Q Center: Celebrating 5 Years!

1. Q Center: Celebrating 5 Years! Presented cooperatively by: Jennifer Self and Q Center staff

2. Vision and Mission Q Vision:A UW community where justice, equality, compassion, and respect prevail. Q Mission:The Q Center facilitates and enhances an open, safe, inclusive, and celebratory environment for bisexual, lesbian, gay, queer, Two-spirit, transgender, intersex, questioning, same-gender-loving, differently oriented, and allied students, faculty, and staff.

3. Q Clips • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43p791EB5qg

4. Did you know? • UW is listed as one of the “100 Best Campuses” for lgbtq students? • 1000+ employees completed the Safe Zone training over the past 4 years (OMA/D, ECC-T, School of Nursing, OMA-School of Med, Communication, Social Work, Residence Life, Admissions, SFS, Hillel UW, School of Education) • Leadership Development: Mary Gates Scholars, McNair Scholars, Pride Scholars, GSBA Scholars, Huckabay Fellowships, Commission Directors, Student Org. Presidents, Community Service Learning Students (London School of Economics, Seattle University, UW MSW, NYU MSW, Michigan MSW, Harvard, Duke Medical School, Google, Teach for America, Peace Corps, Bonderman Fellowships) • Student initiated groups/organizations: QPOCA, QSA, Bi Group, Transformers, Queer Men’s Group, Partner’s Group, Sexplorers • Qolors 4th Annual Reception in collaboration with ECC-T • We are a practicum site for the School of Social Work for both BASW and MSW students

5. New this year! • Safe Zone Training Team: 10 students, faculty, staff members • A second GSSA (thanks to SAF) • First year student health insurance covers transgender health care, due to student activism • Partnering with OMA/D Staff Affiliation Group U-Q to expand our work with faculty and staff • Partnering with Development and Alums to create a Q Alumni Group • On-line anonymous discussion board for students, faculty, and staff

6. History • 1999: ASUW President, GPSS, and GBLTC write letter to President McCormick • 1999: President McCormick appoints a task force to further investigate • 2000: Task force completes an informal campus needs assessment • 2001: Task force publishes and distributes: “Affirming Diversity: Moving from Tolerance to Acceptance and Beyond” http://www.washington.edu/reports/gblt/gblt.pdf • 2003: VP’s dedicate space and money to GLBT resource center • 2004: Coordinator hired and begins developing program • 2005: Q Center opens • 2006: February 22-Q Center turns 2! Appear in Advocate College Guide • 2007: Q Center turns 3!

7. Continued • 2007: David Kopay pledges a legacy gift of $1 million to Q Center and queer scholarships • 2007-2008: Offered three quarters of Queer 101 • 2007-2008: Three scholarships awarded to students active in glbtq communities • 2008: Q Center is 4 years old! • 2008: Q Center Coordinator part early talks of developing a Queer Studies program • 2008: Lavender Graduation largest in history with 47 graduating students and more than 250 people attendance • 2008: Largest Welcome Luncheon in history with over 200 people in attendance • 2009: Q Center is 5 years old!

8. Task Force Report Summary Recommendations (2001) Create an affirming and safe environment for gay, bisexual, lesbian, and transgender students, faculty, and staff, and to reach this goal: • Standing Presidential Advisory Committee • A GLBT resource office with professional staff • Domestic partnership benefits equal to those of employees with opposite sex spouses • Inclusion of GLBT concerns in all discourse on diversity • Sponsor on-going and inclusive campus dialogue on issues of discrimination against GLBT people • Develop a GLBT studies curriculum

9. Aims • Eliminate campus harassment and discrimination on the basis of sexual and gender orientation/identity. • Operate from an intersectional and anti-oppressive framework and ally in our work to dismantle discrimination and oppression. • Increase understanding and access to holistic, accurate, and respectful information regarding sexuality and gender. • Facilitate culturally embedded/appropriate, healthy and integrated personal and educational development of Q students, faculty, and staff. • Facilitate the integration of Q concerns in all campus discourse and training on “diversity” and social justice. • Support, affirm, and celebrate the range of sexual and gender experiences, orientations, and expressions.

10. Strategies to achieving goals Education Advocacy Support and Celebration Provision of social space Leadership Development/Mentoring Transformative space

11. Education Increase understanding and access to holistic, accurate, and respectful information regarding sexuality and gender.

12. Education • Safe Zone Project $ • Active Resistance or Anti-oppression training $ • Brown Bags and other programming $ • Speakers series $ • Lending library $ • Speakers Bureau • Queer Scholars forum $ • Classes: Queer 101, Queer Images in Film • Resource and referrals • Ally Week & Awareness Weeks $ • Newsletter $ • Campus Consultant

13. Advocacy Facilitate culturally embedded/ appropriate, healthy and integrated personal and educational development of Q students, faculty, and staff.

14. Advocacy • Member of Diversity Council • Member of GLBT Task Force (currently defunct) • Campus Consultant regarding Q concerns $ • Website $ • Collaboration with GLBTC • Mentoring for Mary Gate’s scholars: Trans Health Insurance Project; Trans Awareness Week; Gender Neutral Restrooms • Assisting students, faculty, and staff to advocate for themselves • Advocating for inclusion in all aspects of campus • Trans Healthcare and Gender Neutral Restrooms

15. Support and Celebration Support, affirm, and celebrate the range of sexual and gender experiences, orientations, and expressions.

16. Support and Celebration • Welcome Luncheon • Lavender Graduation • Q Visionary Awards • Qolors Reception • Student Groups: QTIIG, QPOCA, etc. • Psycho-educational groups • Resources and referrals • Drop-in Crisis Counseling • Pride Week Collaboration • Pride/History month celebrations (e.g. Black History month, Women’s History Month, etc.) • Let’s Talk About Sex Programming and Free HIV Testing monthly

17. Social Space Facilitate culturally embedded/appropriate, healthy and integrated personal and educational development of Q students, faculty, and staff.

18. Social Space • Drop-in space for studying, meeting, hanging out\ • A space designed to be free of homophobia and transphobia • A space designed to be founded in social justice values • Affirming • A place to meet • Movie nights • Craft nights • Game nights • Q Socials (men, women, trans, etc.) • Book clubs • Bowling

19. Leadership and Mentoring Support, affirm, and celebrate the range of sexual and gender experiences, orientations, and expressions.

20. Leadership Development/Mentoring • One-to-one mentoring of students • Mentoring with scholarships/fellowships • Student employees • Student group leadership • Continuing education for constituents • Practicum students • Mentoring of student group leaders • Community Service Learning Students

21. Transformation Eliminate campus discrimination on the basis of sexual and gender orientation/identity.

22. Transformative Space • Fluid space for exploration • Intersections of understanding • A world of resources • Identities as un-fixed • Empowering and powerful • Critical thinking encouraged

23. Before SAF • Annual Budget: 20,000 • .5 FTE graduate student director ($15,000) • Approximately $5,000 for operations • Center open between 15-20 hours weekly • 3 regular volunteers and no paid staff • Safe Zone • Lavender Graduation

24. After SAF Annual Budget: $110,264 • .5 FTE Director (approx. $20,000 from OVPSL and OVPMA/D) • Operations: $27,000 • Salaries: $ 62,764 (GSSA + 1.5 FTE @ $9.25/hr + .35 FTE @ $ 11.30/hr) • Open full time • Employ 5-10 students annually including Work Study • Daily, Weekly, and Monthly programming • Signature Events: Welcome Luncheon, Trans Remembrance Day, World Aids Day, Ally Week, Qolors Reception, Q Center Birthday, Awareness Weeks, Lavender Graduation • Queer 101 taught quarterly

25. 5-7 Year Plan • Full time Director with faculty standing • Full time Assistant • 2-3 Full time Programming Coordinator(s) • Student staffing at minimally 3 FTE • Operational budget (not including salaries): $30,000-50,000 • Internship site for academic programs; e.g. Social Work, Psychology, Communication, Marketing, etc. • Course offering: Minimum of 1 class per quarter • Safe Zone Training offered: Minimally 3 times per quarter • Weekly support, advocacy, educational, and organizing activities • Mentoring program • Speakers’ Bureau

26. SAF 2010 The Q Center be asking SAF for our current budget plus: • $97,000 • $72,000 for salary for full time director • $25,000 for benefit package This will effectively double our SAF request over the course of one year.

34. Comments • “I wish we had had this when I was in school.” • “I can’t believe the university would care so much as to fund this.” • “It is all so confusing, trying to figure out which stereotypes are real and which aren’t…it is hard to know who I am.” • “Thank you, thank you, thank you.”