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| | Fall at IUB's Sample Gates |
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In September, Doug Bauder carried the Indiana state bicentennial torch through the heart of the IU Bloomington campus. It was a fitting honor for the director of the office that has figuratively "carried the torch" for IU's LGBTQ community for the last two decades. As it looks forward to the future, the GLBT Office at IU Bloomington is considering adopting a new name to better serve our community. The GLBT Office invites IU alumni, students, faculty, staff, and members of the Bloomington community to provide their input on possible new names for the Office by completing a survey available until Oct. 7 on the Office's website at
Like the GLBT Office, the GLBTAA continues to prepare for the future by building a world-class scholarship program, providing information and resources, and sponsoring events and activities to improve the quality of life for LGBTQ students, faculty, staff, and alumni of Indiana University on all eight campuses.
As we prepare to celebrate the 20th anniversary in 2017, we hope that you will continue to support our efforts, invite your friends and family to become members, and make plans to join us at our ninth annual celebration weekend on Jan. 27-29, 2017, and at subsequent events throughout the year.
Tim Lemper, President
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1. Prism Youth Community
The IU School of Public Health-Bloomington is proud to announce the launch of a new collaboration, the IU-Prism Partnership for Health Equity. This new partnership, recently formalized through a grant awarded to the Center for Sexual Health Promotion and Bloomington PRIDE Prism Youth Community by the IU School of Public Health-Bloomington, was formed to create safe and supportive environments for the health and well-being among sexual and gender minority (SGM) youth. [The term "SGM youth" includes young people who may self-identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ), or as a wide range of other sexual and gender identity labels (+), as well as those who may self-identify as "heterosexual" and do not engage exclusively in heterosexual behavior.] The grant will facilitate a wide range of SGM youth health-related programs.
Prism Youth Community (Prism) is a Bloomington youth-led initiative, which provides an inclusive space for youth (ages 12-20) celebrating all sexual orientations and gender expressions. Founded in February, 2014, Prism is a program operated by Bloomington PRIDE. Prism is committed to youth engagement and leadership. Members serve on a number of leadership committees and participate in educational, social and training programs for SGM youth. Members are also actively involved in various community outreach initiatives serving SGM youth and others in need of assistance.
Issues related to health equity are of utmost importance in the lives of SGM youth, as affirmed in a recent report from the Institute of Medicine. Compared to their heterosexual peers, SGM youth experience a wide range of health disparities and related difficulties as seen in disproportionate rates of psychosocial health issues, such as depression, anxiety, substance use, and suicide, as well as health risk behavior issues, including unprotected sex, higher number of sexual partners, more frequent use of emergency contraception and pregnancy termination, and disproportionate rates of HIV and STI. SGM youth also remain at high risk for violence and other forms of victimization based on their sexual and gender identities. The health implications of SGM youth-oriented communities, like Prism, outside the perimeters of large urban areas on the East or West Coasts with well-established LGBTQ+ communities, need substantially more attention. The health and related issues of SGM youth in lower resource and geographically diffuse rural areas, such as south-central Indiana, will start to receive more attention - the very impetus for the IU-Prism Health Equity Partnership. Specifically, the new partnership will now focus efforts in addressing the various challenges related to SGM youth health disparities. The active engagement of Prism members will provide our local youth themselves with access to, and benefits from, collaborating in community-based public health research and programs, as well as benefit all LGBTQ+ individuals and our larger communities in Indiana and beyond.
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2. Member Profile
~ Justin Ford is now a proud Hoosier, but has his Midwestern roots in Grosse Pointe, Michigan ~
Justin Ford spent his entire life, until age 24, living in Michigan, earning both his undergraduate and graduate degrees at Michigan institutions. Just over four years ago, in August 2012, Justin arrived in Bloomington, after completing his Master's in Higher Education/Student Affairs at Eastern Michigan University. Looking for a new experience while also wanting to stay within driving distance of his hometown, Bloomington was the perfect place to start his career. He was drawn by the opportunity to work as an Academic Advisor for the Kelley School of Business. Unbeknownst to him at the time, an opportunity to join the Kelley faculty would present itself in the Fall of 2013, where he has worked since. He is now a Lecturer in Business Communications.
Desiring to create community and establish roots in Bloomington, Justin became entrenched in social and advocacy-based community organizations, ranging from a weekly men's bowling league to Bloomington PRIDE, among others. Established in May, 2013, Bloomington PRIDE is one of Central Indiana's principal not-for-profit organizations supporting, educating and advocating LGBTQ+ issues by a wide range of events and services. Specifically, part of its mission is to support Prism Youth Community. (See paragraph #1 above.) It has also created the Transgender and Non-Binary Task Force to help assure more inclusive resources and programming for underserved groups in our community. In addition to Summerfest, which just completed its third successful year, Bloomington PRIDE hosts the annual Bloomington PRIDE Film Festival. The GLBTAA traditionally plans our annual celebration weekend in conjunction with the Film Festival to take advantage of its many wonderful films, live performances, lectures and other LGBTQ-related events. As a result of his commitment and leadership, Justin serves as Chair of Bloomington PRIDE's Board of Directors.
Through teaching, social advocacy, and community involvement, Justin has become deeply connected to Bloomington, and his identity as a Hoosier. Most recently, that connection led to his leadership in the formation of a new community coalition, Bloomington United, intended to help unite the community across race, ethnicity, gender, religion and sexual orientation. Through education, community dialogue, and civic engagement, Bloomington United strives to promote greater understanding, bridge differences, respond to social injustice and affect positive change.
Although Justin came to us as a Spartan, there's no question that he's now a true Hoosier who calls IU Bloomington home.
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| | Justin with Bloomington Mayor John Hamilton |
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3. IUPUI and IUB HEED Award
IUPUI and IUB have again been honored with the Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Award from Insight Into Diversity magazine, the oldest and largest diversity-focused publication in higher education. The award recognizes schools that have demonstrated a strong commitment to diversity and inclusion through their innovative programs, hiring practices, training, curricula and on-campus support systems. Both campuses will be featured, along with the other recipients, in the November, 2016 issue of Insight Into Diversity magazine.
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| | James Wimbush |
"A university should be a place where all types of people can come together as a community that is dedicated to inclusion and celebration," said James Wimbush, Dean of the University Graduate School and Vice President for the Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Multicultural Affairs. "We are pleased that IU has been recognized for its continued dedication to creating welcoming campus communities where faculty, staff, students and postdocs can do -- as often stated by former IU President Herman B Wells -- 'their best work.'"
The magazine's recognition reflects IUPUI's and IUB's continued commitment to diversity, a top priority in each campus' strategic plan. IUB was also named in August to Campus Pride's "Top 30 LGBTQ-friendly Universities" in the nation.
In making its selections, Insight Into Diversity factored in each institution's campus and unit diversity plans; diversity recruitment and retention policies and initiatives; leadership involvement in diversity efforts; peer mentoring and tutoring programs; organizational structures; diversity training; minority student population data and graduation rates and trends. For more information, please see the university release .
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4. GLBTAA Scholarship Campaign
Please continue to "spread the word" about our ground-breaking Campaign, which will help endow our GLBTAA Scholarship Program. We recently awarded five academic scholarship for the 2016 fall semester. Each recipient will be featured in one of our Newsletters. One of our recipients is featured in paragraph #5 below. After reviewing two more heart-breaking stories, we also recently awarded emergency funds to an IU East student and an IU Bloomington student. Since 2005, we have granted 74 scholarships (58 academic scholarships and 16 emergency scholarships) to IU students. Because of your generous support, we will be able to continue providing scholarships well into the future.
Shane L. Windmeyer, MS '97, Executive Director and founder of Campus Pride, has commented about our Scholarship Program, particularly about our emergency grants: "IU remains one of the best campuses for GLBT support in the country. Crisis assistance funding, for example, is now a new benchmark for the Campus Pride Index, and the GLBTAA emergency scholarship is a great example. IU has definitely raised the bar nationally. I'm proud that IU has been a leader in that. IU has always stood as an institution of higher learning that embraces diversity."
Contributions can be made online at Campaign Contributions If you have any questions or need additional information, please do not hesitate to contact Mike Shumate at [email protected] or 858-922-6105; or IUAA Alumni Relations Officer Clarence Boone at 800-824-3044. Again, heartfelt gratitude to everyone for supporting our Campaign.
THANK YOU, IU alumni, faculty, staff, students, allies and our many friends!
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5. Academic Scholarship Recipient
Congratulations are extended to James Keys, one of our 2016 Fall Academic Scholarship recipients! James graduated from Signature School in Evansville with an IB Diploma and now is in IU's entering class for the current semester in Bloomington. James graduated as salutatorian, with Indiana Academic Honors Distinction and as an AP Scholar with Distinction and a National Merit Commended Scholar ranking. At Signature, James was the editor-in-chief of the school's yearbook, president of Signature's National Art Honor Society and three-time state and district speech finalist. At Signature, James also found the time to address the critically-important issue of mental health and accurate diagnostic measures by conducting research on the reduction of mental illness and LGBTQ+ related social stigma using diagnostic brain imaging algorithms for the Dartmouth Undergraduate Journal of Science. After working with a restaurant and ice cream shop, James started his own bakery, Slow Rise Bread Company, which had a booth at this year's Bloomington Pride. Academically, James hopes "to commit [his] undergraduate studies at IU to the psychological and physiological development of transgender and gender non-conforming persons in the hopes that this knowledge will both make transitioning easier and will reduce the negative social ..." We're proud of you, James!
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6. Facebook
The GLBTAA has had a Facebook page for some time now, but some of you may not be aware of it. If you haven't already done so, check out our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/iuglbtaa. "Like" our page and follow our Facebook posts regarding news, updates and information about our events.
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7. Member Notes
Warmest congratulations to our four members:
Byron Craig has completed his PhD in Rhetoric and Public Culture from the Department of Communication and Culture of the College of Arts and Sciences in Bloomington. His dissertation was entitled "Mapping the Contours of Controversy: Gangster Rap and the Politics of Race in the Post-Civil Rights Era." He earned his Master's in African American Studies, concentrating on the intersection of race and Queerness, from IU Bloomington in 2003. Byron has been a Senior Lecturer in Business Communications for the past seven years at the Kelley School of Business. Effective January 1, he will be Assistant Professor of Speech Communication and Rhetoric at North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro, North Carolina. Byron has been a Director of the GLBTAA for a number of years and will continue after his move to Greensboro.
David H. Jacobs Jr. was recently elected to The Santa Fe Opera Board of Directors. David is a Director of the GLBTAA, Director and past Vice Chair of the IU Foundation Board and a founding member of the IU Women's Philanthropy Leadership Council. He received IU's Distinguished Alumni Service Award in 2011, and an Honorary Doctor of Music in 2013. Among other philanthropic endeavors at IU, David has endowed the John E. Schiller Chair in Legal Ethics at the Maurer School of Law.
Michael D. Shumate, BS '67, with distinction, recently received IU's Keystone Award, which recognizes those individuals who have shown exemplary leadership through their volunteerism and generosity for multiple IU campaigns or fundraising initiatives. Here is a video from the recognition banquet Mike is a Director of the IU Foundation Board, former Director of the Kinsey Institute and former Director and President of the GLBTAA. He received IU's Distinguished Alumni Service Award in 2010.
Shawn C. Wilson, BA '02 (Spanish), has been promoted to Associate Director, Library & Special Collections at the Kinsey Institute, one of the leading educational and research institutions regarding sexuality, gender and reproduction in the world located on the Bloomington campus. Shawn will now manage services for all of the Kinsey Library & Special Services, including art, artifacts and photography. He will also be directing Kinsey's digitization project and developing a new service model to expand and enhance access to the Kinsey collections. Shawn has been with Kinsey for over sixteen years, having served as Manager of Library and Archives Public Services since 2006 and as User Services Coordinator from 2000 to 2006. In his free time, Shawn volunteers with the IU Health Bloomington Hospice.
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8. IUPUI Harvey Milk Dinner
IUPUI's seventh annual Harvey Milk Dinner will take place on Saturday, October 22 at the Downtown Marriott in Indianapolis. The reception will begin at 6:30 p.m. with a cash bar followed by dinner.
IUPUI is pleased to host Ms. Precious Davis as this year's keynote speaker. Precious Davis is an award winning diversity professional, social justice facilitator, and keynote speaker. Davis finds deep meaning in engaging individuals in conversation surrounding bias, bigotry, and prejudice in their communities on the basis and belief that humans can coexist with one another positively through the embracing of each other's differences and the celebrating of human diversity. Davis recently was awarded the prestigious "30 under 30" award from the Windy City Times and was invited to The White House LGBT Pride reception where she had the honor of meeting President Obama. Davis is also the first transgender bride to be featured on TLC's "Say Yes to the Dress" and is currently the Assistant Director of Diversity Recruitment Initiatives at Columbia College Chicago.
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| | Precious Davis |
Alumni, faculty/staff, and community tickets are $55 each. Student tickets are available at $25 each. Table and corporate sponsorships are available for campus and community groups. The annual Harvey Milk Dinner is hosted in collaboration with the IUPUI LGBTQ Student Alliance, the LGBT Faculty Staff Council, the IUPUI LGBTQ+ Center, and Social Justice Education. For additional information, please use [email protected] .
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9. GLBTAA Scholarships
GLBTAA Academic Scholarships Academic Scholarships are awarded to IU students enrolled at any IU campus, who are academically strong, as well as active in promoting diversity, tolerance and social justice. Scholarships are awarded to students based upon academic achievement, career goals, financial need, leadership experience, community service and extracurricular activities. Involvement in activities promoting diversity and raising awareness of GLBT and related issues on the student's campus or in his or her community is carefully reviewed by the Board. The maximum award for an Academic Scholarship is $1,000 per semester. An individual student may not receive more than $2,000. The deadline for the Spring 2017 semester is November 15, 2016.
IU GLBTAA Emergency Scholarships
Emergency Scholarships are awarded to those students who experience the loss of financial support when they make the courageous decision to disclose their sexual orientation or gender identity to their families. Emergency Scholarships help to ensure that students need not choose between their education at IU and living life openly and honestly. Emergency Scholarships are awarded to students attending any IU campus. The maximum award for an Emergency Scholarship is $1,500 per semester, and a student may not receive more than $3,000.
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10. Membership
Encourage your friends to join the GLBTAA. They can visit our website here and join. There are no membership dues, and you do not have to be a member of the IUAA, or an IU degree-holder. We are approaching 1,600 members nation-wide, and we're growing! We appreciate your continued commitment! It is because of you that the GLBTAA is in existence, continues to grow and continues to serve our important mission on all eight of IU's campuses. If you are a member and wish to continue receiving our e-Newsletters, please make sure we have a current e-mail address for you. You can visit https://alumni.indiana.edu/my-iu/index.html to see if your official record, including your e-mail address, is current. Thank you for your support through your membership. We look forward to serving you now and in the years to come. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Clarence Boone, Alumni Relations Officer, at: [email protected] or Mike Shumate at [email protected]
If not already a member, please consider joining the IUAA by visiting https://alumni.indiana.edu/membership/index.html, by [email protected] or calling (800) 824-3044. By joining the IUAA, among many other things, you help fund the various GLBTAA programs, along with gaining access to IUAA member-only events.
If you would like to unsubscribe and terminate future communications from the GLBTAA, please respond to: [email protected].
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