Taking pride in UD Pride Week

Everyone’s heard of community at UD, but have you heard of Q*mmunity? 

During UD’s Pride Week, April 22-26, Q*mmunity leaders set up a colorful table full of goodies and resource pamphlets for students who identify as LGBTQ+ and their allies. Q*mmunity leaders are a group of peer educators who aim to raise awareness for the LGBTQ+ community at UD and provide students with opportunities to practice allyship and open dialogue.

Senior leader Kayleah Shiland was excited to engage with LGBTQ+ students and allies during Pride Week at UD. 

“[Pride Week] is an opportunity for visibility on campus and finding queer joy in our community,” Shiland said.

One of the many events held during UD Pride Week was a panel discussion about medical care for LGBTQ+ students. Panelists included Brittany Corcoran and Szilvia Jenei, both counselors with UD’s Counseling Center, who recognized that it may be hard for students who identify as LGBTQ+ to feel safe and affirmed in certain spaces.

However, Corcoran shared that the counseling center is a safe place for all. 

“We are a confidential space,” Corcoran said. “We acknowledge that our students are often in a space where they are not affirmed so we strive to be welcoming in a community that is not always.”

Corcoran said the Counseling Center frequently communicates with the UD student body on their website and in their physical space that they are a safe space for trans and nonbinary students. 

“We’ve tried to increase access with the hope that students won’t be hesitant about coming in because there’s a stigma or they’re going to be treated differently because maybe there is the perception that this is a Catholic counseling center,” Corcoran said. “With our trans students not knowing, in recent years, where they are safe and where they are not, we help them walk through and find those safe spaces and teach them how to navigate those spaces that are not.”

Trying to channel some optimism during a time in our country when the LGBTQ+ community is under attack, Frabotta said it’s important to encourage students to have uncomfortable conversations. 

“In whatever way we show up authentically and if we can’t show up authentically, we still show up,” Frabotta said. “I think we’re those ambassadors. We make a difference. You don’t know the impact you make. Simply showing up is the right way to go.”

Shiland wanted to stress that all of UD’s Pride Week events and other LGBTQ+ were and always are open to everyone.

“Have fun, meet people, come around,” she said. “Pride week is open for everyone, it’s not just LGBTQ+ students that should be coming to these events.”

For more information about student services for LGBTQ+ students, visit: https://udayton.edu/studev/health_wellness/brook/lgbtq/index.php