PASSHE LGBQIA Consortium Holds Fall Meeting

by Dan Burdick

During an historic weekend, all fourteen universities of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education [PASSHE] met at the Atherton Hotel in State College, PA from October 30-31, 2009 for the inaugural meeting of the PASSHE LGBTQIA Consortium. The Consortium was formed in response to the varying levels of equity and service available to the LGBTQIA students, staff, faculty, and administrators on the different campuses. Each university has three members on the Consortium; two faculty/staff members and one student member. The co-chairs of the Consortium are Dr. Daniel Burdick of Edinboro University and Dr. Rita Drapkin of Indiana University of Pennsylvania. The Consortium was recognized by Chancellor John C. Cavanaugh on October 1, 2009. It serves as a formal standing sub-committee of the PASSHE Social Equity Council that reports directly to Chancellor Cavanaugh. The LGBTQIA representative on the Social Equity Council is Dr. Deryl Johnson of Kutztown University.

During the Fall Meeting, the Consortium worked on a number of beginning business items such as developing a mission statement and forming an Executive Committee. Workshops on Safe Zones and LGBTQIA Resource Centers were held with guest panelist, Allison Subasic who heads Penn State’s LGBTA Student Resource Center. The Keynote Speaker was Dr. Sue Rankin of the Pennsylvania State University. She is a nationally-known expert on LGBTQIA Campus Climate Surveys and shared the results of the most current research during the Friday night banquet.

At the banquet, the first PASSHE LGBTQIA Recognition Award was presented to Barbara Taliaferro, Vice President of Diversion and Inclusion, of Kutztown University. She has been a consistent voice for diversity and inclusion at Kutztown for 21 years and was the first and only person to hold such a position at Kutztown University. During her tenure at the university, she saw the expansion of the creation of the office of disability services, the creation of the Multicultural Center and the PASSHE's first GLBTA Resource Center. Ms. Taliaferro was instrumental in the first inclusive statement involving GLBT issues in the PASSHE Diversity statements. She has long been known for several "BT" phrases, such as, "If you're serious about diversity, then you need to fund it!" As a powerful, well-spoken, African-American woman at a traditionally rural Pennsylvania university, BT as every calls her, has championed all of diversity, not just those constituencies with which she has personal experience. For Ms. Taliaferro, equality for all is not just a slogan. It is a calling, it is a responsibility, and it brings out the best in each of us. The PASSHE LGBTQIA Consortium was proud to honor Ms. Taliaferro at its historic inaugural Fall Meeting!

For more information about the PASSHE LGBTQIA Consortium, please contact Dr. Daniel Burdick at (814) 732-2647 or dburdick@edinboro.edu.

From left to right: Sheleta Webb (California University of Pennsylvania), Dan Burdick (Edinboro University), Sue Rankin (Penn State), Barbara Taliaferro (Kutztown University), Hazel Spears (Cheyney University), Allison Subasic (Penn State), and Rita Drapkin (Indiana University of Pennsylvania)

Photos

Also view photos here.