Indiana University Bloomington faculty and staff have the opportunity to get involved with and shape a new council that serves the LGBTQ+ community on campus.

The LGBTQ+ Faculty and Staff Council is having a callout meeting from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Sept. 14 in the Dogwood Room at the Indiana Memorial Union. Hors d’oeuvres and mocktails will be served. Anyone who is interested and considering attending should complete an interest and registration form.

The purpose of the meeting is to identify people who are interested in leadership positions with the council and discuss creating its constitution, said Vivian Halloran, interim council co-chair and associate dean for diversity and inclusion in the College of Arts and Sciences.

The new council is intended to provide a space and community for LGBTQ+ faculty and staff, and ensure that their voices and concerns are heard. Photo by James Brosher, Indiana University“We’re trying to create a space for LGBTQ+ faculty and staff members to come together formally as a council,” said Bruce Smail, interim council co-chair and director of the LGBTQ+ Culture Center.

Smail said that when he started working for IU Bloomington in 2020, he was surprised to learn that it didn’t have a council for LGBTQ+ faculty and staff and wondered how one could be created. The COVID-19 pandemic pushed aside those thoughts, but they resurfaced during an LGBTQ+ Culture Center social event in the fall of 2022. Smail said it was clear to him that this kind of community, or space, was desired.

The council initiative is a collaboration involving the Bloomington Staff Council and Bloomington Faculty Council, with support from the Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Smail said.

“The LGBTQ+ Faculty and Staff Council is an important part of Indiana University’s commitment to creating a welcoming and inclusive community where all can learn, grow and thrive,” said James C. Wimbush, vice president for the Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and Johnson Chair for Diversity and Leadership. “We have a vibrant community on the Bloomington campus, and this upcoming meeting is a key opportunity for staff members and faculty to build an even stronger community together.”

Smail said discussions with Wimbush and Pamela Braboy Jackson, associate vice president for faculty and belonging in the Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, resulted in their eager support.

“We are excited to welcome and support the LGBTQ+ Faculty and Staff Council as part of our efforts to create a sense of belonging within our diverse IU community,” Jackson said.

Smail said the new council provides an important space to support LGBTQ+ faculty and staff and their concerns, noting that hundreds of anti-LGBTQ+ bills were filed in state legislatures this year.

Bloomington Staff Council President Alison Sinadinos said the staff council receives questions from staff about how something at the state or federal level might affect them. The LGBTQ+ Faculty and Staff Council should provide a good community for discussing concerns, and a vehicle for sharing concerns with campus administration, she added.

Sinadinos said it’s important for staff and faculty to feel like IU is home so they want to stay at the university.

“We need to have those places where folks can identify with each other and can be in, and that they can feel comfortable,” Sinadinos said.

Bloomington Faculty Council President Colin Johnson said IU Bloomington has a history of recognizing and including LGBTQ+ people, citing the work of the LGBTQ+ Culture Center, pathbreaking research by the Kinsey Institute and transformational teaching facilitated by multiple programs and departments, including the Department of Gender Studies. The new council, though, is an effort to do even better with the LGBTQ+ community, he added.

“Recognizing the valuable contributions and specific needs of LGBTQ+ faculty and staff just happens to be one area where we’ve fallen a bit short,” Johnson said. “The formation of this new faculty and staff group represents an important step toward addressing that shortcoming.”

Kirk Johannesen is a communications consultant in the Office of the Vice President for Communications and Marketing.