Got a little caught up in the World Cup today so, I've got a short post before I shove off to work.
Often, when we look for things that we are thankful for or proud of we look for grand obvious things that are national, instead of the important local things that are immediate for ourselves. I'm ashamed today that I've done just that. This year, UNCW did something truly amazing. They made an important stride toward properly serving the LGBTQ population on our campus.
With the help of Dr. Jose Hernandez, the Associate Provost of Inclusion and Diversity, UNCW established the LGBTIQA Center. We now have the office across the hall from the queen of multiculturalism herself, which was formerly occupied by Centro Hispano--don't worry, they got an upgrade across the hall. This year, the LGBTIQA Center with leadership from the very talented Amy Schlag took the initiative to start some traditions. Amy set up our first ever Family Values Brunchcomplete with some excellent presentations about the state of Wilmington (and a broader picture of the state thanks to ENC) and some nifty awards for some very important people--and our first ever Lavender Graduation.
In addition, Amy also secured a speaker, who talked about LGBT issues in the Middle East, and set up a cute little program called Milk and Cookies, where we gathered together to watch the amazing Gus Van Sant film and gave out cookies in exchange for donations to victims of domestic violence. We had a great first semester, and I am truly looking forward to the great things that will surely come out of that office for my final year at UNCW.
Go Amy! Go Seahawks!
Post by Gabby
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Labels: Amy, Gabby, June13, LGBTIQA Office, National Pride Month, UNCW
