Gay and lesbian ally program wins support of USU faculty
Gay and lesbian students on campus will have more visible allies among the faculty soon.
The Faculty Senate voted to endorse the development of a Faculty Ally program at Utah State University. Similar programs at other universities train volunteer professors to give a nonjudgmental, listening ear to students concerned about gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered issues. Ally professors are typically identified with some type of placard, sign or sticker on their office door to let students know they are in a “safe zone.”
“We’re extremely excited about it,” said Sarah Benanti, co-president of Pride! Alliance. “It’s a very cool thing whenever we can visibly see who our allies are. Hopefully, this will be a positive effect on the campus.”
USU has several organizations devoted to supporting gay students such as Pride! Alliance, ROSIE (Righteously Open-minded Sisters/Supporters Inclusive of Everyone) and the Gay and Lesbian Student Resource Center. But many students who are still closeted may not feel comfortable in these settings, said Les Roka, professor of public relations and faculty adviser to Pride! Alliance.
“They might have questions they would rather raise on a private basis,” Roka said. “[With the ally program] they can come and talk to a faculty or staff member and do that confidentially and in private.”
Roka, who plans to volunteer to be an ally, said the program will compliment and enhance the mission and activities of Pride! Alliance.
The idea of an ally program was brought to the Faculty Senate by Elizabeth York, professor of music, who said in her proposal, “After eight years of advising and participating in gay and lesbian student groups at USU, it has become clear to me that many gay and lesbian students cannot easily identify faculty allies on our campus.”
York said 80 percent of USU’s peer institutions have ally programs.
“Faculty support is strong right now,” she said. “The timing seems to be right.”
Kevin Kesler, president of the Faculty Senate, said the vote of support was nearly unanimous.
A committee of two faculty members, two staff members and two students will be meeting in the next few months to discuss the specifics of the program, including how to train allies and how students will identify them, using other schools’ programs as a guide.
At least 20 faculty members have volunteered to be allies so far, Roka said.
“The list keeps growing every day,” Benanti said.
Benanti said allies will not necessarily be gay themselves, but they will be educated on issues faced by the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered community. She said the program will be beneficial to the university.
“If we want to stop hate crimes, there has to be some visibility,” she said. “I just hope it will really open up a new form of dialogue.”
The committee hopes to start training allies by April, and the program may be functional by the beginning of Fall semester, Roka said.
-heidithue@cc.usu.edu