Peduto Chief of Staff Dan Gilman to take on new role at Duquesne University

Dan Gilman, who served as Mayor Bill Peduto’s chief of staff, announced Monday that he will be taking on a new role at Duquesne University when Peduto leaves office in January.

Gilman will serve as a senior advisor to Duquesne University President Ken Gormley and will move into the chief of staff role when the current chief of staff leaves her post.

Mary Ellen Solomon, who is chief of staff and associate vice president at Duquesne, plans to leave the position to relocate with her family to Northern Virginia.

I am honored and excited to be joining President Gormley and the incredible team at Duquesne University as Senior Advisor and Chief of Staff pic.twitter.com/zLdsWIKY72

— Daniel Gilman (@danielgilman) December 20, 2021

She and Gilman will work together throughout the spring semester to coordinate a smooth transition.

“Mary Ellen Solomon has been a crucial member of my leadership team, and I am grateful for her myriad contributions,” Gormley said. “I’m also thrilled that Dan Gilman will provide continuing strong leadership and deep experience in this role. I look forward to working with both of them in the upcoming academic semester to support a seamless transition.”

Gilman, of Squirrel Hill North, joined the Peduto administration in 2018. He was previously a city councilman representing City Council District 8. Before that, he had served as Peduto’s chief of staff when Peduto was a councilman.

“I am honored and excited to be joining President Gormley and the incredible team at Duquesne University as senior advisor and chief of staff,” Gilman said in a Tweet announcing his new position.

Gilman said he will start at Duquesne January 5.

“I think Duquesne has always been a fantastic academic institution in the city and is poised to do even more great things with their osteopathic med school and other key investments,” Gilman said, adding that he hopes the university will be “an anchor in the equitable growth of Pittsburgh.”

Solomon, a Duquesne graduate, has worked in the president’s office at Duquesne since 2016.

“I’m grateful for the opportunity to have served as part of Duquesne’s leadership team and to have contributed to advancing its mission and reputation in the region,” she said.