Join us for an event to improve, build on and expand the connections between Carnegie Mellon University resources and the Pittsburgh community. CMU resources such as the Libraries and Sustainability Initiative can be leveraged by users not affiliated with the university, but barriers can prevent them from fully engaging.
The conversation features representatives from CMU departments and local organizations about the community engagement efforts currently underway at CMU and opportunities to improve upon them. Speakers will highlight current and ongoing projects and share resources to support future collaboration.
Event Moderators:
Taiwo Lasisi, CLIR Postdoctoral Fellow in Community Data Literacy, Carnegie Mellon University Libraries
Emma Slayton, Data Curation, Visualization, & GIS Specialist,Carnegie Mellon University Libraries
Speakers:
Nicky Agate, Associate Dean for Academic Engagement, Carnegie Mellon University Libraries
Chelsea Blackburn Cohen, The University’s Executive fellow for community engagement, Carnegie Mellon University
Sarah Ceurvorst, Academic Pathways Manager, Program Director, LEAP (Leadership, Excellence, Access, Persistence) Carnegie Mellon University
Julia Poepping, Associate Director of Partnership Development, Information Systems, Carnegie Mellon University
Scott Wolovich, Director of New Sun Rising, Pittsburgh
Registrater with link below:
Speakers’ Bio
Chelsea Cohen, The University’s Executive fellow for community engagement, Carnegie Mellon University
As Executive Fellow for Community Engagement in the Office of the President at Carnegie Mellon University, Dr. Blackburn Cohen builds and maintains relationships with key partners in Pittsburgh and the greater region, including non-profits, community development organizations, small businesses, and local government officials. A central component of her role is to collaborate on the rollout of strategic initiatives that impact the community and to harmonize and evaluate activities with a lens toward ensuring CMU's engagements are equitable and inclusive. Before her role at CMU, Chelsea spent five years working at New York University’s Scholars at Risk network, where she managed the engagement of over 200 higher education institutions and associations throughout North America, where she also oversaw SAR’s portfolio on promoting higher education values and a Mellon-funded research fellowship for early career academics studying academic freedom. Originally driven by the vision of the Wisconsin Idea--that the benefits of the university should reach every individual in the state--Chelsea received a PhD in Higher Education Leadership and Policy Analysis from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She serves on the Advisory Boards for Partners for Campus-Community Engagement (PCCE)--formerly Campus Compact of New York and Pennsylvania--and the Oakland Development Fund (of the Oakland Planning and Development Corporation). She is an active volunteer with the Greenfield Community Association's Public Space Committee, and a former Voluntary Zoning Officer for the Borough of Forrest Hills, Pennsylvania.
Scott Wolovich, Director of New Sun Rising, Pittsburgh
Mr. Scott Wolovich is the Executive Director and Co-Founder of New Sun Rising, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit community development intermediary established in 2005. Scott has dedicated his professional life to helping people and communities reach their goals and connect in transformative ways. After receiving his Bachelor of Science in Biology at Ohio University in 1996, he went on to receive a Master in Physical Therapy from the University of Pittsburgh. Scott's experience in community health led him to start Lively Pittsburgh, a social enterprise helping to implement goals of the Age-Friendly Greater Pittsburgh Action Plan. In 2015, he became New Sun Rising’s first full-time employee, growing the organization to strengthen over 500 leaders and invest $20+ million in their efforts to create Vibrant Communities. Scott shares a love of music and nature with his two children, Rowan and Maya, and his wife, Amber.
Sarah Ceurvorst, Academic Pathways Manager, Program Director, LEAP (Leadership, Excellence, Access, Persistence) Carnegie Mellon University
Sarah Ceurvorst (she/her) is an artist and educator based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania who believes that the arts and humanities can be powerful catalysts for justice and social change. She currently serves as the Program Director of LEAP (Leadership, Excellence, Access, Persistence) and the Academic Pathways Manager for Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University. She is also an Art21 Educator, working with a global network of educators and creatives who use contemporary art to address contemporary issues. Previously, she worked with The Ellis School, Contemporary Craft, Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, the Pittsburgh Office of Public Art, and Carnegie Mellon University’s SocialChange101 initiative. She was also a Fulbright Scholar in Thailand. She served as the board secretary of the Greater Pittsburgh Area Fulbright Association, a volunteer with the Son-Rise Program, a steering committee member of the Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council's Pittsburgh Emerging Arts Leaders and a member of the University of Pittsburgh's PRIDE Teacher Cohort.
Julia Poepping, Associate Director of Partnership Development, Information Systems, Carnegie Mellon University
Julia Poepping is special faculty, Associate Director of Partnership Development, in the Information Systems Program - a joint program of the Dietrich and Heinz Colleges at Carnegie Mellon University. In this role she has the privilege of developing and managing community partnerships for 67-373: Information Systems Student Consulting Project Course (373) and for the Technology Consulting in the Global Community (TCinGC) program. She manages the student relationships for TCinGC and is a student advisor and faculty coordinator for 373. She is engaged with the university's Community Based Work Coalition and teaches 67-206: Information Systems Community Engagement which prepares and sends students into Pittsburgh Public Schools and Out of School Programs to share their passion for technology with children in Pittsburgh. Julia also serves on the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging committee.
Organizers’ Bio
Dr. Taiwo Lasisi, CLIR Postdoctoral Fellow in Community Data Literacy, Carnegie Mellon University
Dr. Lasisi received her doctorate in Public Administration and Policy from Old Dominion University, Virginia. As a 2023 United Nations Youth Delegate and a current CLIR Postdoctoral Fellow in Community Data Literacy at Carnegie Mellon University, her research called The “DaPGEF” Project focuses on exploring the use of “data visualization to assess the problematics of greenhouse emissions and flooding,” particularly in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She works with the Carnegie Mellon University Libraries, Sustainability Initiatives, and Center for Shared Prosperity to promote data literacy, management, and research on the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and environmental justice issues.She has a strong research prowess and has single-authored and co-authored articles featured in top academic journals, including the “International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, Virginia Social Science Journal, and Public Administration Review.” She is an active facilitator and participant in university and community activities. She is a James Buchanan fellow, ASPA HR scholar, Frederic Bastiat fellow, ARNOVA Diversity fellow, Harrison Middleton fellow in ideas, and recently, a Virginia Social Science Association (VSSA) Award Winner. She is interested in diversity, sustainability, environmental policy, social justice, nonprofits, community engagement, coastal resilience, data management, and qualitative research design.
Emma Slayton, Data Curation, Visualization, & GIS Specialist; Co-Lead Data Education, Carnegie Mellon University Libraries
Dr. Slayton is the Data Curation, Visualization, and GIS specialist at Carnegie Mellon University Libraries. She obtained an MPhil from the University of Oxford in 2013 and completed her Ph.D. at the Faculty of Archaeology, Leiden University in 2018 where her research focused on GIS and mapping. As an archaeologist, She focused on using computer modeling to hypothesize the location of early canoe routes in the Caribbean. She has experienced working with GIS and other data visualization tools. This knowledge aids her work at CMU, where she leads and plans workshops and other content to promote the use of various data visualization methods, tools, and techniques. Her current work centers around improving and supporting data and digital literacy efforts, in particular data communication and storytelling.
Orcid ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2230-3101.
