NIU Today

Feeling safe to be yourself is the foundation for dreaming about your best possible future. At Northern Illinois University, Huskies can come home to a residential community on campus where they feel connected and respected right away. Or, as Molly Holmes (she/hers) puts it: “You don’t have to search for your sense of place at...

NIU’s Gender & Sexuality Resource Center (GSRC) has planned several events in celebration of 2016 LGBTQIA Awareness Month. Unless noted, all events are free and open to the public. The GSRC is located at 105 Normal Road, in the Arndt house. For more information, or to request accommodations, call (815) 753-GSRC (4772). Transgender Day of...

The Neptune Hall Council will present “Colors of the Rainbow” at 6 p.m. Wednesday, March 30, in Room 102 of Neptune Central. A panel discussion and Q-and-A is planned on LGBTQIA+ topics. Other activities include bracelet making, a documentary screening and a presentation on safe sex. Speakers are from the NIU Ally Program, the Center...

J Mase III, a black/trans/queer poet based in New York City, will visit the NIU campus to deliver a spoken word performance at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 18, in the Cavan Auditorium of Gabel Hall. As an educator, he has worked with thousands of community members in the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada...

The Center for the Study of Women, Gender and Sexuality (CSWGS) might be the new kid on the block, but it arrived at NIU with a rich Huskie history. “Before this, we were just a program, which didn’t have the same institutional clout or recognition as other diversity centers,” said Kristen Myers, Presidential Teaching Professor...

NIU’s Gender & Sexuality Resource Center is planning several events in October to celebrate LGBTQIA History Month. For more information about any event, call (815) 753-4772 or email gsrc@niu.edu. Whose Story? The Impact of Privilege in Queer History Wednesday, Oct. 7 Join the GSRC and special guests to discuss what is known about the modern...

NIU’s 21st annual Pride Dinner is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Friday, April 24, in the Capitol Room of the Holmes Student Center. Doors open at 6 p.m. Attire is business professional/casual. The dinner banquet serves as an end-of-the-year celebration and features the presentation of the Eychaner Award along with several other awards and recognitions. Eychaner...

Over the past academic year, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Resource Center and the Women’s Resource Center underwent a merger process, culminating with a new name and mission to reflect a unified center, inclusive of the diverse NIU campus. The center will now be known as the Gender & Sexuality Resource Center. The merger transition...

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, non-heterosexual and gender non-conforming identifying graduates completing their NIU education in December 2013, May 2014 or August 2014 will be honored Thursday, May 8, at the fifth annual Lavender Graduation. The ceremony is free to students and guests. Semi-formal dress is requested. The ceremony’s goal is to celebrate the graduates...

According to the American Psychological Association, people who identify as LGBT utilize mental health services more than their heterosexual counterparts. They also experience depression, anxiety, substance abuse and suicidality at disproportionate rates, and are more likely to be homeless, suffer abuse and experience feelings of loneliness. Forty-two percent of LGBT youth say their communities are...

NIU’s LGBT and Women’s Resource Center will host athlete and activist Kye Allums at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 15, as a featured presenter for LGBTQ Awareness Month. He will speak in the Duke Ellington Ballroom of the Holmes Student Center. Allums attended George Washington University with an athletic scholarship to play basketball. In his sophomore year,...

NIU’s LGBT Studies Program has launched a campus-wide poster campaign to raise awareness of LGBT issues. The contest is open to current NIU students. Prizes of $250 and $100 will be awarded to the first- and second-place winners respectively. The winning posters will be unveiled Wednesday, April 23, at the LGBT & Women’s Studies Honors...