Dear Pitt Public Health colleagues,
The University’s Board of Trustees unanimously voted on June 29, 2018, to remove the name “Parran Hall” from the Graduate School of Public Health’s main building at 130 Desoto Street. The decision was made after an extended evaluative process which I requested in January and which culminated in recommendations from the Office of Diversity and Inclusion Review Committee and from the chancellor. Chancellor Gallagher summarized in his memorandum to the Board of Trustees "To name a permanent University asset, such as a building, for a person on an honorific basis is intended to be one of the highest, most visible, and permanent recognitions the University can bestow…. it is appropriate to revoke this naming decision and to remove any perception of celebrating a name associated with these unfortunate human trials." No decisions have been made about a possible alternative future name for the building.
The interim name for the building will simply be “Public Health.” This week, facilities has been installing new interior and exterior signage on the main building. The school’s communications and IT teams have been working on updating our Web site, and we have requested updates to the Pitt site, including Find People listings.
Please avoid using building names for physical addresses in the Graduate School of Public Health, whether in the main building, laboratory annex, or Crabtree Hall. Instead, use the unique room number followed by "Public Health". For example: the dean's suite is located in 1100 Public Health; similarly, the HPM departmental offices are in A600 Public Health.
Action items:
- Begin to use “Public Health” instead of “Parran Hall” in written and verbal communications.
- Take a moment to update the address in your email signature in accordance with University and school guidelines.
- Also, please review your own Web presence: Are your address, phone, and job title correct in your online directory listing? If not, please update using the Update Your Profile link found in the footer of our site.
- We have not yet been asked to dispose of current supplies of letterhead, business cards, and other printed materials which list Parran Hall addresses. At present, please plan to correct the address when you next reprint and follow the guidelines on our Web site.
Thank you,
Don
Donald S. Burke, MD
Dean
7/12/2018