Grace Smith, who coordinates diversity, equity, inclusion and wellness at SGA, has been working to update an accessibility guide for Point Park students.
This week Smith, as part of the ongoing effort, brainstormed with senators during the legislature’s weekly meeting to see what sorts of items they would like included in the guide.
The guide’s revisions were first discussed around the end of last month. Smith noted that many of the existing accessibility guide’s contents are outdated and are mostly catered toward students with physical disabilities.
Now, Smith said she aims to have the guide serve as a general, “student-oriented” resource for use by new and returning students of all walks of life.
“I’m calling it the ‘Student Government Association Guide to Accessibility,’” Smith said.
The guide — alongside accessibility resources — so far is planned to include mental health resources, tips for navigating Downtown Pittsburgh and dining options for those with allergies or those experiencing food insecurity.
Smith noted she’d been having difficulty accessing what resources were offered to students with disabilities in the past. Vice President Madigan Balfe suggested interviewing current and former students with disabilities to hear those details from them.
Language, originally brought up last week, continues to be an issue.
Smith previously noted to SGA that most resources on campus are only offered in the English language. The legislature previously agreed to invite students affected by this issue to their meeting, but none were present this week.
Sen. Liz McKinney, a first-year student, noted that the guide might be useful for students adjusting to college life.
McKinney specifically said work-life balance was a difficult adjustment.
“I’ve definitely overworked myself to the point where I just can’t function,” McKinney said. “I feel like tips for newer students, especially if [they] have chronic illnesses and disabilities, would be very helpful.”
Beyond the revised accessibility guide, SGA briefly discussed its final town hall for the semester.
Tatum Lucero, SGA’s communications director, said the town hall will take place on Tuesday, April 14 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. in Lawrence Hall’s ballroom.
Lucero said the main topics of this town hall will be accessibility and best practices for sharing information. No further information was available in time for publication.
Riley Mahon, president pro-tempore, was absent from this week’s meeting but sent word that SGA’s dining hall survey is complete. Mahon said the survey collected 172 responses.
Chief of Staff Zoe Cybulski and Devin Frank, director of Downtown engagement, updated the legislature on last week’s Pioneer Community Week tabling event.
SGA and event attendees made blankets, care kits and a variety of other goods that were donated to various advocacy groups.
This week’s meeting opened with a guest appearance from Keith Portugal, a senior planner with the city. Portugal discussed with SGA the city’s new comprehensive plan, a guide for the city’s current and future leaders on what resources are both needed and currently available.
The plan was not discussed in detail, and Portugal noted that a community town hall will be held Downtown on April 28 from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Portugal emphasized that the city is interested in hearing from college students and encouraged everyone present at the meeting to attend the coming town hall.
No new business was discussed this week.
The next, second-to-last SGA meeting will be on April 20 at 3:15 p.m. in the Professional Career Readiness Center. Anyone interested is welcome to attend.
