Office of BGLTQ Student Life Holds First Event

The Office of BGLTQ Student Life held its first official event of the school year on Sunday in honor of International Bi-Visibility and Celebrate Bisexuality Day.

At the event, students watched ‘Imagine Me and You,’ a comedy-romance film starring Piper L. Perabo and Matthew W. Goode, in which a newly-wed bride becomes infatuated with another woman. After the movie, the students engaged in an open discussion.

“We thought it would be a great way to get students talking about what it means to be bisexual and how the media portrays bisexuality,” Lynne Peskoe ’15, an intern at the office, said.

The celebration is only one of the many activities that the office has prepared for this semester.

“We have a number of key events this year, including our first large scale event on October 11th for National Coming Out Day,” Director of BGLTQ Student Life Vanidy “Van” Bailey said. “We are also excited about creating an advisory committee comprised of students, staff, faculty and alumni.”

The office, which opened formally last March, is currently welcoming visitors from 9:30 AM to 5:30 PM on Mondays to Fridays. It is staffed by eight undergraduate interns, each specializing in areas such as Campus Education and Special Projects, Programs and Events, Outreach to Houses and Student Organizations, and Marketing and Online Social Media.

Peskoe, who heads Programs and Events with Edith C. Benavides ‘14, said that the office provides plenty of support for the interns’ ideas and creativity.

“The office needs support from student interns because it needs people who know the queer environment at Harvard intimately,” she said.

In addition to these interns, the office will be working closely with the Harvard College Women’s Center and the Harvard Foundation to integrate an intersectional approach to diversity and social justice work at the college.

“I hope the office helps foster a campus environment that creates space for all genders and sexualities to feel a part of the Harvard College community,” Bailey said.

Another office intern, Griffin T. Gaffney ’13, said that the office has already helped build a remarkable sense of community, with students ducking in and out throughout the day.

“I strongly encourage people to come visit us down in the basement of Boylston Hall, be it for a quick cup of tea, for a lengthy discussion of BGLTQ issues, or just to hang out on our couches.”

—Staff writer Michelle Denise L. Ferreol can be reached at mferreol@college.harvard.edu.