Welcome to TIP News! We are excited to share what’s happening on the shop floors, at our job sites, and in our communities. Stay tuned for news about events and opportunities, and hear from our students, staff, alumni, TIPX crew, and partners. Thanks for reading!
News from the Circle: Meet Carpentry Graduate Alexis
Community engagement, advocacy, and the cultivation of financial resources are the essence of Maggie Beldecos’s nearly two decades of experience in the nonprofit sector. Maggie is recognized as a strong, diplomatic leader, working collaboratively and transparently with partners, community stakeholders, and constituents. Prior to this role, Maggie led corporate and community engagement for the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank and community engagement for the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. She began her career as a correctional librarian in Ontario, Canada.
Maggie actively volunteers and serves on the Jeremiah’s Place board of directors. She holds a BA in English Literature from Oberlin College and a Master of Library Science from the University of Pittsburgh.
Donta Green is a visionary leader, strategic thinker, and elite culture creator who has transformed the Trade Institute of Pittsburgh (TIP) as its second Executive Director. Under his leadership, TIP has strengthened its impact, equipping individuals with barriers to employment with the skills, support, and opportunities needed to build sustainable careers. With an exceptional ability to inspire and collaborate, Donta fosters an environment of excellence, ensuring TIP continues to be a catalyst for workforce development and economic empowerment in Western Pennsylvania region.
Beyond his leadership at TIP, Donta is a dynamic motivator and mentor, serving as head football coach at his alma mater, Pittsburgh Westinghouse. His ability to build a winning culture was evident in 2019 when he led the team to its first city league championship in 26 years, and again in 2022 when they reached the state championship for the first time in school history. Donta and his staff has won five conference championships in his first six seasons at the helm. His program was nationally recognized in 2023 when DICK’s Sporting Goods Foundation awarded Westinghouse its first-ever “75for75 >Sports Matter Grant.
Deeply committed to community service, Donta serves on several boards, including the Homewood-Brushton YMCA and the Laurel Highlands Workforce Opportunity Center. He has been recognized as a leader among leaders, earning numerous accolades such as Pittsburgh Magazine’s 40 Under 40, the Pittsburgh Business Times C-Suite Award, and the Pennsylvania Scholastic Football Coaches Association’s Coach of the Year. In 2023, he was honored with the prestigious FBI Director’s Community Leadership Award. He was recognized in 2025 as the Emerging Leader Awardee by the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh.
Donta’s rare combination of strategic vision, collaborative leadership, and an unwavering commitment to uplifting others makes him an influential force in both workforce development and youth mentorship. Whether leading an organization, coaching a team, or shaping the future of his community, he is a driving force for meaningful change.
Albert “Bert” Robertson is the Director of Business Applications at Koppers Inc., responsible for Financial Applications, Business Intelligence, and Digital Transformation. He has nearly 30 years of success digitalizing processes across four continents and several industries – including Manufacturing, Energy, Distribution, Retail, Architecture, Engineering, Construction, Pharmaceuticals, and Healthcare. Prior to his tenure at Koppers, Bert was a Professional Services Director in the ERP Consulting space. Bert holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from The Anderson School at UCLA and a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University. He earned a Project Management Professional credential in 2010, an Advanced Leadership Certificate from CMU’s Tepper School of Business in 2021, and the ITIL 4 Foundation Certificate in 2022.
Adrienne Miles is a skilled manager at UPMC, leading initiatives in the Corporate Construction department. With over 26 years in healthcare, she focuses on creating transformative opportunities for vulnerable populations, striving to dismantle barriers in diverse and underserved communities. She finds fulfillment in helping individuals succeed through inclusive policies and strategic partnerships with UPMC.
Adrienne oversees the Diverse Contractor, Community Engagement, and Workforce Engagement program for the new UPMC Presbyterian Expansion Hospital. This facility aims to provide advanced care in specialized areas and supports a diverse workforce and small businesses through contract opportunities.
As a trained educator, she collaborates with schools to inspire students toward careers in vital sectors like trades and health services. Recognized as one of the 75 most impactful people in 2024 and a Woman of Influence in 2025 by City & State PA, Adrienne champions corporate social responsibility principles, including community engagement and sustainability.
She holds a Bachelor’s in Biology and a Master’s in High-Performance Learning Health Science from Carlow University. Adrienne also serves on several boards, including the Fraternal Order of Police Auxiliary, the US Minority Contractors Association(USMCA), the Industrial Arts Workshop, and the Construction Real Estate Women (CREW) Board, where she drives positive change in her community.
Micah Larson is currently a Vice President at Equitable Advisors, running a nationally-ranked team of financial advisors based in Pittsburgh, PA. He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 2013 and married the love of his life, Carissa, who graduated from Grove City College in 2010 and currently works as his business partner at Equitable. In his free time, he loves constructing new Excel formulas and spending time with his wife and three children (Asa, Joshua and Lydia).
Conor Lamb represented Western Pennsylvania in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2018 to 2022. He has also served as an officer in the Marines and as an Assistant U.S. Attorney. He is now a partner at the plaintiffs’ law firm Kline & Specter, and an adjunct professor at Duquesne University’s Kline School of Law. Conor has previously served the community as a mentor with Big Brothers Big Sisters and Amachi. He lives in Mount Lebanon with his wife Hayley and their children Matthew and Theodora.
Bud Kahn is the Founding Principal of WMS Wealth Planners. The Pittsburgh-based SEC-Registered Investment Adviser provides financial counsel, fiduciary asset management, and other wealth management services to a wide range of individual, corporate & endowment clients throughout the eastern US. Bud is a licensed CPA and holds professional credentials of Certified Financial Planner®, (CFP), Certified Investment Management Analyst®, (CIMA), Certified Private Wealth Advisor®, (CPWA) and Accredited Estate Planner® (AEP).
Bud is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, with a bachelor’s degree in economics and an MBA in accounting and finance. He also earned a master’s degree in taxation at Robert Morris University. Bud is a member of the Investments and Wealth Institute, Pittsburgh Tax Club, Allegheny Tax Society, and Estate Planning Council of Pittsburgh. He is an alumnus of Leadership Pittsburgh, Class XIV, and the FBI Pittsburgh Citizens Academy.
Bud is a Visiting Executive Lecturer at the Katz Graduate School of Business at the University of Pittsburgh and teaches for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at both Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh.
David Jardini has been a board member of the Trade Institute of Pittsburgh since 2021 and was elected board president in March 2023. He is an experienced entrepreneur whose career has been focused in the metals and manufacturing industries, and he is currently Managing Member of Black Diamond Investments, a diversified family investment partnership. David holds a Ph.D. in the History of Technology from Carnegie Mellon University and B.A. in Economics from Swarthmore College. In addition to his membership on Trade Institute’s board, he is honored to serve on boards of directors of Robroy Industries Inc. and Compass Precision Inc., the Sauereisen Inc. board of advisors, and the University of Pittsburgh Institute for Entrepreneurial Excellence Advisory Board. He formerly held Board positions at GrafTech International Ltd. (GTI), St. Clair Memorial Health Corporation, the Sewickley Heights History Center, Elk Regional Health System Foundation, the Elk County United Way, and the University of Pittsburgh – Bradford. David was born and raised in Pittsburgh and lives with his family in Sewickley, Pennsylvania.
Joseph Hughes is the Director of Government Relations for the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council 57 of Western PA, a union glazier out of Local 751, and a lifelong western Pennsylvania resident. Born to a large union family and raised in the Allegheny-Kiski Valley during the decline of the region’s steel industry, Joseph’s adolescence was shaped by seeing his father and others in the community struggle to find good-paying, dignified jobs.
After graduating from Springdale High School in 1991, he spent a few semesters at Indiana University of Pennsylvania before realizing that college was not for him. Joe went into the workforce, spending a few years with a landscaping company and a non-union glazing outfit before joining Glaziers Local 751 in 2000, graduating from their registered apprenticeship program and working for multiple glazing contractors on a variety of small and large jobs in the Pittsburgh region, including downtown’s PNC Tower. A proud trade unionist, Joe has held positions on the union’s executive board and served as a part-time instructor for years before joining IUPAT DC 57 staff as an organizer in 2016. While on staff, Joe has participated in organizing campaigns in the region and across the country, signing new contractors to the union and bringing in new members from communities throughout western PA.
Joe completed the IUPAT’s Leadership program and in 2019 he took over as Director of Organizing before moving to his current position in 2021. As Director of Government Relations, Joe has assisted pro-worker federal, state, and local campaigns and testified in front of state legislature committees about wage theft, misclassification, and other issues facing working Pennsylvanians. In addition to his departmental duties, Joe has negotiated multiple contracts on behalf of DC 57’s members, volunteered for union charity events and is a lively feature at Pittsburgh’s annual Labor Day parade.
Brick and mortar has been in Adam Harris’s DNA since he was a boy, spending summers in the warehouse of his family’s masonry business. After graduating from high school, he immediately went to work for the family business as a laborer, where he carried brick and block, mixed mortar, operated equipment and built scaffolding. Five years later, Adam transitioned from the field to the office, trading in his hammer and gloves for a pencil and a scale rule. He performed as an estimator, reading blueprints and bidding projects. He then went on to become a project manager. After several years wearing many hats, Adam became more integral with the day-to-day of the company and, as his dad would say, he began “overseeing the entire shoe store, not just the individual shoe box.” Adam was recently promoted to President of Harris Masonry Inc.
Adam believes that the trades are a great career path, and he is committed to championing the building trades. He serves on the Construction Advancement Program of Western PA, the Builders Guild of Western PA, and he is involved with numerous high school career technical centers.
Over the course of the last 25 years, Ken Haber has handled cases involving virtually every type of criminal offense, from DUI and drug possession to health care, computer and wire fraud to murder cases in which the death penalty is sought. Ken has successfully defended over 3,000 clients and has won acquittals before juries and judges in hundreds of cases, including rarely earned jury acquittals in federal court.
A Pittsburgh native, Ken received his undergraduate and law degree from the University of Pittsburgh. While at Pitt, he was a member of law review and graduated near the top of his class. Following graduation, Ken was a prosecutor in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Allegheny County) for five years. After transitioning into criminal defense work, he has been representing people who have been charged with crimes in federal and state court for over two decades.
Today, Ken tackles the most complex legal and evidentiary issues facing clients in criminal court. Ken has handled over 50 homicide cases, many of which he has tried to verdict and received acquittals for his clients.
Ken’s expertise related to criminal defense extends to both state and federal court. While his practice focuses on the representation of people charged with crimes, it also includes the representation of people who are the subject of an investigation (pre-indictment). Representation at this stage is critical, particularly in federal white-collar investigations, where he has had many clients avoid the filing of charges in such instances. A tenacious litigator, Ken’s case work includes challenging the overreaching of law enforcement in Fourth Amendment issues and protecting the rights of those criminally accused at every stage of the prosecution.
Andrea Clark Smith is an Associate Chief Legal Officer and Senior Vice President Employment Law, Labor Relations & Physician Contracting for UPMC. At UPMC, Andrea leads a team of employment, labor, immigration, HR compliance and physician/health law specialists. Her law practice focuses on nearly every element of the employee/employer experience. In addition to her legal practice, Andrea has led significant diversity and inclusion efforts including serving as Manager of both UPMC’s and American Airlines’ Minority Counsel Programs, serving on the UPMC Corporate/International Executive Employee Experience team and serving as Co-Executive Sponsor for UPMC’s Employees of Color Employee Resources Group.
Andrea completed her undergraduate work at Spelman College and received her law degree from Emory University School of Law. In 2019, she was identified by Savoy magazine as one of the Most Influential Women in Corporate America. In 2021, Andrea was inducted into the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers and in 2022 Andrea was honored as a Diversity and Inclusion champion by PA Women Work and inducted into the New Pittsburgh Courier’s Women of Excellence – class of 2022.
James Anderson is the Director of the Justice Policy Program at the RAND Corporation and oversees research projects on various aspects of the civil and criminal justice system. He has served as principal investigator on many projects, ranging from policy implications of autonomous vehicle technology to understanding the effects of indigent defense systems. He has presented to a wide variety of academic and professional audiences and is a member of the American Law Institute. Before joining RAND, he clerked for the Honorable Morton Greenberg of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, and represented prisoners on death row as a public defender for 10 years. He received a J.D. for Yale Law School, and a B.A. in ethics, politics, and economics from Yale University.
Reed Agnew is one of the three founders of ThoughtForm Inc., a design consultancy noted for untangling complex communication problems. At ThoughtForm Inc., Reed has devoted his attention entirely to graphic design and communications. He is specifically interested in integrating language and visual design and especially in the use of visual models to explain complex ideas. His notion of “writing backwards” has guided his work, which has included information spaces and exhibits, brochures, packaging systems, interactive programs, sign systems, annual reports, handbooks, branding programs, websites and software. He is also interested in computer technology and its application to design problem-solving and production, as well as to business management. Before founding ThoughtForm Inc. in 1980 with Don Moyer and Grant Smith, Reed spent 13 years with Westinghouse, mostly at the company’s Corporate Design Center. A graduate of Lehigh University with a degree in civil engineering, Reed served as manager of industrial design and later as manager of the design services group, which also included graphic design. The Design Center was a unique, in-house consulting office, set up under the direction of outside consultants Eliot Noyes and Paul Rand. It provided design services to Westinghouse divisions worldwide for products, graphics, signage, packaging, interiors and architecture.
He has won numerous design awards, published articles on a variety of design-related subjects, speaks frequently at design and business conferences and has been actively involved in AIGA, APDF, IDSA and the Design Management Institute. Reed has served as a board member of the Association of Professional Design Firms (APDF), as well as on the advisory boards of the Design Management Institute and the Institute for Entrepreneurial Excellence at the University of Pittsburgh’s Katz Business School. In 2008, Reed was selected as a Fellow of the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA).
Aaron Lockhart is Head of Thermoplastic Urethanes, North America, Covestro, LLC. Aaron is a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA and completed his Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry at the University of Virginia in 2000. Upon graduation, Aaron joined Bayer Corporation as an Applications chemist. He developed his expertise in waterborne, solventborne, and UV-curable polyurethane coatings for wood and plastics before assuming the role of Business Development Manager in 2006. Aaron and his wife, April, reside in Pittsburgh with their four children.