Dear Alumni and Friends,

As we wrap up what has felt like the longest semester in the history of higher education, I want to take a moment to share some highlights with you from the LGBTQ+ Center and express my deep gratitude for your ongoing support.

This fall Wake did what many said was impossible and safely re-opened to bring our students back to campus. Though campus operations looked very different than in previous years, what remained the same was our steadfast commitment to creating safe, inclusive, and transformative learning experiences for our students.

The LGBTQ+ Center, and the students we serve, faced many challenges. Our lounge, normally a lively hub of connection and community building, could only hold three people at any given time. Many of the programs at the core of the support we offer to students had to be offered virtually. A number of our students experienced anxiety around health and safety, mental wellbeing, and their families' financial situations. And, of course, all of this happened against the backdrop of a year in which the safety and wellbeing of Black Americans was consistently threatened, and while a deeply divisive national election played out around us.

I am happy to report that the LGBTQ+ Center rose to the occasion and met the needs of our students with a level of creativity, determination, and resilience that mirrored the attributes I admire most in our students themselves. All of the core functions of the Center - education, advocacy, and support - continued throughout the fall semester as our staff met with students one-on-one, facilitated Identity Space discussion groups, rolled out a new campus-wide educational program, and planned creative outdoor events to give our students the opportunity for in-person connection. Our talented Graduate Assistant, J Mai, created a Post-Election Community Care Toolkit that has value far beyond this electoral cycle. And, we partnered with colleagues across campus to provide students a space to check-in and debrief in person after the election. I am incredibly grateful to our dedicated staff who have worked ceaselessly to make this possible.

This year we also had the pleasure of awarding two scholarships to exceptional WFU students! See below for profiles of Leilani Fletcher, this year's recipient of the LGBTQ Scholarship, and Emy Vanegas, the first recipient of our new Speas-Perillo Scholarship! To all of our scholarship donors, thank you for helping to make a Wake Forest education possible!

As we close out the year, I want to thank you, our alumni and friends, for all of the ways you support Wake Forest and our LGBTQ+ students. I remain humbled by your generosity of spirit, whether it's through gifts to the LGBTQ+ Center fund, mentorship and career coaching for our students, or sharing your stories over a Call to Conversation. I am so grateful for all that you bring to our community.

If you would like to make a year-end gift to support the work of the LGBTQ+ Center, you can do so here. If you have questions about giving, please don't hesitate to reach out.

I wish you all a safe, healthy, and peaceful holiday season!

Warmly,
AJ

AJ Mazaris, Ph.D.
Assistant Vice President for Equitable Policy, Office of Diversity and Inclusion
Director, LGBTQ+ Center
Part-time Assistant Teaching Professor, Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
Wake Forest University
(336) 758-4665
http://lgbtq.wfu.edu
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