University Times

The University’s Board of Trustees has approved the naming of the sport and fitness center at Pitt-Bradford in honor of Richard McDowell, UPB president emeritus, and his wife, Ruth.

The Dr. Richard and Ruth McDowell Sport and Fitness Center includes the KOA Arena, the Kenneth M. Jadlowiec Fitness Center, an exercise studio, the Tom L. McDowell Fieldhouse (named in honor of McDowell’s father), the Paul C. Duke III Aquatic Center, offices, classrooms and athletic training facilities. The sport and fitness center opened in 2002.

In a prepared statement, UPB President Livingston Alexander said, “I am tremendously pleased that one of the most vibrant buildings on campus will carry the name of a vibrant leader. Dr. McDowell’s unrelenting enthusiasm, optimism and dedication carried Pitt-Bradford into the 21st century, well poised for the national recognition we’re seeing today.”

In comments to Senate Council last week, Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg called attention to the board’s action and to the McDowells’ contributions.

“Dick became the president of Pitt Bradford at the age of 29, when there wasn’t that much there, and over the course of the following three decades really was a leader who transformed that campus,” Nordenberg said, citing McDowell’s leadership in developing the Pitt-Bradford campus. In addition, Nordenberg said, “He and his wife also have been very generous donors to the University and to Pitt-Bradford in particular.”

When McDowell became president of the Bradford campus in 1973, he became the youngest college president in the nation. During his tenure, the campus gained baccalaureate degree-granting status (in 1979), the physical plant was expanded and the student body grew to 1,200. McDowell retired as president in 2002, but has continued to teach at Pitt-Bradford.

The McDowells have supported numerous Bradford campus initiatives. They established the Pitt-Bradford Athletics Endowment, joined with other donors and relatives to create the Zelda N. Hyatt Undergraduate Student Research Fund and donated to the Bradford Education Foundation at Pitt-Bradford, specifically for grants to expand and revolutionize the availability and use of technology throughout the UPB curriculum.

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In other business, the Board of Trustees on Feb. 22:

• Elected P. Jerome Richey an officer of the corporation, effective with the March 1 start of his duties as Pitt’s general counsel.

In his position as the University’s chief legal officer, Richey succeeds Jerome Cochran, who had held the dual role of executive vice chancellor and general counsel since 2004. Cochran continues to serve as executive vice chancellor. (See Feb. 7 University Times.)

• Confirmed the titles of Pitt’s officers and authorized certain officers to execute and sign documents on the University’s behalf. Authorized to sign are the chairperson of the Board of Trustees, the chancellor and chief executive officer, the executive vice chancellor, the senior vice chancellor and provost, the senior vice chancellor for Health Sciences, the chief financial officer, the treasurer and any assistant treasurer and the general counsel.

• Amended the University’s bylaws, which were last updated in 2008, to reflect changes in officer titles.

• Approved the board’s affirmative action committee’s recommendation to change the committee name to the affirmative action, diversity and inclusion committee, approved a revised audit committee charter and approved mission statements for the board’s 15 committees.

—Kimberly K. Barlow