The University of Idaho LGBTQA Office has taught more than 700 people how to create a safe and inclusive environment for members of the LGBTQA community since 2008.
The LGBTQA Office offers these safe zone trainings about once a month, starting several years ago.
“We have been doing this program since the 90s, but we started polling data around 2008, which showed that we have trained over 700 people, and that’s awesome,” said Julia Keleher, director of the LGBTQA Office.
Julia Keleher
The training takes about two hours, with the first hour dedicated to giving attendees a basic understanding of inclusivity regarding gender identity and sexual orientations.
The second hour consists of a volunteer student panel, who are there to answer questions about the topics discussed.
At the end of the training, each participant gets a placard that they can put in their workspace, dorm or anywhere they want in order to show they have been trained in this area.
“Everyone is welcome to the training,” Keleher said. “And those placards really means something because students tell us that it does.”
The next two-hour training is scheduled for 9 a.m. Feb. 19 in the Bruce M. Pitman Center Room 045.
Registration for the training is required, and students, staff or faculty can sign up at: uidaho.gosignmeup.com/public/Course/browse?courseid=15270. Zoom capabilities are also available.
“This training is essential for providing education on the LGBTQA community and to reach more people to learn and understand these issues,” said Keleher.
Nicole Hindberg can be reached at [email protected]