Chancellor Gallagher transitions into position at University of Pittsburgh
When University of Pittsburgh freshmen begin arriving in Oakland on Aug. 18, they'll have a kindred spirit in the chancellor's office.
“It's my freshman year, too,” Chancellor Patrick Gallagher said on Monday in his new office on the first floor of Pitt's Cathedral of Learning where a selection of blue-and-gold neckties on a table and rows of empty bookcases were the only signs of the move in progress.
Pitt trustees tabbed Gallagher, 51, a Pitt-educated physicist who was acting deputy secretary of the Department of Commerce and director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, last winter to replace longtime Chancellor Mark Nordenberg.
The father of three sons — two college students and a high school senior — arrived in Pittsburgh with his wife, Karen, at noon Friday in a Budget rental truck.
He resigned his government post on June 16.
“I needed family time and time to decompress. When you start a position like this, it's important to be all in,” said Gallagher.
He has been making the transition to his new post, which carries a base salary of $525,000 a year, for weeks.
Gallagher says there are some parallels between his old and new employers.
“They're not as different as you'd think,” he said.
Both are complex organizations that cannot function without the cooperation of other organizations and individuals, Gallagher said. Nordenberg provided him with a solid foundation, he said.
“Really, I think the thing that worked so well with this transition was it was very well-planned. Mark Nordenberg planned this. He's been generous; he's been gracious,” Gallagher said.
He and Nordenberg visited Harrisburg, where Gallagher met Gov. Tom Corbett and a host of state lawmakers. There were also visits with Pitt alumni and trustees and discussions with former and current leaders of other research universities.
“Of course, there is only so much you can do from a distance,” Gallagher said.
The real work of overseeing one of the region's largest employers, complete with a medical school, research operations and a Division I sports program, begins now.
“The (Atlantic Coast Conference) is having a special meeting, and that's going to include a special briefing for new presidents,” Gallagher said.
He said he'll rely on the leadership team Nordenberg assembled as he settles into learning the ins and outs of his new duties.
But he said he'll keep his eye on Pitt's primary mission: educating those students who start fall classes this month.
“In the end, a university has a public mission basically to support our youth and to provide the education and training people need to grow and thrive,” Gallagher said.
Debra Erdley is a staff writer for Trib Total Media.
