SGB discusses workers’ rights, Hillman Library renovations 

Student Government Board President Ryan Young opened the meeting on March 26 by encouraging student organizations to apply for new remunerated positions, which would allow for student leaders to be paid. 

“If you know a student organization that deserves to have its leader paid, please direct them to SGB. Petitions close April 2, so complete the form as soon as possible,” Young said. 

During the weekly meeting in Nordy’s Place, Young also said he attended the first meeting of the university LGBTQIA steering committee. 

“It focused primarily on the need for a queer space on campus, but we included discussion on the past SGB report for implementing resources on campus,” Young said. “I’m really hopeful that this will be an important central space for us to demand change at Pitt.”

Young and Vice President of Operations Sarah Siddiqui attended a meeting regarding the outside banks initiative, which aims for student organizations to hold money in bank accounts outside of the University. 

“This is an initiative that was brought to us by students and it’s become a priority for us this year. We’ve worked on outlining goals on what we can realistically see that can be done by the end of the semester as well as outlining a plan for next year,” Siddiqui said. 

In addition to the initiative, Siddiqui wished a happy Ramadan for those celebrating. 

“We’re about halfway through and I knew that this could be a challenging time for students,” Siddiqui said. “The Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion has a lot of resources on their website about Ramadan for students.”

Board Member Katie Emmert also gave her report, where she said SGB and Prevention at Pitt are hosting an event called “Into the Sexualityverse,” an interactive workshop on navigating the circle of sexuality.

Emmert also said the University is hiring two licensed social workers who provide trauma-informed care to students or staff. 

“They will be referred to as care advocates and they’ll be housed under the care and resource office,” Emmert said. “During the next two weeks I’ll be sitting on interviews for these positions, so hopefully we’ll have the people hired by the end of the semester.” 

Board Member Olivia Rosati also highlighted Sexual Assault Awareness Month, which begins in April. 

“Look at Prevention at Pitt’s Instagram for a lot of other events going on throughout April,” Rosati said. 

In addition to highlighting Prevention at Pitt, Rosati said she met with Pitt Workers United to increase awareness for workers’ rights and to get into contact with different student workers on campus, specifically to gauge satisfaction with work environments and wages. 

“I am also having individual conversations with different grad students about workers’ rights,” Rosati said. 

Board Member Matt Jurich said Pitt Workers United is working on a survey that will hopefully come out in the coming weeks. 

“We also officially have an email address that people can contact and an official Instagram. We’re making ways for us to be more publicly available for people to reach out if they do have questions regarding labor, not just through the survey,” Jurich said. “We’re super excited to have more outreach and have more people come to our meetings.”

Jurich also said he is working on a resolution regarding the workers of the Hong Seng Knitting Factory company in Thailand, contracted by Nike.

“I also met earlier this week with a contact from the workers’ rights consortium, specifically about a report that they had produced that factory, and specifically the factory that is producing items sold by the University of Pittsburgh,” Jurich said. 

In addition, Jurich said he is meeting with the assistant athletic director who is in charge of branding for the University of Pittsburgh. 

Lastly, Academic Affairs Chair Grace Bohl said she attended the student library advisory board meeting last week, where Hillman renovations are starting to conclude. 

“It’s expected to be done at the end of this year, or more likely early January, February next year,” Bohl said. 

As a part of the renovations, Bohl said Hillman Library is going to start work on the bathrooms. 

“Every other bathroom is going to be closed on Hillman. You’ll have a men’s bathroom open on one floor and a women’s on the next,” Bohl said. 

The library renovations will include a media lab, which includes a “one-button studio.” This will allow for students using camera equipment to only need one button to set up features like lights and microphones. 

President Young concluded the meeting by reminding students to apply for committee chair and member applications for the 24-25 school year. 

“Apply sooner rather than later. Just apply, apply, apply,” Young said. 

Allocations:

Muslim Student Association requested $3,570 for food as a part of their Ramadan celebration. The board approved this request in full. 

Men’s Ultimate Frisbee Club requested funding for competition transportation. The board amended and approved the request at $3,579. 

The Rock Climbing Team requested funds for competition registration fees. The board amended and approved the request at $2,869.60.