Volume 2, Issue 1 - Fall 2024
"Highlighting Excellence in Action at the Dietrich School and CGS"
Spotlight: Staff Recognition
It’s common for today’s workers to changes jobs—even careers—multiple times throughout their lives. And while we support everyone’s desire for growth, we want to make it possible and preferable for talented staff to continually evolve and develop, personally and professionally, without ever leaving Pitt.
In 2023, the Dietrich School and CGS kicked off an effort to improve communication to, from, and among our more than 400 staff members. This effort included an all-staff survey and a series of follow-up listening sessions. One of the takeaways from the listening sessions was a clear desire—from staff at all levels, all units, and all career tenures—for a more comprehensive recognition effort to celebrate staff accomplishments and service.
After the listening sessions, a small team was assembled to continue the conversation about recognition. From that highly collaborative and interactive process, several ideas emerged that we’re piloting during the 2024-25 Academic Year.
Modeling and Training for Supervisors
While it was clear during the listening sessions that some supervisors excel at recognizing the achievements and contributions of their staff members, it was apparent that there are supervisors within the school and college who struggle with how to meaningfully show their appreciation.
Moving forward, the school’s mandatory Supervisor Training Series will include content about the importance of staff recognition and its impact on retention and job satisfaction. This will include tangible examples of ways that managers can be intentional in their efforts to appreciate their staff members.
Dietrich/CGS “ROC” Stars
Staff expressed the desire to have exemplary contributions recognized at the “home unit” level as well the school- and college-wide level. They also felt it was important to acknowledge good work not just from the top down, but peer-to-peer. People suggested having some tangible symbol that could be displayed to indicate their achievements to others.
From this input came the new Dietrich/CGS “Roc” Stars program. The playful title incorporates the University’s beloved mascot and reflects the sense of fun and collegiality we hope people enjoy as part of their workday experiences.
Individuals or groups can recognize the outstanding work of individuals/teams of colleagues, staff, or supervisors and at the end of every month, that month’s nominees will receive an email indicating that they have been recognized as “Roc” Stars.
Every “Roc” Star receives a custom laptop sticker and digital assets—including “Roc” Stars Zoom and Teams background screens—that they can display.
Dean’s Achievement Awards
Three new annual awards—for overall excellence, mentoring, and enhancing their work environment—rooted in our leadership priorities, will honor individuals for their professional accomplishments as well as their contributions toward making the Dietrich School and CGS destination workplaces. Up to four honorees in each of the three categories will receive $500 awards.
Nominations for all of these awards are now open.
We will continue to seek input from staff throughout the year and more formally in Spring 2025 to determine the effectiveness of these comprehensive efforts.
Offers Dean Adam, “We want to create a culture at the Dietrich School and CGS that encourages people to succeed. We want to be a place where people feel respected and included. Where collaboration and communication are valued, and where new ideas are welcomed. Recognizing our talented and dedicated staff is key to creating an environment where everyone can thrive.”
Spotlight: Dean’s Fellow for Experiential Learning
When Abdesalam Soudi, Teaching Associate Professor in the Department of Linguistics, saw the announcement for the Dean’s Fellow for Experiential Learning, he was intrigued and excited. As a long-time champion of outreach and community engagement as a way to overcome cultural and language barriers, and with a long history of partnering with organizations and businesses beyond the University, Soudi was confident that he could put his broad network of partners to use to enrich students’ experiences and promote collaboration.
Says Soudi, “The role of Dean's Fellow for Experiential Learning (ExL) is fundamentally about integrating ExL as a core component of the educational experience across our institution. This encompasses a wide array of responsibilities, from strategic leadership to working very closely with colleagues to define the vision for ExL in our school, alignment with Plan for Pitt, to developing school-wide structure for concrete programs such as internships, service-learning, and community-based projects.
Partnership development is also key. I am working with stakeholders to build strong relationships with industry partners, community organizations, and alumni, and to create a diverse network of opportunities for our students. Additionally, my role involves supporting faculty and students through training, resources, and guidance to successfully navigate experiential projects.”
Soudi’s goals are broad and far reaching:
- foster an inclusive and impactful learning environment that prepares students to navigate an ever-changing world, empowering them as leaders who contribute meaningfully to their communities;
- facilitate communication on current experiential learning efforts;
- collaborate with stakeholders to enhance experiential resources;
- explore new learning modalities inside and outside the classroom;
- develop projects to increase student access to internships and applied learning;
- establish guidelines and best practices for future experiential learning development;
- create an Experiential Learning Community of Practice (Faculty, Staff, Students, Interns, Advisors, Alum, Industry and Community Partners).
Soudi is already making high-impacting progress toward these goals.
“Steeping and Pouring Possibilities in the Area of Experiential Learning,” is a series of in-person encounters with Pitt colleagues, industry and community partners, and alumni. The meetings draw inspiration from the ritual of making tea, a process that symbolizes thoughtfulness, community, and shared experience. Just as tea is steeped carefully and poured to bring people together.
The steeping process represents taking time for reflection (a vital component of ExL), ensuring all voices are heard, and allowing ideas to mature and deepen, while pouring embodies the act of sharing these insights and fostering an inclusive, hospitable, and collaborative environment. This ongoing cycle of steeping and pouring implies continuous reflection, application, participation, and opportunities for follow-up.
Says Soudi, “Nurturing these relationships strengthens partnerships, drives impactful outcomes, emphasizes a reciprocal exchange of knowledge, networking, and problem-solving for innovative and mutually beneficial solutions. Fostering a space like this where ideas are both nurtured and shared will encourage innovation, reflection, and collaboration across disciplines and prepare students for impactful real-world engagement.”
In addition, this April, Soudi will be hosting the 8th Annual Humanities @ Work in the Community, Health, and Tech Industries conference.
This event will bring together scholars, industry leaders, alumni, students, interns, and community members to highlight successful collaborations, showcase experiential learning projects, and inspire innovative solutions to pressing issues in health, technology, and beyond. The convergence of these sectors through experiential and cross-disciplinary learning is essential to fostering holistic, human-focused development.
“The theme, "Integrating Knowledge, Experience, and Innovation," underscores the importance of ExL in preparing students for an evolving job market,” says Soudi. “The conference will focus on integrating academic knowledge with hands-on experiences, and bridge the gap between theory and practice to foster innovation. Faculty, academic advisors, community and industry partners, and alumni will join to break down disciplinary silos, foster cross-sector collaboration, and explore how ExL transforms both education and practice.”
Given the increasing demand for experiential learning opportunities among both undergraduate and graduate students, Soudi anticipates that this new role will be an active one.
Says Soudi, “I am excited to join our academic community in transforming how we learn—both inside and outside the classroom. This role focuses on creating vibrant, hands-on learning experiences that connect students, faculty, staff, advisors, alumni, industry leaders, and community members, bridging academic theory with real-world practice…(and preparing) students, undergraduate and graduate, not only for future careers but also to be compassionate, resilient leaders who make meaningful contributions to society.”
Spotlight: Ombuds Office
The average person spends approximately 90,000 hours—roughly a third of their lives—at work. Many people spend more time with their colleagues than their family members. It makes sense, then, that those who have challenging relationships with co-workers or supervisors can experience stress or anxiety, feelings that can impact their job performance, and more importantly, their health and wellness.
The University provides some important resources for those who are struggling, including the Pitt Concern Connection and LifeSolutions. But for faculty, staff, and graduate students who are specifically looking for help resolving on-the-job conflicts and grievances, the Dietrich School is supplementing that existing toolkit with something more.
In September 2024, the Dietrich School Ombuds Office opened for business. Under the leadership of Lisa Lang, the inaugural director and staff ombudsperson, the Ombuds Office will provide informal mediation, referrals to appropriate systems and policies, and assistance in charting a productive path forward.
For Lang, a 30+ year Pitt veteran and the Dietrich School’s former Director of Executive Operations, the new role is an excellent opportunity to combine her extensive experience at the University with the skills she’s gained from her undergraduate degree in psychology and as a graduate student in Pitt’s Master of Social Work degree program.
Offers Lang, “There are two components to this job. Providing active, empathetic listening using therapeutic techniques and also creating a new office from scratch. Hiring, setting up systems, arranging for training. My nine years in the Dean’s Office are great preparation.”
The Ombuds Office has been a priority for Dean Adam since the beginning of his deanship, and Lang says that this new unit will be an important part of fostering the sense of belonging that the Dean is committed to having at the Dietrich School and CGS.
“Being heard, knowing that if something is happening that they have somewhere to go? It helps people feel like they matter and know that we care about them,” says Lang.
“We’re giving people an opportunity for safe, personalized, one-on-one, confidential conversation and triage. Our goal is to empower individuals with the resources and information they need to solve problems and address issues. Up until now, there hasn’t been a centralized process that our staff and faculty could use.”
In addition to Lang and Philippa Carter, Director of Diversity Initiatives and Academic Affairs in the Graduate Studies’ Dean’s Office and long-time graduate ombudsperson, three faculty ombudspersons will staff the office—Deb Artim, Teaching Associate Professor in the Department of Neuroscience; Amy Flick, Teaching Professor and Advisor in the Department of English; and, Brent Malin, Associate Professor in the Department of Communication. Natasha Tokowicz, Associate Dean for Equity, Faculty Development, and Community Engagement, and Professor in the Department of Psychology, will serve as an advisor to the office.
The Ombuds Office is located on the first floor of Posvar Hall and walk in hours as well as in-person and Zoom appointments are available. Consultation requests can be submitted via the Ombuds Office website’s ‘request for consultation’ form. Over the next six months, Lang and the team will be reaching out to department chairs and program directors, introducing themselves and highlighting the services and support that the Ombuds Office offers.
“One of our leadership values is respect,” says Lang. “As a school, we’ve promised to provide an environment in which all Dietrich School and CGS students, faculty, and staff are treated with kindness, empathy, and respect. The Ombuds Office will play an important part in making that promise a reality.”
- Learn more about the Dietrich School Ombuds Office.