Psychology Department Selected as Emerald View Park Advocate for 2013

Duquesne’s psychology department has been named Mount Washington’s Emerald View Park Advocate for 2013.

Under the guidance of Dr. Eva Simms, a psychologist and environmentalist, seniors from her service-learning class have been helping residents to make the most of green space in Mount Washington since 2007. Simms and her students were recognized as the park’s advocate of the year at a dinner on Nov. 14.

“It’s an important award because it honors the dedication and creativity of my students and my colleagues Drs. (Will) Adams and (Marco) Gemignani, who spent many hours interacting with the Mount Washington community,” said Simms.

Simms set up a framework for the community with Dr. Ilyssa Manspeizer, director of park development and conservation for the Mount Washington Community Development Corporation, to help the community get a handle on what it envisioned for its park. “The challenge in Mount Washington over the past decade was to figure out what the neighborhood communities wanted Emerald View Park to be,” said Simms. “We fostered community conversations about the park, surveyed park perception and held focus groups to find out what people wanted.”

Working with lower socioeconomic groups that are not often asked their opinions was an important part of the survey, as well as collecting oral histories about how 90-year-olds remembered using the park as children. The goal of the community conversations has been to encourage use of the urban park and to integrate the natural spaces into the neighborhood.

“Now Emerald View is a new norm; now the neighbors live in a park,” said Simms.

Manspeizer describes Simms as a strong voice for parks, green spaces and youth in the City of Pittsburgh. “She spreads a clear message about how parks improve our lives and inspires people around her—from her family to her neighbors to her students—to give back to their communities through service,” wrote Manspeizer. “Eva is a role model for her neighbors, but perhaps even more importantly, she is a role model for her students, teaching them how to become involved in the communities in which they live.”

Simms applauds her students, who poured themselves into this work. “Students always surprise me because of their dedication and creativity.”

Through Duquesne’s service-learning efforts, the Mount Washington group has come to better understand the role of parks. “You and your students’ service was fundamental in the park’s development so far,” Manspeizer wrote to Simms, “and we look forward to many more years of partnering on this wonderful initiative.”