The doors of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Resource Center officially opened Wednesday, ending years of negotiations between Northwestern students and administrators surrounding the issue.
“This is an important milestone to the gay community at NU,” Rainbow Alliance Sen. John Hughes announced to the senators at Wednesday’s Associated Student Government meeting. “For the first time ever at NU, gay students are going to receive the support they need.”
The center, located on the third floor of Norris University Center, is equipped with a book and video library about sexual-orientation issues, chairs and a laptop computer. Two Norris staff members, Jonathan Lewis and Jennifer Williams, will serve as part-time coordinators for the space.
Students have continuously pushed for a facility catering to the needs of LGBT students on campus, contesting assertions from University President Henry Bienen and Vice President for Student Affairs William Banis that establishing the center would cost too much under current budget constraints. ASG passed a bill in May encouraging administrators to fund the center, and the Undergraduate Budget Priorities Committee requested administrators reconsider their decision.
The third-floor space for the center was not considered ideal, said Hughes, a Weinberg junior and former Daily Forum editor who serves as a board member for Students Publishing Co., which oversees The Daily. At 11 by 11.5 feet, the room is smaller than an average single in the Foster-Walker Complex. Some students were concerned the room was too public and too near to the office of support and advocacy student group Rainbow Alliance.
Hughes said Rainbow Alliance was willing to take any space for the center, so long as it could provide a comfortable setting for LGBT students to share their culture with each other and the rest of NU.
“Having (a place with) movies, books and magazines that we designed for gay people is really important for someone who’s coming out,” Hughes said. “It creates a sense of unity and community.”
With the help of the LGBT Support Network and Rainbow Alliance task force, Hughes said Norris Director William Johnston began planning for the center to be in an office on the third floor of Norris over the summer. In the fall a sign was posted above the office’s door.
But those doors have been closed, until now.
“Getting the doors open is fantastic,” said Helen Wood, director of the Center for Student Involvement, which oversees the LGBT center. “The Center for Student Involvement is excited about the project, and I think it will serve the community well.”
Wood said the location of the center might not be ideal but added that she said she believes having the space in Norris sends an important message to NU.
“The mission of a student center is to engage all students and make them feel comfortable,” Wood said. “To be in the heartstone of the student center makes them a part of the community.”
Although the space is available for student use, Wood added that it still needs “the finishing touches.” New furniture and artwork will be added to make the center “more personable.”
“We are very aware that it still needs work,” she said. “And we hope students will add input to help design a feel for the center.”
Because student input is critical to the center’s development, Wood said, the space will undergo a “slow opening.” Rather than having an “opening ceremony or ribbon-cutting,” Wood hopes the center will attract an ever-increasing number of students with time.
The LGBT resource center is open from 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday and from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday.
