Slippery Rock University alumnus Tyler Anderson, ’23, is applying the skills and passions that were nurtured through his time at SRU to connect Pittsburgh area students to empowering and mind-expanding experiences with the arts. Anderson’s outstanding work with the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust earned him the distinguished honor of being named on The Pittsburgh Business Times’ 30 Under 30 list for 2026.
“My trajectory at SRU undoubtedly changed my life,” Anderson said. “It was the first time I ever traveled abroad as a member of Palenque, the touring Afro-Colombian dance troupe, and it offered me a rigorous academic environment where I could explore and connect all of my interests, all at a really affordable price tag.”
Anderson grew up with a love for the arts. Involved with musical theater throughout high school, Anderson planned to attend theater programs in New York before turning his attention to his vast and diverse array of interests alongside theater. This led him to begin his education at the Community College of Allegheny County.
“My time at CCAC really helped me to understand higher education and to develop in my chosen study areas and to understand what I want to pursue and how to pursue it,” Anderson said. “After finishing my associates degree at CCAC, I thought ‘Where can I bring all of this?’ And SRU seemed like a natural progression.”
As a Hampton native, Anderson was familiar with SRU, and was happy to find that most of his credits from CCAC transferred to SRU where he was part of the Honors College and completed degrees in professional Spanish and dance, as well as graduating with minors in gender studies and art.
“I think one of the most special things about SRU is the people,” Anderson said. “I made really lasting relationships with people I met in my time there, both in terms of friends and faculty. I also want to stress how rigorous and intense the programs I took part in are. All of my professors were really committed to their craft and their students.”
Some of Anderson’s most influential professors at SRU included languages, literatures, cultures, and writing faculty members Gisela Dieter, Damarys Lopez and Ana Maria Caula and dance faculty members Melissa Teodoro, Jennifer Keller, Lindsay Viatori, Nora Ambrosio, Ursula Payne and Jesse Factor.
For Anderson, the investment of these professors and the support of his friends led him to pursue research opportunities and to travel to conferences to present his work. Anderson’s belief in himself was supported at SRU which helped him to develop the necessary confidence to move boldly into a career in arts outreach as the arts education program coordinator at the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust.
“My job is to connect students to experiences that really engage them in the arts,” Anderson said. “Sometimes that’s extracurricular things like student matinees at the Benedum and Byham theaters, and sometimes its curriculum integrated experiences like understanding physics through dance or understanding physics through portraiture. The arts have been really integral all through my life, so being able to pass the torch along in this way has been really nice.”
On top of his work with the Cultural Trust, Anderson is working on his master’s in professional studies with a focus in dance, education, community engagement and marketing while also training and performing as a company dancer with Shana Simmons Dance, a modern dance company based in East Liberty.
While Anderson is a highly accomplished, distinctively driven young professional, he says that success takes a village, even as it pertains to his 30 Under 30 achievement.
“Since I found out I won, I’ve been thinking about all of the ways in which people throughout my life have contributed to my journey and contributed to my success,” Anderson said. “I’m so fortunate and grateful for all of the relationships that I have, and I don’t believe that I would be where I am without that strong support.”
With the help of his village, including those who he met through his time at SRU, Anderson has joined the proud ranks of SRU alumni making a difference by being nurturers in the lives of others.
More information about the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust can be found on its website.
More information about the Spanish and dance programs at SRU can be found on the program webpages.
The full list of the Pittsburgh Business Times’ 2026 30 Under 30 can be found on the PBT’s’ website. Other SRU alumni on the list includes Carrington Williams, ’25, a development associate at Auberle, and Clare Clark, ’19, the coalition manager at the Pittsburgh Food Policy Council.
