Category Archives: News

All Gender Restroom signs now available

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logoDear Campus Community:
The Chancellor and Provost Committee on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Concerns is happy to share with all units that through the great work and dedication of many individuals and committees, an “All Gender Restroom” sign (samples below) is currently now available through the Facilities and Services sign shop. The signs are to identify single-use, locking-capable restroom facilities in campus buildings. The Chancellor’s and Provost Committee on LGBTQ Concerns officially recommends the usage of this sign for all applicable restrooms. Please use this document as a functional job aide that can assist your unit/office/building managers to successfully order and install the signs.

In Solidarity,
Cris Mayo, Chair
Alejandro Gómez, Vice-Chair

All Gender Restroom Service Request Job Aide 2.2016
Click Above for step-by-step job aide with examples

Instructions:
1) Navigate to my.fs.illinois.edu
2) Select “Service Request” from the left side bar
3) Sign in with University credentials. NOTE: Only authorized users for building services requests can access this function.
4) Select the Type of service, “Service Request”, and your desired completion date.
5) Select your Building and Room Information
6) In the Description, be clear to request the “All Gender Restroom” sign and any specifications for coloring or style to match your building
7) Contact information will be the user submitting the request
8) Insert the appropriate account information, via the Account tab, for this service request. At present, the signs cost $100 (for parts and installation). The Committee has some funds committed to this project, please contact us at lgbtconcerns@illinois.edu if your unit needs assistance.
9) When all necessary fields are complete, submit the request.
*Sean Cassidy is the point of contact at the Sign Shop and can be reached at signshop@mx.uilllinois.edu, if further assistance is needed.

 

Documentary film seeking past and current LGBT college athletes

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http://www.outsports.com/2016/1/11/10750568/seeking-past-and-current-lgbt-college-athletes-to-participate-in

Hello all!

My name is Blaize Stewart and I am a graduate student at the University of Illinois at Urban-Champaign pursuing a degree in journalism. I am beginning work on my final project for the program and am currently seeking potential sources, subjects, and leads for it.

Simply put, the topic of the project will be to review the experiences of former LGBT college athletes and compare them to what it is like to be an LGBT college athlete today. The goal is to shed light on the challenges these athletes have and still face, what progress has been made to make these athletes feel accepted, and to find ways to continue to improve circumstances for LGBT college athletes. This topic will be covered in the form of a 30 minute documentary.

I am currently seeking out past and current LGBT student athletes, coaches, referees, and others who are interested in participating in this project. Participation can include being interviewed for the documentary, recommending someone who is knowledgeable on the topic, or even reccomending important LGBT athlete milestones. I am currently based in Illinois, but can travel and am happy to conduct interviews over the phone or Skype.

Please feel free to email me at bpstewa2@illinois.edu if you would like more information about the project or if you are definitely interested in participating. Please include “LGBT DOCUMENTARY” in the subject line. I will be happy to address any comments, questions, or concerns! Thank you for your time!

Camp Out Family Camp

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http://www.lwcgwc.com/camp-out/

Our mission is to provide a nurturing and carefree space for LGBT families to experience the magic of summer camp together!

CampOut at Lake of the Woods and Greenwoods Family Camp is four days of fun-filled activities for you and your family. Spend quality time together while participating in camp traditions, sports, and programs that you enjoy most! We host LGBT focused speakers and activities to help facilitate community. Each night, we run a different evening program such as Campfires, Top Chef Cook-off, and our famous Obstacle Relay!

“Like” CampOut on Facebook!

Modern Cabins

Each family can stay in their own cabin or choose to share with family or friends. Our cabins are spacious and clean. Each cabin has its own bathroom with hot water and showers inside. We have dressers for your belongings and a closet for hanging clothes.

 

Activities Include:

  • Waterskiing
  • Sailing
  • Tennis
  • Horseback Riding
  • Windsurfing
  • Riflery
  • Swimming
  • Golf
  • Fitness Classes
  • Climbing & High Ropes
  • Basketball
  • Arts & Crafts
  • Canoeing
  • Archery
  • Guitar
  • Paddleboarding
  • Fishing
  • and more!

Click here for Camp Out FAQs!

Click here for a sample schedule!

 

Dates Tuition Application
Friday, August 19 – Monday, August 22 Adults $300, Children ages 4-17 $225, Children 3 and younger FREE Click here to print out an application!

 

 

2016 Rainbow Book List

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http://glbtrt.ala.org/rainbowbooks/archives/1207

The Rainbow Book List Committee proudly announces the 2016 Rainbow List. The Rainbow List is a bibliography of books with significant gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, or queer/questioning content, and which are aimed at youth, birth through age 18. The list is intended to aid youth in selecting high-quality books that were published between July 2014 and December 2015. The list also is intended to aid as a collection development or readers’ advisory tool for librarians serving children and young adults.

The committee members evaluated over 250 books from small, independent, and large publishers, and selected 40 books from 27 publishers for the 2016 Rainbow List. The list also includes three additional books selected by the Stonewall Book Awards Committee as Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Children’s & Young Adult Award or Honor Books.

Starred titles indicate the Rainbow List’s Top Ten choices from the list, highlighting books of exceptional queer representation and literary merit to receive particular commendation.

The committee members would like to note the staggering increase in number of books of quality that fit the criteria of the list, as well as a number of books with bisexual and intersex representation. The committee would also like to draw attention to the decrease in books for younger readers, as well as the continued small numbers of LGBTQ characters of color or with disabilities. Also, as in previous years, high-quality nonfiction, including memoirs and history so vital to tying a culture together, remains sparse.

Logo

The Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender (GLBT) Round Table of the American Library Association is committed to serving the information needs of the GLBT professional library community, and the GLBT information and access needs of individuals at large.  We are committed to encouraging and supporting the free and necessary access to all information, as reflected by the missions of the American Library Association.

ALA

Call for Papers and Presentations: 4th Annual LGBT Research Symposium

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CALL FOR PAPERS AND PRESENTATIONS 2016

Recentering LGBT studies: Emerging conversations in the field
4th Annual LGBT Research Symposium: An Interdisciplinary Symposium on LGBT Research in the Social Sciences

Date: May 19 – 20, 2016
Location: I Hotel and Conference Center, 1900 S 1st St, Champaign, IL 61820
Submission Deadline: February 1, 2016

Cost: A $30 registration fee will include the methodological workshops and networking event on May 19, and the full day of presentations, breakfast and lunch on May 20. Registration details to follow.

JuanBattleKeynote Speaker: Juan Battle, PhD, The City University of New York Dr. Juan Battle is a professor of Sociology, Public Health and Urban Education at the City University of New York. Dr. Battle’s research focuses on race, sexuality and social justice. Currently, Dr. Battle is leading the Social Justice Sexuality initiative, which aims to capture the experiences of LGBT people of color in America through exploration of sociopolitical themes (see http://socialjusticesexuality
.com/). We look forward to hearing Dr. Battle’s perspective on cultivating social justice for underrepresented individuals within LGBT studies, the current and future priorities of LGBT studies – substantively and methodologically.

Program: Our theme for 2016 is Recentering LGBT studies. This year’s program builds upon the success of the past three LGBT Research Symposiums that provided researchers with an opportunity to present their own challenges, opportunities, and lessons learned while conducting social science research with LGBT populations.

This year’s symposium will begin with methodological workshops, a networking event, and poster presentations on May 19. The pre-symposium events will offer attendees technical skills, as well as continue to develop a network of LGBTQ scholars and professionals. The program for Friday, May 20, 2016 will include the keynote address and a variety of break-out sessions each including 3-4 panel speakers.

Jessica Fish is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Population Research Center at the University of Texas at Austin. Her research focuses on sexual minority mental health and alcohol use and how between- and within-group differences elucidate risk for this population. Her workshop will focus on finding and using large datasets in LGBTQ+ research.

Ramona Oswald is a professor of Human Development and Family Studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her research examines contextual influences on LGBTQ individuals and families, particularly in non-metropolitan areas. Her workshop will focus on innovative recruitment strategies and working with qualitative data.

Call for Proposals: Proposals for presentation at the symposium should fall into one or more of the following themes:

  • Original research with LGBT populations
  • Original research highlighting underrepresented populations within LGBT studies
  • Conceptual, theoretical, and/or methodological issues associated with LGBT research
  • Incorporating LGBT research in practice settings

The Outstanding Student Paper Award: Students with accepted presentations will have the opportunity to apply for the Outstanding Student Paper Award by April 1, 2016. Financial support for student presenters may be available as funds allow.

Request for Proposals details: Proposals should be submitted online at: https://illinois.edu/fb/sec/4609350 and limited to 750 words. Submissions from students are especially encouraged. Proposals may be submitted in the form of paper presentations, panel discussions, or posters. Accepted paper presentations will be formed into panel discussions based on similar topics. Panel discussions consist of four presenters and last 80 minutes. All presenters will be asked to confirm their attendance by March 1, 2016.

Notification of acceptance: February 15, 2016.

The final program will be posted on our website (http://lgbtresearch.weebly.com/) by March 18, 2016.

Planning Committee: Faculty: Ramona Oswald, PhD, Department of Human and Community Development Graduate Students: Elizabeth Holman, MS, LSW, Department of Human Development & Family Studies; Shawn N. Mendez, MS, Department of Human Development & Family Studies; Jasmine Routon, MA, Department of Human Development & Family Studies; Jacob Goffnett, MSW, School of Social Work

For more information, please contact: lgbtresearch.uiuc@gmail.com

Meeting Notes: 11/12/2015 General Meeting

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OUT at Illinois
General Meeting
Thursday, November 12th
5:30pm, Illini Union Rm. 213

AGENDA:

  • Welcome, Introductions, and Fellowship
    • New faces in the room, small crowd.
  • Programming and Budget Ideas
    • Consider a speaker. Possibly in collaboration with Black History Month and with BFAPA (Black Faculty and Academic Professional Alliance)
    • Monthly social to have, at least, appetizers sponsored at different locations.
    • Lots of programs and activities happening, maybe develop an online calendar?
    • It would be nice to create some kind of mentorship programming model
    • Pronoun buttons are possibly being ordered, but it would be nice to have some kind of “OUT at Illinois” sticker, button, or other signifier that is not a t-shirt.
  • Meeting Locations
    • The SDRP is available
    • Champaign and Urbana Public Libraries (to be in the community)
    • Possibly the Career Center
  • Leadership Opportunities/Positions
    • By-laws need to be created – Will likely convene early next semester to draft these.
    • Formal “officer” roles will also need to be in place: President, Secretary, Treasurer and other Charis, as needed.
    • BFAPA has Faculty & AP Chairs, Professional Development, Community Engagement, and Social Engagement.
      • Nathan can assist with Treasurer and developing by-laws
      • Susan can assist with creating a MeetUp group or other social/community engagement opportunities.
    • IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN GETTING MORE INVOLVED, PLEASE LET US KNOW!
  • Digital Resources
    • We have a pretty active listserv, and the Wiki Page.
    • Are going to be make sure information goes across lots of media that might be missed via email and Wiki
      • Website created to archive shared information, go.illinois.edu/OUT
      • Creating a Facebook page too! Coming soon….
    • Open Floor
      • Beyond Visibility Luncheon, 12/08 at 11:30am Alice Campbell Alumni Center
      • Working to expand gender-inclusive bathroom signage on campus. Knowing any places that might qualify?
      • There is a Housing-wide LGBT group for students, you can contact Nathan Runnels for more information.

White House Announces Support for Equality Act

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http://www.hrc.org/blog/entry/white-house-announces-support-for-equality-act

Today, HRC reacted to news that the Obama Administration has endorsed the Equality Act.

“The unfortunate reality is that, while LGBT Americans can legally get married, millions remain at risk of being fired or denied services for who they are or who they love because the majority of states still lack explicit, comprehensive non-discrimination protections,” said HRC President Chad Griffin. “By endorsing the Equality Act, the White House sent a strong message that it’s time to put the politics of discrimination behind us once and for all. Now it’s time for Congress to act. Everyone should be able to live free from fear of discrimination and have a fair chance to earn a living and provide for their families, including people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender.”

HRC polling has found strong bipartisan support for the Equality Act. A majority of Americans support extending non-discrimination protections to LGBT Americans. By an impressive 78 percent to 16 percent, voters support protecting LGBT people from discrimination, including a 64 percent majority of Republicans.

The Equality Act has also received strong, early support from some of America’s top companies, which joined the Human Rights Campaign in announcing support of the Equality Act since it was introduced in July — including Apple, Dow Chemical Company, IBM, General Mills, Levi Strauss & Co, Microsoft, Orbitz, Symantec and Target.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdJWx6ONy2w

Most gay and lesbian researchers are out in the lab

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http://www.nature.com/news/most-gay-and-lesbian-researchers-are-out-in-the-lab-1.18187
“Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) scientists feel more accepted in the workplace than their peers in other professions, a US survey suggests. The study, published in the Journal of Homosexuality1, also found that respondents in scientific fields with a high proportion of women, such as the social sciences, were more likely to be out to their colleagues than those in more male-intensive disciplines, such as engineering.” Read more at link above

BREAKING: New LGBT protections become law in Illinois

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Moments ago, legislation to protect LGBT youth by prohibiting so-called “conversion therapy” became law after being signed by Gov. Bruce Rauner.  Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth in Illinois will now be protected from discredited and dangerous efforts to change their sexual orientation or gender identity. Known as “conversion therapy,” these efforts are extremely harmful to the physical and mental well-being of young people. 

The governor also signed a bill allowing Illinoisans to specify their gender identity in binding funeral and burial instructions. Legislation to address burial instructions is necessary because of past situations where a person’s gender identity was disrespected by family members or funeral directors.     

These victories would not have been possible without the support of Equality Illinois members. Thanks to ongoing support, calls and notes to lawmakers and the governor, and thousands of petition signatures, our members helped us push these bills through the Illinois legislature with bipartisan support and ensure that they became law.   

Despite the approval of these bills, we remain focused on ensuring a fully-funded, fair, and responsible state budget to protect vital services for the most vulnerable Illinoisans, including homeless youth and individuals living with HIV/AIDS.  

Let’s keep moving forward, 

Mike Ziri
Director of Public Policy
Equality Illinois

Thanks, see you in August!

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Just wanted to send everyone a big, great, sincere thank you for coming out (no pun intended) on Monday evening for the LGBT(BB)Q event, it was a raging success! We had great weather, great food, and, most importantly, great company. It’s always a lovely time to see familiar faces, but more importantly welcome and introduce newcomers. As we get closer to the University on-boarding new staff and students soon, events like this and groups like ours are very important – so thank you for being part of making Illinois a welcoming and inclusive community. We had a few business items, so I’ll include those below with some other information.

Great weather, great food, and great company!

Great weather, great food, and great company!

LGBTQ Employee Affinity Group
Meeting 7/13/2015
Hessel Park

Introductions: Welcome from Manuel Colón
Business Items:
–What should our name be? It’s a wise decision to adopt a formal name for the group to have more of an identity and help with branding ourselves and our efforts. Note cards were passed around for everyone to contribute. Here is a small sampling of what we received:
*QueerWorks
*HomoHangout
*Illinoise
*QueerPros
*Illiance
*Queer-I
*Out @ Illinois

–What other activities would everyone be interested in? We want to be cognizant of the different interests of others, so notecards were passed around for everyone to contribute their ideas. Here is a small sampling of what we received:
*Pumpkin/apple picking/Curtis Orchard
*Game night/board games
*Sports games/tailgating/homecoming event
*Kickball/roller derby/other sports
*Movie night
*Speedmeeting (like speed dating, but just to know others)

Announcements:
-Manuel: Equality Illinois is creating their “Out and About: Good Business Network“. If you own a business or know a business that qualifies, considering nominating.
-Liz: Should we considering participating in the Champaign Pride Parade? Manuel: Yes! It would also be nice to also join forces with other higher education institutions in the area (Parkland, EIU, ISU, WIU, etc) and have a join “Out in Higher Education” contingency. If interested in organizing this effort, contact either Liz (ethw@illinois.edu) or Manuel (macolon2@illinois.edu)
-Devon: As the Asst. Director of the LGBT Resource Center, they wanted to introduce themselves to the group and encourages everyone to learn more about their operations and consider ways that they could collaborate or work together.
-elizaBeth: As a graduate student and representative of the Graduate Employees’ Organization, wants to remind people that graduates are employees too and are also open to different opportunities to collaborate with our group and mutual support one another.

Miscelleanous:
-Every person has affiliated themselves with the group for a variety of reasons and it’s time that we capitalize on everyone’s individual interests, desires, and strengths. At our initial meeting in the spring, three “sub-committees” were proposed to allow people to engage in the capacity that they would be more interested.  For more info navigate to go.illinois.edu/lgbtq
-Cites Wiki, there is a Wiki page for any LGBTQ related news, resources, materials, etc. that everyone (with a netID) is welcome to browse and contribute. The hope is a create a centralized knowledge bank of different LGBTQ related information that is community-driven and crowd-sourced. Check it out at go.illinois.edu/lgbtqwiki