Student Government Board provided updates on its proposed student trustee initiative and expressed concern about recent bus route changes at its weekly meeting Tuesday night at Nordy’s Place. 

President Marley Pinsky and board member Evan Levasseur announced they met with David Brown, the vice chancellor of government relations and advocacy, about moving forward with its initiative for a student trustee member. Pinsky said SGB and Brown discussed cooperating with Governor Josh Shapiro and the state government to push for this initiative. 

“In order to amend the results of the previous referendum question from our last election to establish a voting student trustee on the board of trustees we are going through the governor route,” Pinsky said. “If we wanted a student trustee we could go to the state government to try and request them to nominate a student. The fastest way to get to the next step would be potentially going to the governor.” 

Board member Andrew Elliott expressed concerns over the speed of changing PRT bus routes on campus . 

“The bus schedule is changing with increased speed and with less transparency than, frankly, ever before,” Elliott said. “It appears that the route in front of towers is no longer in service and now the route in front of the William Pitt Union is back in service.”

Elliott was concerned over how the route change was dealt with in terms of notifying students and residents in Oakland. 

“It was literally overnight that the schedule was changed, and there was no documentation that I could find posted anywhere on campus about these changes,” Elliott said. “I truly hope that the city council decides to inform its residents better and with more care and planning.” 

Elliott said he believes the change is unhelpful to Pitt students and Pittsburgh residents when navigating their daily schedules. 

“It is disappointing that the City is not considering the lives and routines of students on campus, as well as one of its largest bus routes in the City, and these frequent changes in service of creating new infrastructure is increasingly problematic for students to plan their lives and their days around this transport,” Elliott said. 

Board member Kylie Baker said SGB’s rapid response training program in partnership with Frontline Dignity is happening tomorrow at 7 p.m. in room 324 in the Cathedral of Learning.

“Come learn from Frontline Dignity on how to be a good and safe legal observer and protect our community from ICE,” Baker said.  

Baker also provided updates to its proposed prayer room in the Hillman Library. 

“It is going to be on the ground floor, and it’s going to be split into half meditation space — half prayer rooms so people can observe any kind of prayer with a lot of dignity and privacy,” Baker said. “All we are waiting on now is a budgetary and administrative approval.”

Budgets: 

Outdoors Club made 27 requests totaling $20,472.32 for its fall budget. The board amended and approved these requests to $24,238.88. 

Habitat for Humanity made two requests totaling $26,408.50 for its fall budget. The board amended and approved these requests to $23,848.69.  

Women’s Ice Hockey requested $12,500 for its fall budget. The board deferred this request.  

Pitt Rowing Club requested $11,043.20 for its fall budget. The board approved this request in full. 

Allocations: 

Middle Eastern North African Student Association requested $5,360.32 for an on-campus program. The board amended and approved this request to $5,207.02. 

Chinese American Student Association requested $10,000.00 for an on-campus program. The board approved this request in full.  

Delta Epsilon Mu requested $5,115.00 for general funds. The board approved this request in full.