “Lock the Gates” applied to more than the field of play. Fans were locked out of Heinz Field during much of the 2020 season, just as the Panthers were locked in. Because of the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic, Pitt played most of its home schedule last year in front of sparsely populated or wholly empty stands. But that will change on Saturday afternoon, when the home of the Panthers opens itself fully to spectators for the first time since 2019.

Pitt football opens the 2021 campaign this Saturday against UMass at 4 p.m., and they will do it in front of an unrestricted crowd at Heinz Field. On paper, this matchup is unassuming. The Panthers are a 38-point favorite against the Minutemen — who haven’t finished a regular season above .500 since 2010, when they finished 6-5.

In all likelihood, Saturday’s contest on the North Shore won’t be wildly entertaining. And on the off-chance UMass does make things interesting, Pitt fans will want to avert their eyes. The good news is that in the event of an upset or ugly game, there will be plenty of distractions. 

With expanded capacity comes many landmarks of a college football gameday. The student section will fill, tailgating is permitted again and even the annual Rib Fest — an outdoor party that lasts through Labor Day and always coincides with Pitt football’s season opener — is back from a one-year hiatus.

Because Heinz Field is governed by independent stadium management, gameday procedures for Saturday will follow what the Pittsburgh Steelers did for their NFL Preseason games this past month. Like last year, the Panthers and their roommates on the North Shore will be in lockstep.

That includes, first and foremost, no limits on capacity. The doors have been officially unlocked after months of hoping. The Steelers hosted more than 45,000 fans for an Aug. 21 preseason game vs. Detroit. In 2019, their last full season with unlimited capacity, the Panthers averaged just over 43,370 fans per game, so Steelers-Lions should serve as a pretty good example of what Saturday’s crowd will look like.

Tailgating was not allowed last year, even when Heinz Field was opened to a limited public last October. It left some wondering how to replicate the game day atmosphere. But they will not need to improvise any longer. As eager Steeler fans demonstrated last week ahead of a preseason game against the Detroit Lions, tailgaters are allowed to return to their favorite lots to eat or drink ahead of game time.

Upon entering the stadium, fans should have their phones charged and ready with their ticket. Heinz Field went paperless and each gate will require fans to use mobile tickets in an effort to cut down on person-to-person contact. And once you get in, make sure masks are handy as well. Everyone, regardless of vaccination status, must wear a face covering when indoors at the club sections on the second level, on elevators and in restrooms.

Concession stands will also have a different look to them. Heinz Field pivoted to a cashless stadium, meaning only credit or debit cards will be accepted for those who want to buy food or apparel. Fans can also order food remotely through the Steelers’ mobile app. They’ll be able to order from their seats and pick it up at the concession stand of their choosing.

There will be some slight alterations to Heinz Field that Pitt fans won’t recognize, but for all intents and purposes, it will be a mostly normal fall Saturday at Heinz Field when the Panthers and Minutemen square off.

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Column | It’s do or die for Pat Narduzzi in the 2021-22 season

When universities attempt to build a winning college football program, stability is key. Stability is necessary from both the players and the staff to maintain sustained success.

Pitt Athletic Director Heather Lyke cited stability as one of the reasons she offered head coach Pat Narduzzi a new seven-year contract extension back in December 2017.

“Stability is something that we have never had at Pitt with the right people, so why wouldn’t you consider that?” Lyke said. “That’s really the thought process I had early on.”

Lyke also believed she hired the right man for the job, but when does that trust break? With a favorable non-conference schedule, and an elite assortment of talent, Narduzzi must produce results, or he should be firmly on the hot seat. 

When Pitt hired Narduzzi in December 2014, fans and media alike saw it as a home run. Viewed as one of the best defensive coordinators in college football at Michigan State, he was thought to be a perfect fit for Pittsburgh’s blue-collar mold.

The honeymoon phase of Narduzzi’s tenure seemed to prove fans and pundits correct — leading the Panthers to an eight-win regular season, including going 6-2 in conference play and being ranked in the AP Top 25 for two straight weeks in his first season at the helm.

Narduzzi followed up his strong 2015 campaign the next year with flashes of excellence, like when the Panthers took down the eventual Big Ten champions Penn State, who finished the season ranked in the AP Top 10. In the same season, Pitt upset eventual National Champions Clemson, in Death Valley, after coming into the game as 20.5 pt underdogs. Almost five years later, the 43-42 loss to the Panthers is still Clemson’s last loss at home.

But the 2016 Panthers weren’t consistent and finished the season just 8-5, despite how impressive they were in the two aforementioned wins. That’s the theme of Narduzzi’s tenure in Pittsburgh — inconsistency. Since 2016, Narduzzi has done just enough to stay off the hot seat.

The Panthers were just 4-7 in 2017 but super-senior quarterback Kenny Pickett, as a true first-year, upset the No. 2 Miami Hurricanes. After a subpar season, Panther fans received a morale boosting fifth win as well as something to cling to while heading into the offseason. 

Narduzzi led the Panthers to the ACC Championship Game the following year after clinching the ACC Coastal division title. But Pitt fans were left with a bitter taste in their mouths when the team trended downwards and finished the season losing their final three games, finishing with a 7-7 record.

Narduzzi built an elite defense laden with NFL talent the past two seasons, but was left with little to show for it. The Panthers’ combined record in both seasons was 14-10 with a 9-9 record in ACC play.

Considering Narduzzi had a defense that finished top 20 in the nation in team defense in each of the previous two seasons at his disposal, the seasons were wildly underwhelming. In fact, Narduzzi’s entire tenure as head coach is underwhelming.

Kickoff is almost here, and there are lofty expectations heading out of camp. Pickett, the most experienced quarterback in the conference, is back under center. Redshirt senior tight end Lucas Krull and sophomore running back Israel Abanikanda seem poised for breakout years.

Sports Illustrated said the wide receivers “have the potential to be one of the best in the conference” led by ACC’s Rookie of the Year runner-up sophomore Jordan Addison.

On the opposite side of the ball, the Panthers will feature a stout defense once again.

At the corner spots, PFF ranks junior Marquis Williams and senior Damarri Mathis as a top 10 defensive back pairing in the country by Pro Football Focus, with plenty of young depth waiting behind them. It’s tough to forget about Pitt’s talented front seven as well.

In an interview with Packer and Durham earlier this month, Narduzzi went on record saying, “We’ve got more depth than we’ve ever had.”

The recipe for success is there.

There’s stability within the staff. The roster is loaded with experienced players and balanced out by an influx of youth, who are ready to contribute this year. It’s arguably Narduzzi’s best team since arriving at Pitt.

It must translate to wins though. If it doesn’t, Narduzzi’s job should be in jeopardy.

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