All events will be held via Zoom and in-person at Alumni Hall. Please register and choose one or more sessions. The Pitt community and public are welcome to attend any of these three celebrations of Black achievements and Pitt’s history featuring William Tiga Tita, the first Black business PhD recipient. Hosted by Paul T. Harper, Associate Dean for Inclusion, Engagement, and International Affairs.

REGISTER HERE

Outstanding Speakers

• William Tiga Tita, MBA ’70 and PhD ’77; Teacher, diplomat and project development leader; Senior Lecturer at Northeastern University; Owner of GMC-TIN
• Clarence Curry, MBA ’71; Economic development expert; Pitt faculty member for 25 years; Owner of CFC-3 Management Services
• Julia Santucci, Director of the Johnson Institute for Responsible Leadership, Pitt Graduate School of Public and International Affairs
• Rodney T. Cohen, HBCU Partnership Manager at University of Utah

Keynote Luncheon: Pitt Business as a Center for Business & Society Research

11 a.m.-1 p.m.

When Dr. Tita arrived at Katz in 1969, the remnants of racial segregation continued to mark social and economic relations in the city of Pittsburgh. He will discuss how he created the first student consulting course aimed at assisting Black businesses in the historic Hill District while earning his PhD.

Clarence Curry will moderate.

Discussion: The Art of Diplomacy

1:45-3 p.m.

Dr. Tita will share his insights as a diplomat about the nuances in the practice of effective diplomacy. 

Julia Santucci will moderate.

From Student Activist to Business Advocate

3:30-4:45 p.m.

Dr. Tita will discuss the ways he channeled his activist energies into positive institutional social change. 

Rodney T. Cohen will moderate.