Pitt Global Hub

🎓🌏 2026 Global Distinction Graduate Spotlight 🎓🌏

Congratulations to Abigail Burgess, a Frederick Honors College student who majored in English Literature and Linguistics, minored in Applied Statistics and Turkish, and earned a certificate in Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies from the Center for Russian, East European, & Eurasian Studies- REEES! 👏
— with PittGlobal at the University of Pittsburgh

Happy June, Panthers!! We hope you are having a wonderful summer 😎

Over the next few weeks, we're excited to spotlight the 2026 Global Distinction graduates 👨🏻‍🎓🌏 First up, congratulations to Owen Bauer, a Frederick Honors College student who majored in Psychology and minored in Business! 👏

Happy Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month! 🌺

Although we celebrate AANHPI Heritage Month at Pitt each January, we were excited to join the Asian Studies Center at the University of Pittsburgh at Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield today to share resources about PittGlobal at the University of Pittsburgh, play games, and connect with employees.

Thank you to everyone involved for a wonderful collaboration — and a special congratulations to former Global Hub Student Ambassador Abhinav Srinivasan! Now an Associate Software Developer at Highmark and recently appointed Vice Chair of Highmark’s Exploring Asian Societies and Traditions (EAST) Business Resource Group, Abhinav helped make today’s event possible by extending the invitation. We’re so proud of all you’re accomplishing, Abhinav! 👏

Before the academic year slips away, the Global Hub team had the chance to get together to reflect on our time together over the past year. It was great to celebrate both the end of the semester and Global Hub Graduate Student Ambassador Rianne Elsadig, who will be graduating later this week with a Master’s degree in International Development from University of Pittsburgh School of Public & International Affairs and a Certificate in African Studies from Pitt Center for African Studies and Certificate in Global Studies from Global Studies Center at the University of Pittsburgh 🎉🧑🏽‍🎓

While we’ve been lucky to have Global Hub Undergraduate Student Ambassadors Sasha Konitzer and Bahishta Mohammadi with us for the 2025-2026 academic year, Rianne has been with us now since Fall 2024. From speaking on a panel about indigenous studies during Civic Action Week, to helping students learn about UCIS certificate programs, to co-planning an international storytelling event, and more - thank you, Rianne, and congratulations on your graduation! And a big thanks to all of our ambassadors for being such terrific resources for students to learn about the world in so many ways!

Good luck to everyone finishing finals, congratulations to all who are graduating, and see you soon, Panthers!! 😎

💙💛🌏,
The Global Hub team

Last Friday, Dr. Carey Treado from the Department of Economics in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences and her students joined us in the Global Hub to share their experience working with students in Myanmar this semester, as part of the ongoing Pitt-Myanmar Education Initiative. As the Pitt undergraduate students served as virtual mentors to students in Myanmar, they supported the students in Myanmar with preparing to take online high school equivalency exams. We were fortunate to have been joined by the students in Myanmar as they and the students at Pitt shared a documentary they made together this semester.

Thank you to everyone who came to the event, to the Global Studies Center at the University of Pittsburgh and Asian Studies Center at the University of Pittsburgh for their support of this event, and especially to Dr. Treado, each of the students, and Stars Do Shine for sharing about this inspirational project through which students build intercultural understanding and friendships as they engage with the world! 👏🌏