Devanath ready to lead Pittsburgh Student Government Council

When members of the Pittsburgh Student Government Council met to decide who would chair the… When members of the Pittsburgh Student Government Council met to decide who would chair the student engagement and advocacy group, Nila Devanath’s name made its way almost unanimously around the table.

In the end, Devanath secured the majority vote needed to put her at the head of the citywide student government group that has recently championed student interest in controversial issues like cuts in public transit.

As the Graduate and Professional Student Assembly president, a Pitt medical student, former Student Government Board member and now chairwoman for PSGC, Devanath said she looks forward to serving both Pitt and students in the greater Pittsburgh area this year — especially when it comes to the brewing Port Authority budget troubles.

Devanath, who originally didn’t plan on running because she has a “full plate,” said she felt honored when she was nominated for and voted into the position. Her term will end in late June.

“Because of all the work I had loved doing with the council, it didn’t feel like too big of a step,” Devanath said.

Devanath first became involved in informal citywide student government in November 2009 over frustration with the tuition tax. Last year, she became an official member of PSGC, which formed last year, after winning the election for president of Pitt’s Graduate and Professional Student Assembly.

“We did a lot in one year,” Devanath said. “We talked with City Council, established the council, made a constitution and had a post-agenda City Council meeting aired on TV.”

Devanath’s goals for the PSGC this year include working on a “lobby day” for students to talk about the Port Authority cuts, establishing an official liaison with the Mayor’s Office and also — although she called it a “longshot” — creating a state-wide student association.

“The Port Authority issue is a concern for all Pittsburgh students, and I want our students to get their needs met first,” she said.

SGB President Molly Stieber, who serves as Pitt’s undergraduate representative to the PSGC, agreed with Devanath’s vision. Stieber said that she and Devanath are working on plans to create a petition for Pittsburgh students concerning the Port Authority service cuts scheduled for the end of March.

Stieber also said that SGB has created a Transportation and Safety Committee that she hopes can contribute to the citywide conversation on how to find additional funding for the Port Authority. If no new funding is located, the transit system could face steep cuts of between 35 and 50 percent in 2012.

“Rendell gave the bailout when he was leaving office, but what happens after seven months?” Stieber said.

Stieber said she has also been in contact with Richard White, secretary of the Commuter Students Association. White said the Commuter Students Association is taking the Port Authority budget cuts seriously and that its members are working to determine the routes that Pitt students take most often. They then hope to present the data to the Port Authority board to halt some of the cuts.

“Any reduction in Port Authority service is a terrible situation for those that rely on bus and light rail service,” White said in an e-mail. “These reductions have the potential to curtail [students’] ability to fully participate in academic, extracurricular and social life on campus.”

Devanath hopes to get the plans underway to execute a Port Authority Lobby Day in Harrisburg. She said it would be beneficial to have it on the same day as Pitt Day in Harrisburg — which usually falls in March and gives students an opportunity to meet with state lawmakers.

“Most students are concerned about the 15-percent cut,” Devanath said. “We need to start planning now. Lobbying will take place in March — it’s already halfway through January,” she said.

James Regar — former chair of PSGC — said he and Devanath have had a great partnership and he expects her to do a fine job in the position.

“Nila is very motivated and has good inside connections to the Mayor’s Office and city council,” Regar said. “I know she will use them to address students’ concerns.”

Even with these connections, Devanath said she is anxious to get these projects rolling.

“We need to start planning now,” she said. “Lobbying will take place in March, it’s already halfway through January,”