As Maya Angelou, an American poet, memoirist, actress and an important figure in the American Civil Rights Movement, once said, “Courage is the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can't practice any other virtue consistently.”
I felt that looking for a place in the professional world in this City, where I would just spend two years of my life before voyaging into it, was not going to be easy. So I follow those people who I believe would be a beacon for me for the work they do in the community as well as for their achievements. Firmly I believe with right intention and motivation, my action can be justified rightful.
Then on October 17, 2012, I found myself seeking advice from De at the Allegheny Conference office on the 17th floor of the 11 Stanwix street building, for a research project assigned by Professor Don Smith, who’s also the CEO of RIDC. Because of the bus budget cut, traffic, and my own ill planning, I was late for the meeting for 15 minutes or so, which was most unprofessional and embarrassing. Yet, De took it lightheartedly and generously shared one-hour of his time to talk to me about the challenges and opportunities of the community, especially economic development in Pittsburgh's forthcoming chapters.
As a listener, I found this experience extremely inspiring. De’s nurturing nature and attention to young people like me who wants to learn and be part of what’s exciting in the city, speaks very loudly about the leadership in the City. It’s accessible, it’s open-minded, and it’s investing in young professionals who would someday succeed them to continue the course they envisioned decades ago.
Beer winning trivia @ Allegheny Conference on Community Development, 11 Stanwix Street
1. Allegheny Conference on Community Development is a professional non-profit, non-partisan, civic organization, devoting to research and planning on an overall community development/improvement program. It was founded in 1943-1944 by a group of visionaries led by Richard King Mellon, then Pittsburgh Regional Planning Association President, and Robert Doherty, then the president of Carnegie Institute of Technology (Carnegie Mellon University), who strive to primarily improve the “smoky city”’s living conditions for the business elites to maintain their investment and wealth in the city. By 1968, due to civic voice for more attention on social benefits for more people rather than only the “1%” business elites, ACCD revised its priorities and committed to a SOCIAL renaissance.
The uniqueness of ACCD is its success in leadership and power, enabled through those recruits among corporate and political elites; success in its policy allowing/protecting elites to participate and deliberate proposals as individuals not representatives to their associated organizations; success in uses of technical and professional skills that brought together Democrat and Republican politicians together as well as engaged every level of government; and success in formation of a community consensus on community revitalization policy and regional economic development vista. [Although grassroots’ voice were not stressed, a certain cultural price was paid during the 1946-1973 Renaissance I, but at the time, the high-level of leadership and decision-making proved to be efficient and effective.][Special thanks to Mr. Roy Lubove’s book Twentieth Century Pittsburgh--Government, Business, and Environmental Change.]
2. 11 Stanwix Street was completed on November 24, 1969, and has 23 floors. It rises 355 feet (108 meters) above Downtown Pittsburgh and is located along the Monongahela River. It’s originally built and named for the Westinghouse Corporation. So before 1999, when the Westinghouse moved its headquarter to Monroeville, a suburb east to Pittsburgh, and later Cranberry Township, a new development north the City of Pittsburgh, the building was know for 30 years as Westinghouse Tower. Today, major tenants in the 11 Stanwix street are IBM, Brunner, First Niagara Financial Group, and Allegheny Conference.
Your ID @ Allegheny Conference
1. What’s the name of the Campaign Allegheny Conference worked with MARC USA in 2008 to celebrate the 250th birthday of the City as well as lay a foundation of marketing message for the City hereafter?
2. Is De (Mr. Dewitt Peart) a native Pittsburgher? From which university did he earn a B.A in Business Administration? From which university did he receiv a M.S in Public Management?
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