LGBTQ Commission Open Forum, March 30th

February 26th, 2018

The President’s LGBTQ Commission will be holding an open forum on Friday, March 30 from 1:00PM-3:00PM in room 118 of the Academic Success Center. The purpose of this forum is for the commission to communicate with the campus of its activities and to provide members of the campus community the opportunity to pose any comments, questions, and/or concerns. This includes staff, faculty, administrators, and students. Please note there will be a student-only forum later in the semester.

We will have an anonymous form (linked below) for questions and feedback from individuals who will not be able to attend in person, or simply for those who are better able to express themselves in writing. There will also be notecards handed out at the forum for individuals to write down a comment or question and pass it forward to be read aloud by one of the forum facilitators. Facilitators will also read out submissions to the anonymous form.

The forum will begin with an overview of the purpose of the commission, its work thus far, and what we hope to accomplish in the future. We will then open up the floor to comments and questions. Light refreshments will be provided.

As with all routine official university forums, Clemson encourages the participation of its employees and requests that supervisors provide flexible work schedules to allow employees who are interested in the topic the ability to attend.

Link to the anonymous feedback form: https://goo.gl/ZFb8zh

Clemson LGBTQ+ Alumni Club name change

February 14th, 2018

Clemson University’s LGBTQ alumni group’s executive board voted recently to change their name from Clemson Alumni Society for Equality to Clemson LGBTQ+ Alumni Club. According to the club’s president, Brian Cave, “The board hopes to bring a clearer representation of who we are and what we stand for”. Thanks to a more welcoming Clemson community and the University’s commitment to inclusiveness, the board felt the time was right to increase awareness of the club.

In addition to the name change, the club has also updated their purpose:

The purpose of the Clemson LGBTQ+ Alumni Club shall be to establish and maintain an official affinity group for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (LGBTQ+) and questioning alumni, and LGBTQ+ friendly allies who are alumni, under the auspices of the Clemson University Alumni Association with the following objectives:

A) Raise funds for the Clemson LGBTQ+ Alumni Endowment for the benefit of an undergraduate student(s) who have made contributions to the LGBTQ community through leadership, service, volunteering or research.

B) Help Clemson achieve its goal of becoming and/or maintaining its status as a Top 20 National University by promoting equality for all students, faculty and staff.

C) The Club will work to promote the concept of “One Clemson,” which endeavors to engage all students, faculty, staff, alumni and visitors, particularly freshmen and transfer students, in experiential, interactive activities aimed at facilitating dialogue and increasing awareness of and respect for different cultures and backgrounds.

D) Provide professional networking and social activities for LGBTQ alumni and allies who are alumni.

E) Work with and support the on campus Clemson University LGBTQ+ groups.

F) Work with the University in to improve its nondiscrimination, harassment and related policies to protect all the members of the LGBTQ+ community.

To learn more about the club, visit their Facebook page at ClemsonLGBTQAlumni or their Clemson Alumni page. Alumni can sign up to be a part of the club here. The LGBTQ Alumni club hosts regional events, an annual homecoming tailgate, and sponsors student programming on campus.