Inclusion Center starts new semester with Power Hours, LGBT+ ally trainings
Erika-Danielle Lindstrom, LGBT+ and ally coordinator, works within the Inclusion Center in the TSC. She said the center offers a number of services for students.
“We do things around education and outreach, making sure that students have a sense of belonging,” Lindstrom said. “We help connect students to services whether it can be housing, food insecurity, working with academic advisers.”
The first event of the new semester was a goal-setting workshop, which took place on Jan. 17. Each student was welcomed with a free bullet journal and the opportunity to find a support group for new goals.
Lindstrom said the event was a good way for students to validate their goals.
“That way if you’re coming in, we can check in, like ‘Hey, how’s that going?’” Lindstrom said. “Let’s work through this together.”
Lindstrom said one of the biggest misconceptions about the Inclusion Center is it can only be utilized by those in marginalized communities.
“You do not have to be within a certain affinity to go to a student club,” Lindstrom said. “It’s for everybody.”
The center contains a mini kitchen and multiple lounges, so students can determine where is most comfortable for them. According to Lindstrom, it’s a great spot to come in between classes for people who don’t want to leave campus.
“Some of the students that come in here — they’ll tell you which couches are the most comfortable to take a nap,” Lindstrom said. “Come hang out.”
According to Jona Odulio, Asian American & Pacific Islander program coordinator, the center is a great place to meet a variety of people.
“I think that people learn best just through their peers,” Odulio said. “Through interacting with people that they don’t necessarily have a lot in common with.”
The center has implemented a new campaign called Power Hours. For every hour students spend studying in the center, they get a free snack and one entry into a raffle for $250.
Along with lounges and raffles, the center is in charge of ten different USUSA clubs. Odulio advises the Asian Student Association as well as the Pasifika Student Union.
“We try to make sure there’s an educational aspect to the signature events the clubs do,” Odulio said. “A lot of the events are just kind of bringing things that are more accessible elsewhere up here.”
According to Odulio, it’s extremely important for people to be educated on other cultures and backgrounds.
“There’s a lot of deliberate misunderstanding of people who come from marginalized communities,” Odulio said. “We’re able to set the record straight with people. This is what we’re about, we’re all different, we can all be celebrated.”
Lindstrom agreed, saying education regarding various backgrounds and identities is important, especially in today’s political landscape.
“Now more than ever, there is so much anti LGBT legislation that’s continuously going on,” Lindstrom said. “Right now, the stories that I hear — the things that students are encountering — are heartbreaking.”
Lindstrom said she believes some of the hate circulating is due to persecution, but some is due to misinformation. One way the Inclusion Center is trying to help combat misinformation is in their monthly trainings.
“We have one Allies Training each month, and we also have one Trans Allies,” Lindstrom said. “What does it actually mean to be an ally and the actual work behind it?”
The trainings cover common microaggressions and topics people want to ask members of the LGBT+ community but are too scared or embarrassed to. They are completely free and hosted over Zoom. The next LGBT+ Allies Training is on Tuesday, Jan. 23 from 12 – 2 p.m.
Odulio said the trainings will hopefully cover a wider range of topics in the future.
“Currently there aren’t any multicultural trainings for students, faculty and staff that are housed within the Inclusion Center,” Odulio said. “It is something that we’re working towards thinking about for the future, for sure.”
The Inclusion Center is located in Room 315 of the TSC. It is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., for all students. For more information on services, clubs and upcoming events, visit usu.edu/inclusion.