Metro-Urban Institute
Delivering relevant programming, actionable research, and empowering engagement through our contextual learning and ministry experiences which focus on: Jesus and Justice; Faith and Freedom; Hope and Health; and Arts and Activism. MUI works to deliver two primary events or programs per semester (one internally focused and one externally focused) and partners with others throughout the Seminary and broader Pittsburgh community for even greater impact and reach.
Our Current Focus
For academic year 2024-2025, the Metro-Urban Institute (MUI) is focused on partnering with others to transform traumas rooted in violence in our communities. This helps us to lean into our focus area of faith and freedom as we center the ways that the Christian faith and our inclusive view of the Imago Dei, leads us to create safe spaces where all people are able to live free of violence and individual and communal traumas.
Values and Priorities
With core values of mutuality, justice, service, hospitality, and diversity, MUI offers academically sound and contextually rich conferences and symposiums to equip and empower churches and faith-based organizations to challenge injustices and meet the critical needs of urban communities.
We focus on delivering relevant programming, actionable research, and empowering engagement through our contextual learning and ministry experiences which focus on: Jesus and Justice; Faith and Freedom; Hope and Health; and Arts and Activism.
Interested in serving in an Urban Context?
Explore our Graduate Certificate in Urban Ministry, a flexible year-long program allowing community members and seminarians to explore their Christian vocation in urban settings. Not looking for a formal education but want to better serve your neighbors? Check out our upcoming events, which include workshops, lectures, conferences, and special events focusing on serving God's cities.
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MUI is part of the PTS Neighborhood Collaborative.
MUI DAY
April 20, 2026
Join us for a meaningful day of service dedicated to giving back to our surrounding community. In partnership with the Rev. Mary Washington-Hornezes '09 and the H.O.P.E. Alliance, we will take part in a community garden project themed "A Garden of Eden," which will include planting fruit trees. We invite students, faculty, staff, and community members to volunteer, support the effort, and be part of a shared day of service.
We would love for you to be a part of this experience! Register here.
I appreciate the program's focus on social justice and community engagement. It equips me with the tools to address urban challenges through a faith-based lens, fostering personal growth and a commitment to serving diverse communities. This education empowers me to impact the urban environment meaningfully, blending theological insights with practical action.
The Graduate Certificate in Urban Ministry program helps individuals who are doing non-traditional ministry in urban settings to link the work of healthy justice with community resources to alleviate problems in our neighborhoods.
My time as a GCUM student has shown me that learning does not only take place in a classroom. GCUM students have a holistic learning experience from the programming at the Seminary to conferences across the country.