SU Senate LGBT committee announces Spring 2003 events

SU Senate LGBT committee announces Spring 2003 eventsMarch 25, 2003Adrea Jaehniglgbt@syr.edu

As part of a project funded by a grant from Syracuse University’s Vision Fund, The Syracuse University Senate Committee on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Concerns has announced a speaker series, a number of community meetings designed to assess needs and interests, and a faculty and graduate student study group. The first round of community meetings and first speaker of the speaker series will take place this spring semester, and programming will continue next year.

The Senate Committee on LGBT Concerns was formed in Fall 2002 with the purpose of improving the campus climate for LGBT faculty members, staff members, and students. According to Senate bylaws, the committee also concerns itself with the education of campus leaders about LGBT issues and the facilitation of public dialogue on LGBT issues. The committee is comprised of eight faculty members, two staff members, and one graduate and one undergraduate student. Margaret Himley of The College of Arts and Sciences and Paula Johnson of the College of Law serve as co-chairs of this committee.

To initiate its work, the LGBT Senate Committee proposed and received a Vision Fund grant in the amount of $5,000 to begin a process of self-study and faculty and curricular development. Short-term goals of the project are to assess and enhance faculty awareness, knowledge and comfort of LGBT issues and to gather information about and hear from experts on LGBT pedagogy. Long-range goals are to infuse LGBT knowledge and perspectives into the existing curriculum and expand existing curricular offerings relating to LGBT studies. An additional long-term goal is to explore the possibility of an interdisciplinary minor in LGBT studies.

Events funded by the grant include:

• Teaching and Identity Issues: A Conversation on Being LGBT in the ClassroomMarch 4 This open discussion, held in the LGBT Resource Center at 750 Ostrom Ave., covered issues that impact full and part time faculty members and graduate students who are LGBT and allies who bring LGBT knowledge and perspectives to classrooms and departments. The LGBT Senate Committee used the discussion to understand what it is like to be an LGBT educator, how educators teach about LGBT content and issues of sexual orientation and gender identity.

• Paisley Currah: Infusing LGBT Knowledges and Perspectives into the CurriculumMarch 27, 4 p.m., Public Events Room, Eggers HallThis public talk is open to all faculty, administrators, staff and students. Currah will speak on the social historical context of LGBT Studies, how other universities have infused LGBT knowledges and perspectives into the curriculum, and a vision for the future of LGBT Studies in the academy. A reception will immediately follow Currah’s talk.

  Currah is associate professor in the Department of Political Science at Brooklyn College of The City University of New York. She received her Ph.D. and M.A. in Government from Cornell University. She serves on the Board of Directors for the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies (CLAGS) at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, and has published numerous articles on culture, politics, and the law as they relate to the civil rights struggles of sexual minorities and transgendered people and sex and gender non-conformity. In addition, she has published two books: “Legislating Genders: Identity in the Civil Rights Claims of Sexual Minorities,” forthcoming from Temple University Press and “Transgender Rights: Culture, Politics, and Law,” eds. Currah, Shannon Minter, and Richard Juang. Her teaching and research experience includes sexuality, gender, queer and transgender studies; identity claims of sexual minorities in U.S. civil rights discourse; and contemporary feminist, liberal, and democratic political theory. She has been invited to speak at Berkeley, the City University of New York, Cornell University, Ithaca College, the University of California, University of Texas at Austin, Wells College and Yale University.

• Your Voices, Our Future — What is Important to Students? March 26, 3-4 p.m., Room 228B Schine Student Center March 31, 11:45 a.m.-12:45 p.m., Room 228B Schine Student Center April 4, 1-2 p.m., Room 228B Schine Student Center

  These community forums invite students to talk about their experiences in the classroom, on campus, and in the community. Special focus will be on how sexual orientation and gender identity issues come up in the curriculum and classroom (or fail to do so). The goal of the community forums is to gather the experiences, hopes, and expectations of students on LGBT issues, which is important for informing and advancing the work of the University Senate Committee. The forums are open to students, faculty, and staff. Individuals not able to attend a forum are invited to submit their thoughts by e-mail to mrhimley@syr.edu or pcjohnso@law.syr.edu.

• LGBT Faculty and Staff SocialApril 9, 5-7 p.m., Goldstein Alumni & Faculty CenterThis event is for LGBT faculty and staff to informally meet, socialize, and receive information of about resources and events on campus.

These events are sponsored by the University Senate Committee on LGBT Concerns, the Vision Fund Grant, and various departments and programs on campus and in conjunction with the Division of Student Affairs and the LGBT Resource Center.

Questions about any of these events can be directed to the LGBT Resource Center at 443-3983.