SLCC students were given the honor of cutting the ribbon for the new GSSRC at the South City Campus on Friday. Left to right: Joey Du Shane-Navanick, Thando Naluyima, Lupe Calderon, Jessica Castro, Shane Robertson. (Tamra Rachol)
Community is everything at Salt Lake Community College.
SLCC celebrated the grand opening of its new Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center, or GSSRC, on Oct. 11 at South City Campus. The center will focus on being a source of education and community for SLCC’s female and LGBTQ+ students.
“We really want the [GSSRC] to be student-focused,” says Peter Moosman, the GSSRC’s inaugural coordinator. “[The GSSRC] will be providing programming such as speakers, lecturers, and workshops throughout the year in order to create conversation about social justice issues on campus.”
The celebration included speeches and performances from Moosman, Ella Mendoza, Dr. Chuck Lepper of Student Affairs, SLCC Chamber Singers, Thando Naluyima, Ky-e Tingey, Queer Studies Professor Elisa Stone, Jessica Castro, Leka Heimuli, and Joey Du Shane-Navanick.
“I envision the Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center to make the most of its chance to serve students who may otherwise feel alone to be seen, understood, validated, and celebrated for who they are,” says Stone. “We look forward to partnering with [other] non-profit organizations.”
Lupe Calderon, president of the Queer Student Association, would like to see more community-based events for the GSSRC.
“[The GSSRC] welcomes students with open arms, in particular to those who do not have a safe environment to go home to,” says Calderon.
The grand opening concluded with a ceremonial ribbon cutting and subsequent open house, with both families and friends in attendance.
“I am excited for the Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center because it will allow us to be seen as all of the colors of the rainbow,” says Castro. “The center will see all people of color, all genders, and all of the humans that live in the shadows and are afraid to be seen, and see them as the shining stars that they truly are.”
The GSSRC has been in development since 2014 and is a direct result of a collaboration by the LGBTQ+ Steering Committee, President Leadership Institute, Office of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs, Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, Student Leaders, and the Student Fee Board.
Ken Stonebrook, dean of students at Salt Lake Community College, attends the opening of the new Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center with his son Oct. 11 at South City Campus. (Tamra Rachol)
Several clubs and vendors gather to celebrate the opening of Salt Lake Community College’s new Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center on Oct. 11 at South City Campus. (Tamra Rachol)
Attendees enjoy the healthy catering options provided by Salt Lake Community College during the Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center open house Oct. 11 at South City Campus. (Tamra Rachol)
Attendees sample cupcakes and other baked goods provided by Salt Lake Community College during the Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center open house Oct. 11 at South City Campus. (Tamra Rachol)
Peter Moosman, the inaugural coordinator of Salt Lake Community College’s new Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center, addresses the audience during the center’s grand opening celebration Oct. 11 at South City Campus. (Tamra Rachol)
Dr. Charles Lepper, the vice president of student affairs at Salt Lake Community College, says the new Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center will be “a place where our students can be loved valued and cherished.” (Tamra Rachol)
The SLCC Chamber Singers perform “You Will Be Found” at the opening of the new Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center on Oct. 11 at South City Campus. (Tamra Rachol)
Salt Lake Community College student Thando Naluyima speaks at the Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center grand opening Oct. 11 at South City Campus. Naluyima: “I come from a country where being seen is hard and can be dangerous … I will be seen, I will no longer silence my voice and neither should you … The answer is love.” (Tamra Rachol)
Salt Lake Community College alumni Ky-e Tingey speaks at the Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center grand opening celebration Oct. 11 at South City Campus. Tingey: “I have no bathroom, I have no section in the store … I fight to make the world a better place so that the world will treat them better than they have treated us.” (Tamra Rachol)
Elisa Stone, a queer studies professor at Salt Lake Community College, speaks at the Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center open house Oct. 11 at South City Campus. Stone: “to our students who are afraid to come out, to the minorities, this center is for you … we are all in this together.” (Tamra Rachol)
Black Student Union members Rebecca Mopadish and Ryiah Murchison perform an impromptu dance routine during Salt Lake Community College’s Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center grand opening celebration Oct. 11 at South City Campus. (Tamra Rachol)
Salt Lake Community College student Jessica Castro addresses the audience during the Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center grand opening Oct. 11 at South City Campus. Castro: “I hope one day, my father will see me how I see myself in the mirror: a proud, Latina, transgender woman, a student, a neighbor, a friend, a dreamer, and a daughter. That day is closer. That day is now.” (Tamra Rachol)
Salt Lake Community College alumni Leka Heimuli performs a traditional Polynesian dance for the opening of the new Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center on Oct. 11 at South City Campus. (Tamra Rachol)
Salt Lake Community College alumni Leka Heimuli performs a traditional Polynesian dance during the Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center open house Oct. 11 at South City Campus. (Tamra Rachol)
Attendees of an open house for the Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center socialize inside the center Oct. 11 at South City Campus. (Tamra Rachol)
Attendees of an open house for the Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center engage in conversation Oct. 11 at South City Campus. The center is the first of its kind at Salt Lake Community College. (Tamra Rachol)
Attendees of the open house for the Gender and Sexuality Student Resource Center engage in conversation Oct. 11 at South City Campus. Salt Lake Community College created the center to support LGBTQ+ and female students. (Tamra Rachol)
