PITTSBURGH (PA)—The Pitt News’ latest reporting spotlights two campus stories related to safety and leadership at the University of Pittsburgh. One focuses on a student-led push to make Bates Street safer, while the other reflects on the career and celebrates the retirement of longtime Pitt Chancellor Mark Nordenberg.
The Complete Streets Club is pressing the city to look into making Bates Street in Oakland safer as members describe the narrow street as dangerous for pedestrians, cyclists, and drivers. The group held two 15-hour watch parties on March 20 and March 27 at the corner of Semple Street and Bates Street, counting traffic and documenting near-misses to support a proposal for a formal traffic study. Members said they have seen many pedestrians nearly struck in crosswalks and several cars moving too fast through the area. Some residents told them they had already been hit there.
In a separate campus milestone, Nordenberg is set to retire June 30 after decades at Pitt, including a run as chancellor from 1996 to 2014. Since stepping down, he has remained active through the Institute of Politics and the Dick Thornburgh Forum, where he helped create the bipartisan Elsie Hillman Civic Forum. Nordenberg will be succeeded by Samantha Balbier, with whom he is very familiar, and will offer any assistance or guidance necessary to help with the transition. His final act as a panther will take place on May 3, when he is scheduled to serve as Pitt’s 2026 commencement speaker.