MURFREESBORO — The
first statewide collegiate conference of its kind in Tennessee will be the
standout feature of this year’s SpringOut! Pride Week at MTSU.
Student organizations from more than 30 colleges and
universities along with corporate and community leaders are invited to attend
the inaugural LGBT+ College Conference on campus April 10-12. The theme is “The
Advocate in You!”
“Launching this conference allows an opportunity to share
our knowledge and showcase the impact of our 25-year history of working with
our university,” said Joshua Rigsby, president of MT Lambda, the student
organization behind the event.
MT Lambda has supported the lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender community at MTSU since its founding in 1988. It is the oldest
collegiate student organization of its kind in Tennessee.
“We’re striving to unify all the LGBT+ groups in higher
education across the state from Memphis all the way to Johnson City,” said
Rigsby, a senior organizational communication major from Murfreesboro.
“Our secondary goal is to equip these students with the
tools they need to create positive change for diversity and inclusion in their
individual campus communities,” Rigsby added.
Attendance at the conference is free for faculty, staff and
students of higher education institutions. There is a $100 tax-deductible
patron sponsorship for the general public.
Elizabeth Birch, executive director of the Human Rights
Campaign from 1995 to 2004, will be a special guest at the conference awards
dinner at 7 p.m. Saturday, April 12, in the James Union Building’s Tennessee
Room.
The dinner will recognize outstanding leaders of the LGBT+
community and its allies. Tickets are $50 each. Reservations may be made by the
Wednesday, April 2, deadline at www.mtalumni.com.
As head of the country’s largest LGBT advocacy organization,
Birch worked with hundreds of companies in helping them revamp their
nondiscrimination policies to cover LGBT employees.
Today, Birch is president and CEO of the Elizabeth Birch
Company, a media and public relations firm with recent clients that include
Shell, General Foods and IBM.
Other conference presenters scheduled to speak include
Deloitte Services Director Jan Maddox, actress Jennifer Lanier and MTSU alumnus
Alan Gendreau.
The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee has awarded a
discretionary grant to help fund the conference. MTSU’s College of Behavioral
and Health Sciences is the gathering’s academic partner.
Other supporters include presenting sponsors Deloitte
Services LLP and Nissan North America, as well as the June Anderson Center for
Women and Nontraditional Students, the MTSU National Women’s History Month
Committee and the Tennessee Equality Project.
SpringOut! Pride Week events not connected with the
conference include:
- “Outapalooza,”
a minifair on the Student Union commons, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday, April
7;
- “SpringOut
DragOut,” a drag show, 7 to 9 p.m. Monday, April 7, in the James Union
Building, advance tickets $5 for general admission, $10 for VIP seats, $10
general admission, $15 VIP seats at the door;
- “No
Hate Photo Booth,” 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, April 8, Student Union
Building commons;
- Asexuality
Awareness Day information table, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday, April 9,
Keathley University Center knoll;
- “Flags
of Our Fathers: Homophobia Disguised as Patriotism,” a presentation by Dr.
Pat Richey, assistant professor of speech and theatre, 7 p.m. Wednesday,
April 9, State Farm Lecture Hall, Business and Aerospace Building.
For more information about
SpringOut! Pride Week or the LGBT+ College Conference, contact Rigsby at
615-545-6477 or mtlambda@mtsu.edu or go
to the MT Lambda website at http://capone.mtsu.edu/mtlambda/.
A searchable campus map with parking details is available at http://tinyurl.com/MTSUParkingMap13-14.
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