Board president holds first town hall

Vincent Mattiola needed between $50,000 and $70,000 to buy sailboats — he just wasn’t sure… Vincent Mattiola needed between $50,000 and $70,000 to buy sailboats — he just wasn’t sure how to ask.

As founder of the Panther Sailing Club, the sophomore had to find a way to fund the activities of the club — which has never actually sailed. So he joined about 40 other students during Tuesday night’s first ever Pitt town hall, an initiative spearheaded by Student Government Board President James Landreneau.

During the informal meeting, students met with members of SGB and Pitt Vice Provost and Dean of Students Kathy Humphrey.

“It was a good environment for everyone to reach out to the Board,” Landreneau said, adding that the casual atmosphere allowed students to have one-on-one conversations with SGB members.

The town hall meetings will be open to all students and serve as an informal forum with SGB members. Town halls will be held on the first Tuesday of every month at 7:30 p.m., before the weekly Board meeting. Landreneau said that he will make alternative arrangements for March because of the spring break schedule. The aim of the forums is to supplement the open floor portion of SGB meetings and give students a place to discuss concerns with allocations and pose general questions to the Board without having to sit through allocations requests.

Mattiola, who started the Panther Sailing Club last November, paired up with Allocations Committee member Alana Miller to discuss his funding dilemma.

The Panther Sailing Club has more than 35 active members but currently receives no funding. Instead of sailing, members sit in a classroom while an instructor teaches sailing race theory on a chalkboard.

Mattiola intends to change that by requesting an allotment from the Student Activities Fund, an allocation that he says will go to building seven two-person sailboats. He said that although his request for $50,000 or more adds up to a hefty sum, the boats should last the club 10 to 15 years.

Mattiola asked Miller how to phrase his request in order to facilitate the long-term goal of his club, which is to compete as part of the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association rather than as an informal group of sailors from Pitt.

Miller helped Mattiola clarify the phrasing of his request.

“It’s the difference between students representing the University and students who are simply from the University,” Mattiola said.

In addition to opening up communication, the town hall also served to keep students informed.

Former Academic Affairs Committee Chair Pooja Patel began the town hall meeting with a presentation on Gov. Tom Corbett’s recently released budget proposal that would cut Pitt’s state funding by 30 percent.

Patel urged students to vote and explained that under Corbett’s plan, Pitt’s funding will decrease from $136 million to $95 million in the next fiscal year.

“I think it’s safe to say that the majority of [Pitt students] don’t benefit from these policies,” Patel said.

Allocations Committee Chair Mike Nites said that as clubs start to prepare for next fall, many students are looking for information on how to receive funding from the Student Activities Fund — and the town hall provides them with opportunities to ask about allocations.

“I think a lot of people are asking questions they wouldn’t have otherwise come to our office for,” Nites said.