A new position on campus tasked to deal with LGBTQ issues could be a possibility, but might still have a long way to go.
A Student Government Association (SGA) resolution asking the university for an LGBTQ liaison was passed Nov. 28, after three senate readings. The liaison would be someone who would focus on helping LGBTQ students through a variety of resources and guidance.
The resolution states, “Student organizations are facilitated by students who are not paid professionals and do not have the time or training to act as a full-time resource to LGBTQ students.”
According to the resolution, LGBTQ students might be more likely to consider leaving the institution if a liaison position isn’t established, due to an increase in gender and sexual disparities.
The resolution also calls for the position to be filled by a director or assistant director, but said that it could be filled by a graduate student. Currently, the resolution states the liaison position would be paid, but there are no details regarding the pay, only the necessary requirements a liaison candidate should have.
Part of Ball State’s efforts to aid LGBTQ students is through the Council of Diversity and Inclusion, a group of faculty and students who work to improve inclusion at Ball State.
The council’s last progress report said it added an LGBTQ resource page on the Multicultural Center webpage.
Khanya Msibi, SGA’s Spectrum representative, wrote the resolution.
Msibi said a former senator originally drafted the resolution which she used as a basic outline for her draft, along with inspiration from Spectrum’s administrative work.
She also said Spectrum, a student-run organization on campus, does a lot of work for the university, such as aiding incoming freshmen with gender neutral housing. The group also works to educate people about LGBTQ issues and provide a safe area for LGBTQ students, its website states.
“It’s a lot of work for students that are volunteering that are inexperienced, trying to graduate and keep up with their studies at the same time,” Msibi said.
Msibi said she felt the position would be better suited for someone in an administrative position, so that work can continue between semesters.
“If one person is working on something in the school, and then the next spring semester they could not have that position… all of that work is lost,” Msibi said.
Msibi said other universities have some form of administrative position dedicated to helping LGBTQ students.
“Bowling Green University has a group called OUT(?) Falcons. It’s a support group for students who are in the process of coming out,” Msibi said. “That’s very helpful for students who may not come from very accepting environments.”
Miami University (Ohio) is another MAC school that has university resources for LGBTQ students.
According to Miami University’s website, it has therapists and counselors to help students struggling with issues of identity and sexual orientation. The school also offers students Safe Zones, marked by their signature triangle decal. These zones are places students can go to seek aid or information.
Kent State University, also a MAC school, has an LGBTQ Student Center that offers students resources, such as a university restroom map and a name changing process, according to its website.
While Ball State has counselors and safe zones like Miami University, there is always room for improvement, which is why SGA President Isaac Mitchell said he felt a liaison is needed.
“Currently, there are some issues where the Multicultural Center is just ill-equipped at the moment to do the best job for all of our minority communities on campus,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell said he had concerns over whether or not Ball State would ever consider doing something like this because the university tends to fall behind on issues such as these.
SGA slate, Amplify, while running its campaign, visited close to 40 organizations around campus and asked, “What do you guys care about, and what do you want us to do?” Mitchell said the slate received plenty of feedback on LGBTQ issues.
Mitchell also said he held discussions with multiple student organizations during his campaign last year, where he was able to do a Q&A with Spectrum to identify LGBTQ issues on campus.
The next step for the resolution is to go through university governance, which Mitchell said is not a quick process.
“I guess I have a plea to the people in university governance that they will actually look at this and consider this seriously,” Mitchell said.
Contact Charles Melton with comments at cwmelton@bsu.edu or on Twitter @Cmelton144.
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