Sierra College 1 Sierra College Spectrum Mission The

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Sierra College

Sierra College

1. Sierra College Spectrum Mission: The Spectrum Committee, as a standing committee of the

1. Sierra College Spectrum Mission: The Spectrum Committee, as a standing committee of the Academic Senate, exists as a formal body whose mission included improving the success and retention of Sierra College’s LGBTQ students as well as ensuring them a safe campus climate. As LGBTQ persons are found across every demographic, the Spectrum Committee seeks to work collaboratively with other campus groups and programs to promote equity across ethnic and racial, socioeconomic, creed and political backgrounds. The title, “Spectrum” was chosen as a commitment to represent all aspects of the LGBTQ populations.

Invisibility Becoming visible is a political action

Invisibility Becoming visible is a political action

Curriculum? Where do students hear about contributions LGBTQ persons have made to society? Silence

Curriculum? Where do students hear about contributions LGBTQ persons have made to society? Silence is not neutral……………. .

2. Sierra College LGBT Studies Department AA Degree in LGBT Studies • • •

2. Sierra College LGBT Studies Department AA Degree in LGBT Studies • • • Intro to LGBT/Queer Theory Queer Film History LGBT/Q Literature • • • Human Sexuality Sociology of Sex and Gender Anthro of Sex and Gender

"The fucking bullshit that I had to learn this in an elective class in

"The fucking bullshit that I had to learn this in an elective class in college and not in high school or before. " ~LGBT Studies Student

I couldn’t even tell that you were Gay! Thank you? ? DISCLOSURE….

I couldn’t even tell that you were Gay! Thank you? ? DISCLOSURE….

Orientation Be out! Gender Identity Pass!

Orientation Be out! Gender Identity Pass!

Used with permission from Shane Marshall

Used with permission from Shane Marshall

3. Sierra College: Work Arounds • Student Id Cards • Canvas Id • Banner

3. Sierra College: Work Arounds • Student Id Cards • Canvas Id • Banner Generated Roll Sheets Goal: Reduce the number of times students are forced, by our institution, to involuntarily disclose and to create a campus climate safe enough so student can, without fear, voluntarily disclose via being/expressing their authentic selves. *Note on self-examination and privilege.

What is the college experience for LGBTQ students? • 84. 6% of LGBT students

What is the college experience for LGBTQ students? • 84. 6% of LGBT students reported being verbally harassed, 40. 1% reported being physically harassed and 18. 8% reported being physically assaulted at school in the past year because of their sexual orientation or gender expression. • 72. 4% heard homophobic remarks, such as "faggot" or "dyke, " frequently or often at school.

 • Nearly two-thirds (61. 1%) of students reported that they felt unsafe in

• Nearly two-thirds (61. 1%) of students reported that they felt unsafe in school because of their sexual orientation or gender expression • 29. 1% of LGBT students missed a class at least once and 30. 0% missed at least one day of school in the past month because of safety concerns • The reported grade point average of students who were more frequently harassed because of their sexual orientation or gender expression was almost half a grade lower than for students who were less often harassed (2. 7 vs. 3. 1).

Jeffrey Fehr—January 1, 2012 “We will second-guess ourselves forever, ” his father said. “But

Jeffrey Fehr—January 1, 2012 “We will second-guess ourselves forever, ” his father said. “But we do know that for years and years, people knocked him down for being different. It damaged him. It wore on him. He could never fully believe how wonderful he was, and how many people loved him. ” Sacramento Bee

1. Housing Forms 2. Application demographics. 3. Preferred name and gender. 4. Non-discrimination policies.

1. Housing Forms 2. Application demographics. 3. Preferred name and gender. 4. Non-discrimination policies. 5. Homelife situations

Facilities

Facilities

4. Sierra College Rainbow Alliance Provides a place to belong

4. Sierra College Rainbow Alliance Provides a place to belong

5. Sierra College Pride Center

5. Sierra College Pride Center

And…. LGBTQ College Staff? How can we tell students it is safe to live

And…. LGBTQ College Staff? How can we tell students it is safe to live authentically while we are not doing so ourselves?

And…. LGBTQ College Staff? Maybe it’s time for college employees to listen to the

And…. LGBTQ College Staff? Maybe it’s time for college employees to listen to the role models we have in our student populations.

Minority Stress Syndrome

Minority Stress Syndrome

Dr. Ilan Meyer, Psychiatric Epidemiologist *How the small and large slights faced by lgbt

Dr. Ilan Meyer, Psychiatric Epidemiologist *How the small and large slights faced by lgbt people have a cumulative adverse impact on their psychological well being, making them twice as likely to suffer from disorders ranging from depression and anxiety to substance abuse. *Can be caused by outright prejudice. . . But it can also be caused by events that in isolation seem innocuous.

5. Sierra College Pride Days • Three day event • 15 Academic Presentations •

5. Sierra College Pride Days • Three day event • 15 Academic Presentations • Community Groups in our quad • Key note address followed by a faculty student drag show

Why doesn’t Sierra College host Straight Pride Days? Because. . . • Congress has

Why doesn’t Sierra College host Straight Pride Days? Because. . . • Congress has yet to pass a law requiring people to hide the fact that they are straight or cis-gender. • Publicly elected officials are not refusing to give marriages licenses to straight couples and attracting crowds of religious supporters to cheer their courage for doing so. • The streets are not filled with children who have been kicked out of their homes for being straight and/or cis-gender. • There seems to be a lack of stories in which someone has been beaten, tied to a fence and left to die or shot in the face at point blank range because they were straight or gender-conforming.

Why doesn’t Sierra College host Straight Pride Days? Because. . . • No state

Why doesn’t Sierra College host Straight Pride Days? Because. . . • No state has yet passed a religious freedom law allowing business owners to discriminate in providing services to straight, cis-gender people AND there are no business owners claiming the right to discriminate in such a way. • No high schools, public or private, have hosted proms that forbade students from bringing other-sex dates or from wearing gender-non -conforming clothing. • Suicide rates are not spiking for straight, cis-gender college students while being at all time lows for lgbt college students.

The problems with data: 1. We don’t have any. 2. Would queer students check

The problems with data: 1. We don’t have any. 2. Would queer students check the boxes if we asked and reported?

The Williams Institute: January 2016 The LGBT Divide in California: A look at the

The Williams Institute: January 2016 The LGBT Divide in California: A look at the socioeconomic well-being of LGBT people in California http: //williamsinstitute. law. ucla. edu/wpcontent/uploads/California-LGBT-Divide-Jan 2016. pdf

 • Data for the Pacific states are mainly driven by California’s numbers, as

• Data for the Pacific states are mainly driven by California’s numbers, as California accounts for 77% of all LGBT adults living in the Pacific states • The LGBT population living in the Central/Southern Farm region reports the lowest rate of college completion (28%) in the state. • This proportion is even lower than the LGBT college completion rate in the Southern(33%) and Midwest(29%) regions of the U. S. .

The proportion of LGBT people earning less than $24, 000 per year in the

The proportion of LGBT people earning less than $24, 000 per year in the North and Mountain region is comparable to the rate in the Southern(33%) and Midwest(35%) regions of the U. S.

According to our 2013 report on patterns of poverty in the LGB community, as

According to our 2013 report on patterns of poverty in the LGB community, as poverty rates for nearly all populations increased during the recession, LGB Americans remained more likely to be poor than non-LGB people. In the report, gender, race & ethnicity, education and geography all influence poverty rates among LGB populations, and children of same-sex couples are particularly vulnerable to poverty.

In a survey of over 6, 000 transgender and gender non-conforming people, respondents experienced

In a survey of over 6, 000 transgender and gender non-conforming people, respondents experienced poverty, unemployment and health risks at much higher rates Race/ethnicity · Gender · Disability · Veterans · Former Foster Youth · Low income • LGBT? What does this all mean? We should be looking at the data!