Board supports elimination of print yearbook

With about 600 more responses to its survey on Panther Prints compared to the numbers from one week ago, Student Government Board members felt comfortable representing the student voice against its printing.

The Board voted to recommend redistributing the roughly $41,000 used every year to produce Panther Prints, the University’s yearbook, and use a fraction of the funds to produce an online photo album instead. 

SGB members released the results of their Panther Prints survey in front of eight students who attended the Board’s Tuesday night meeting in Nordy’s Place in the William Pitt Union. The Board was previously scheduled to release the results of the survey at last week’s meeting, but extended the period of the survey to garner more student responses.

Based on the results of the survey, the Board plans to recommend to Kenyon Bonner, director of student life, and Kathy Humphrey, vice-provost and dean of students, that the portion of the Student Activities Fee used to fund the yearbook go to funding other student-oriented events or activities. This would eliminate the organization’s formula-group status.

Under the SGB Constitution, formula groups receive a guaranteed percentage of the $2.3 million Student Activities Fund, from through the collection of the Student Activites Fee, every year. As a formula group, Panther Prints received 1.6 percent annually.

The Board wants to allocate about one-quarter to one-third of the funds the yearbook received toward an online photo album, according to SGB President Gordon Louderback.

Bonner and Humphrey have the final say on how the Board allocates funds.

Shawn Ahearn, spokesman for the Office of Student Affairs, has already said the office intends to stop producing the hard copy of Panther Prints this year. Instead, there will be an online photo album made available to students by the end of the academic year.

While Ahearn said the University has made up its mind regarding the yearbook, the Board publicly supported the administration’s decision to represent the voice of the student body.

As of last week’s meeting, about 100 students had completed the survey. At that time, 62 percent of those who responded said they were not likely to purchase a yearbook, and 61 percent were not aware that Pitt offered a yearbook to graduating seniors.

Board members exerted more effort in distributing the survey, which they initially advertised only through Facebook and email, according to Louderback.

Louderback said Board members printed physical copies of the survey and went to places on campus with large concentrations of students, such as the Hillman Library and Market Central, to get more students to complete the survey.  

After the additional week, a total of 716 students completed the survey, according to Board member Dave Rosenthal.

In the most recent results, 63 percent of students who responded said they were not aware that Pitt offered a yearbook to graduating seniors, while 53 percent said they were not likely to purchase a copy of the yearbook for $50, the price of last year’s edition.

Another 57 percent of students surveyed said they did not feel that the yearbook is a good use of the Student Activities Fund. Nineteen percent said they felt the yearbook was a good use of the funds, and 24 percent said they neither agreed nor disagreed. 

Allocations: 

The Pitt ski and snowboard team requested $1,166 to pay national dues to the U.S. Collegiate Ski and Snowboard Association. The Board approved the request in full in line with the allocations recommendation.

Pitt club cross country requested $1,135 for 20 members to attend the national championship meet in Hershey, Pa. The Board approved the request in full in line with the allocations recommendation. 

The quidditch club requested $1,257.40 for transportation to a competition in Leesburg, Va. The Board approved the request in full in line with the allocations recommendation. 

The Hindu Students Council requested $2,172.50 for an upcoming Diwali show. The Board approved the request in full in line with the allocations recommendation. 

The Board voted on two allocations requests outside of the meeting because of time constraints associated with the requests. 

The Board voted to allocate $9,012.86 to the lady Panther club soccer team and $1,087.24 to Pitt club baseball before the meeting. 

The Board has allocated $167,257.09 this year.