by Melissa S. Green

University students around the state are kicking into gear —  with classes, but also with activities, organizing, and leadership development.

The Family at University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) will hold its second (or is it third?) meeting of the fall tonight in the Student Leadership Lab on the second floor of the UAA Student Union.  One The goal of the meeting is planning its activities for the busy fall semester.  Members of The Family are also taking active leadership roles in the newly created One Anchorage Youth Committee, part of  One Anchorage ballot initiative campaign aimed at adding sexual orientation and transgender identity to the Anchorage equal rights code.  Thus, tonight’s meeting will also cover the information about the campaign that will be covered at the One Anchorage Community Forum earlier in the evening.

• Date/time: Wednesday, September 14, 7:30–9:00 PM
• Location: Student Life and Leadership Lab, Room 206 of the Student Union, UAA (see map)
• Further info: see Facebook events page

Spectrum, the LGBTQA club at Alaska Pacific University (APU), will hold its first meeting of the semester this Thursday in Grant Hall.  Spectrum’s activities in the past have included the Spectrum Drag Show, World AIDS Day, Multi-Cultural Tree Creation/Decoration and National Remembrance Day Shirt Making.

• Date/time: Thursday, September 15, 5:00–6:30 PM
• Location: Grant Hall, Alaska Pacific University, 4101 University Dr, Anchorage (see map)
• Further info: see Facebook events page

The University of Alaska Fairbanks Gay/Straight Alliance (UAF GSA) will be holding its third meeting of the semester this Friday in the Alumni Lounge, which is located in Constitution Hall, the building where the bookstore, the post office, and KSUA’s offices/studio are. Just enter the main doors and turn left. It’s a great way to meet people!

• Date/time: Friday, September 16, 4:30 PM
• Location: UAF Alumni Lounge, 201 Constitution Hall, Fairbanks (see map)
• Further info: See the University of Alaska Fairbanks Gay/Straight Alliance.

A new UA LGBTQA Facebook group has been created in an effort to increase the information-sharing and networking among University of Alaska campuses — prompted in part by word that students at Mat-Su College, an extended campus of UAA, and at the Ketchikan Campus of University of Alaska Southeast (UAS) are working to form new Gay/Straight Alliances (GSAs), and have been seeking information from student groups at other campuses.  But the new group isn’t only for students.  The group describes itself as being

for LGBTQA* students, alumni, faculty, staff, administrators of any University of Alaska system college, school, or MAU. Oh, and their spouses/partners/families. And we’re okay with UA-friendly, LGBTQA-friendly other people too. Just no frenemies please….

(* LGBTQA = lesbian, gay, bi, trans, queer/questioning, or allied.)

UAA, UAF, UAS, UA Statewide… all the colleges and extended campuses… all the other stuff that UA does all over the place: if you’re part of it, & you’re LGBTQ or allied, you’re welcome here. Urban or rural, you’re welcome here. Whether you’re working towards LGBTQA rights wherever you happen to be, or “just doing your job” or “just trying to get through school” — you’re welcome here.

“Topical” means it has anything to do with your life, work, studies in the UA statewide system, especially as it relates to our common concerns as LGBTQA people. But nontopical discussions are okay too! Let’s be a statewide university community.

Other events likely to foster leadership among university (and high school!) youth are the 2011 Alaska Pride Conference and Youth Summit, to be held October 14–16 at  Alaska Pacific University in Anchorage, and Community Building for Alaska on October 24–25, also at APU. The latter event is sponsored by the Alaska Community Foundation and APU, and is designed to bring together diverse individuals from across both rural and urban Alaska who care about community and building community.  While not specific to LGBTQAs or to youth, there are 10 scholarships specifically for LGBTQA participants. To apply for an LGBTQA scholarship, email Grrlzlist Alaska at grrlzlist@gmail.com and tell them who you are and why you should have a scholarship. You must be willing to work as part of a team of LGBTQAs in the conference and afterwards.