Statement of Support
We at OSDI recognize that trans and queer students of color and international student experience unique and complex challenges in navigating predominantly white institutions of higher education. Forming a sense of belonging and feeling seen in the totality of one’s identity is imperative to carving out a space for oneself in the campus community. Our office is dedicated to continuously investigating our practices, investing in growing our personal knowledge and calling out transphobic, transmisogynist and homophobic practices at the institutional level. We are constantly striving to be an office that uplifts and affirms queer and trans students of color and international student in the College of Education.
Resources and Quick Links
This is by no means an exhaustive list, but a place to get started. If you see something that should be added to these lists that we don’t have here, please send us an email at osdi@uw.edu to let us know!
UW Resources
Q Center
In 1999, student activists sent a letter of concern to UW President Richard McCormick regarding the lack of institutionally supported safe spaces for queer students. The Q Center opened in 2005 after six years of planning and development. The Q Center is the professionally-supported resource, advocacy, and mentoring center for queer students and concerns at the University of Washington. It provides consulting for various departments on campus with regards to bolstering safety and respect for queer students, and also coordinates numerous programs, social organizations, and educational initiatives. QPOCA
QPOCA
The Queer People of Color Alliance, or QPOCA, is a group on the University of Washington Seattle campus for queer and trans folks of color to build and share community, make friends, have fun, and discuss race, ethnicity, gender and sexuality as it relates to our lives, experiences and marginalization. In addition to weekly meetings, QPOCA also has socials, volunteering opportunities, educational programming, event coordination, field trips, and more.
Counseling Center
401 Schmitz Hall
(206) 543-1240
Short-term therapy, groups and outreach presentations
The Counseling Center offers multiple options for students seeking help coping with stress and mental health concerns. All UW Seattle students who are in degree-seeking programs are eligible for our counseling services.
Hall Health Primary Care Center Mental Health Clinic
(206) 543-5030
Individual & group therapy, medical evaluation
Other Resources
Resources by other Institutions of Higher Education
- Penn State’s Resource Guide for Queer and Trans Students of Color
- Emory’s Resource Page for Queer and Trans Students of Color
- UC Santa Cruz Lionel Cantu Queer Center’s QTPOC Advocacy Project
Written Works
- Am I This or That? Supporting Queer and Trans Students of Color - K. Martinez & Romeo Jackson
- Queer and Trans* Students of Color: Navigating Identity Disclosure and College Contexts - Jason C. Garvey, Steve D. Mobley, Kiara S. Summerville, Gretchen T. Moore
- No Ashes in the Fire: Coming of Age Black and Free in America - Darnell L. Moore
- 44 Self-Esteem Resources for Nonbinary Adolescents and Teens - Online Counseling Programs
Local Community Organizations
Entre Hermanos - Seattle’s LGBT Latino Organization
The mission of Entre Hermanos is to promote the health and well-being of the Latino Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and questioning community in a culturally appropriate environment through disease prevention, education, support services, advocacy and community building.
Noor - Seattle’s Queer Muslim Collective
Noor is an all-inclusive LGBTQI (and Questioning) confidential meeting space for individuals in the greater Seattle area that have ever identified as Muslim. Noor aims to build a supportive and conscious community through solidarity. Noor views solidarity as unity among folks with the common interest of removing the isolation our identities often cause and actively pursue group values revision to fight expectations of sexism/transphobia, anti-blackness, ableism, heteronormitivity, sunni supremacy, and femme phobia.
Arts, Media and Creative
GLSEN Education Webinar
GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network) has made a really accessible webinar series, one of which aids in informing educators learn best practices for supporting transgender and gender nonconforming students.
Equipping OSDI Staff to Support Trans and Queer Students of Color
Trainings for OSDI Staff
Supporting a diverse and intersectional student body necessitates a well-equipped and knowledgeable staff base. In order to provide OSDI staff and Diversity Ambassadors with the tools to recognize and disrupt oppressive practices and advocate for our student population, we propose that OSDI undergo a yearly series of intersectionality trainings. This training series could take place throughout the school year and be accompanied by a debrief session to follow each training. Debrief sessions include a discussion about applying the skills and knowledge gained, clarifying points of confusion or how to tailor tools for the OSDI student population.
List of training ideas:
- Queer 101 and/or Saf(er) Zone training with the Q Center
- Disability Justice training with D Center
- Mental Health Advocacy training with Counseling Center
- Undocu Ally training with Leadership Without Borders at the ECC
- Supporting Indigenous students with Intellectual House
In Spring quarter 2019, the OSDI staff members completed the Safe(r) Zone training with the Q Center and looks forward to building upon the knowledge gained to better support our students.
Continuing Conversation
In recognizing that simply attending a training does not do enough to shift student support practices and instill knowledge, the OSDI team dedicates one team meeting a month to furthering their knowledge on current events, policies, and legislative developments affecting queer and trans students of color in higher education settings and beyond. One dedicated staff member is responsible for leading the discussion and generating a list of actionable items if needed to follow up after the team meeting.
Resource for Student Affairs Professionals
The Consortium of Higher Education LGBT Resource Professionals has created a resource guide called Recommendations for Supporting Trans and Queer Students of Color. Co-created by UW’s own Jaimee March, Associate Director of the Q Center, the resource has been valuable to the 2018-19 OSDI team’s personal and professional knowledge-building. We are sharing it here in the hopes that it will be read and utilized by all higher education professionals who come across our website.
