(Charlotte, NC) - Now is the time for colleges and universities to reach out to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students and find ways to become more LGBT-Friendly. On Tuesday, Campus Pride launched the LGBT-Friendly Campus Climate Index (www.campusclimateindex.org), the only online resource of its kind which assists colleges and universities in learning ways to improve their LGBT campus life and ultimately shape the educational experience to be more inclusive, welcoming and respectful of LGBT and Ally people.

"Many campuses want to do everything they can to be more LGBT-Friendly and welcoming to all students, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity and expression. Now they can learn how," stated, Shane Windmeyer, Executive Director of Campus Pride and author of The Advocate College Guide for LGBT Students profiling the "100 Best LGBT-Friendly Campuses. "By highlighting positive LGBT efforts, we can advocate more effectively for LGBT and Ally progress for all campus communities."

To date, nearly one hundred public and private four- year campuses are already listed online and almost double are signed up to finish the online assessment in the near future. In development since 2001, the LGBT-Friendly Campus Climate Index is in response to the increasing demand for tools and resources to support campuses in assessing LGBT-Friendly programs, policies and practices. The index was developed by Campus Pride with a team of national LGBT researchers which included Brett Genny Beemyn, Ph.D, Susan R. Rankin, Ph.D. and Shane L. Windmeyer, M.S, Ed. Every campus listed online must take the index tool, which consists of 50+ self- assessment questions in eight different LGBT- Friendly factors. Each campus receives a confidential report with results and recommendations to improve the quality of campus life for LGBT & Ally people. Participation is voluntary.

Fusion hosts its second meeting of the year!
"Fusion" - a place for LGBT students, faculty, and staff of color to gather and celebrate the diversity within the LGBT community. Join us for free family style dinner and good conversation! The discussion topic for this gathering is "COMING OUT", and we will be enjoying some sizzling LATIN FOOD FROM LAS DELICIAS (it's free!).
In order to assist us in ordering the right amount of food, please RSVP to Amit Taneja ( ataneja@syr.edu ) by noon on Wednesday, October 3rd if possible . Come as you are, and feel free to tell a friend!

Cafe Q Presents: SALSA NIGHT!
In collaboration with Latino Heritage Month Cafe Q is bring Juan Migel to teach group members how to salsa. The night will be filled with music and fun as we celebrate Latino culture. For more information please email lgbt@syr.edu.

Planet Orange!
BOWLING SOCIAL
Please RSVP if possible
Planet Orange is a weekly discussion group for undergraduate students of all types. We encourage everyone, whether you identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning, Queer, Intersex or as a straight ally, to attend and share in meaningful conversation. Intermixed with social events, topics will range from Coming Out to Spirituality and Religion.
Come as you are every Monday night at 7:30pm to the LGBT Resource Center.
For more information contact Sean at swmalone@syr.edu

Attention Alumni:
Show your pride at Outfest 2007 in the City of Brotherly Love! Stroll through Philadelphia's 14th annual block party in the Gayborhood, then join us at Tavern on Camac for a casual gathering of Syracuse University's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender alumni. Reconnect with old friends and make new ones at this fun-filled event! Partners and friends are welcome, and light refreshments will be served. Orange attire optional.

the time: Sunday, Oct. 7, 2007 4:00- 6:00pm
the place: upstairs at Tavern on Camac, 243 South Camac Street, Philadelphia, PA

For more information please email lgbt@syr.edu.

This program will help LGBT students as well as allies gain exposure to certain careers (lawyers, doctors, etc.), and discover what it is like to be a member of the LGBT community working in particular careers. Potential plans for the program include: working with the Career Center, guest speakers at the LGBT Resource Center, field trips, and more. The goal of this program will be to help the LGBT community dismantle misconceptions about the life of LGBT members within certain professions, and to help LGBT students with basic career exploration interest.

An informational meeting will be 9:00pm Tuesday, October 2nd at the LGBT Resource Center.

Conact Chauncey Brown Jr. at ( cbrownjr@syr.edu) for more information.

Join the Beyond Compliance Coordinating Committee For the Fall 2007 Disability Film Series!

This film series calls into question popular culture representations of people who may not conform to the ³typical² representation put forth by the dominant culture. Join us for food and lively discussion of each of the films in the series.

October 1: Dance Me to My Song (1998)
Rolf de Heer¹s "Dance Me to My Song" is an extraordinary Australian work written by Heather Rose, who has cerebral palsy and communicates through a computer and voice synthesizer. As the film opens, she¹s at the mercy of a stupid and cruel "caregiver" who neglects and insults her. Using her motorized wheelchair and her lively intelligence, she tries to figure a way out of her dilemma. In the opening shot, the heroine seems hopeless and alien. By the end, we identify more with her than with the ³normals² in the story. Featured Presenter: Raven James, Post Doctoral Fellow, Center on Human Policy at SU.

New York, NY - The New York State Black Gay Network will launch a new social marketing campaign today aimed at combating homophobia and hate related violence in the African American community. The "I AM GAY" campaign, originally launched in New York City, has been cited as a model campaign by both the Centers for Disease Control's National Prevention Information Network and the Urban Coalition for HIV/AIDS Prevention Services. It can be viewed at www.wearepartofyou.org. "We are proud and pleased to be able to come to Syracuse and partner with Syracuse Model Neighborhoods' FACES program to say loud and clear that LGBT people have long been a part of the fabric of the African American community and we are not going anywhere" said Mark Jason McLaurin, Executive Director of the Network. "The time for a family conversation about these issues is long overdue, we are hopeful that this campaign can play a small part in making a start." Added McLaurin

Joining the Network for the kick off will be New York State Black Gay Network Board Chair Kraig Pannell, Project Director for the Men of Color Health Awareness Project in Rochester, NY and Eileen "Silky" Mason, LGBTQ Liaison for the FACES program in Syracuse.

The campaign will initially run in print media outlets in Syracuse, but will expand to other urban centers throughout Central and Western New York over the next sixty days. "We are hopeful that this campaign can help our own to recognize that homophobia has and continues to fuel the rise in HIV/AIDS rates in our community and that putting an end to it must be a priority for all of us who care about the overall health and wellbeing of our people" finished McLaurin

Contact: Mark McLaurin, New York State Black Gay Network, Executive Director at (646) 335-5107 or mmclaurin@nysbgn.org

Events for Banned Book Week Sept 29-Oct 6, 2007

"Restriction of free thought and free speech is the most dangerous of all subversions. It is the one un- American act that could most easily defeat us."- Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas, "The One Un-American Act." Nieman Reports, vol. 7, no. 1 (Jan. 1953): p. 20.

For more information about banned books week please click here.

The Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE) will hold its annual conference July 31 - August 3, 2008, at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Denver, Colorado. The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Theatre Focus Group invites proposals for the conference from scholars, graduate students, artists, and practitioners.

How do LGBTQ theatre artists, scholars, and teachers engage in political, cultural, and artistic dialogues about the issues that affect LGBTQ communities? Who has a voice in this discussion, who are the interlocutors, and what are the subjects addressed- and unaddressed? How successfully are we engaged in multiple and overlapping dialogues around issues of race, class, gender, geography, religion, age, and disability? And what role can queer scholarship and performance play in engaging our students, our audiences, and our adversaries?

Though we will consider any proposals on LGBTQ theatre and performance, we are particularly interested in papers relating to the conference theme. All ATHE members may submit proposals to the LGBT Focus Group.

Proposals should offer full panels and must be submitted online. Visit www.athe.org for directions. The final deadline for all proposals is November 1, 2007.
For more information contact:
Dr. Jordan Schildcrout
schildcr@ohio.edu

For the last 4 years, Jeff Sheng has been working on a photography project about LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and/or queer) identified high school and collegiate athletes who are also open about their sexuality, while still playing on their school's sports team. The project is called Fearless, and can be seen at the website:
www.FearlessCampusTour.org

The purpose is that this is hopefully the last year of the project and he is heavily recruiting participants, particularly from Division 1 schools and sports and regions that aren't well represented so far, before publishing the project into a book in mid-2008. A large reason that this has taken him 4 years so far is that finding participants has been a difficult task, but has gotten easier more recently, so he is hoping to spend only one more year on it. He has about 40 athletes photographed so far and his goal is twice that at 80.

If you or anyone you know might be an "out" LGBTQ high school or college athlete on their school's team and would be interested, please contact him for more information about participating:
jeffsheng@jeffsheng.com

Monday Night: Planet Orange @ 7:39
Tuesday: Open Doors @ 7:30
Wednesday Night: Pride Union @ 7:30
Thursday Night: Fusion @ 6:00
Thursday Night: Cafe Q @ 8:00