Open to Possibility, Open to the World
Welcome to the Spring 2026 issue of CFA Magazine, full of stories about the storytellers we are, storytelling the world urgently requires in this moment.
As a college, we’ve always handed the mic to a beautiful diversity of voices. Our strength lies in the global reach of our people, our research, and our creative impact. More than ever, we treasure the international students, faculty, and staff who have found their way to Pittsburgh.
Someone recently compared CFA to “a city with five idiosyncratic neighborhoods,” but our city walls are low and not that hard to scale. Some of our most distinctive offerings are outward-facing and can defy categorization. Among many others, you’ll read about:
- photography’s irresistible allure across campus
- a design project that has profoundly affected caregivers at UPMC
- the School of Drama’s deep engagement with local professional theater and
- how the new Pittsburgh airport boasts the work of our artists in practically every corner of the terminal.
To travel, to explore, to open oneself to the world is to take big risks. CFA takes great pride in welcoming and nurturing the audacious ones.
With great admiration,
|
| | Dean Mary Ellen Poole |
Why I Give Back
Investing in Future Generations as a Result of Past Benefit
Alumni News
Hear from alumni around CFA. You can also share an update of your own!
College of Fine Arts Magazine
Publisher: Mary Ellen Poole, Dean, CFA
Executive Editor: Pam Wigley
Editor: Cally Jamis Vennare
Editor & Digital Content Designer: Alexis Morrell
Design Director: Mark Werle
Designers: Rob Azarcon, Kelsey Stark
Project Manager: Kara Kessler
Animation: Adam Chismar
Writers
Harrison Apple
Margaret Cox
Phillip Crook
Tricia Miller Klapheke
Joe Lyons
Shannon Musgrave
Cally Jamis Vennare
Pam Wigley
Britney Yauger-Limtham
Photography & Illustrations
Victor Alfonso
Beth Barbis
Kristi Jan Hoover
Leo Hsu
Gretchen Kupferschmid
Matt Polk
Louis Stein
Pam Wigley
CFA Leadership
CFA Dean: Mary Ellen Poole, Ph.D.
School of Architecture Head: Omar Khan
School of Art Head: Charlie White
School of Design Head: Ana Pinto da Silva
School of Drama Head: Robert Ramirez
School of Music Head: Milton Rubén Laufer
BXA Senior Associate Dean for Interdisciplinary Initiatives: M. Stephanie Murray, Ph.D.
ICA Pittsburgh Director: Elizabeth Chodos
Frank-Ratchye STUDIO for Creative Inquiry Director: Nica Ross
MAM Program Director: Jessica Bowser Acrie
MEIM Program Director: Daniel Green, Ph.D.
Looking for a past version?
You can find past digital and print versions of the magazine, starting with our 2018 inaugural magazine in our CFA Magazine Archive.
Tell us what you think!
Let us know what you hoped to see — and what you liked! Email us at contact-cfa@cmu.edu.