In August 1998 the Pride Resource Center opened its doors to students, staff and faculty to use its space and resources. This year the Pride Center will be celebrating its 25th anniversary through LGBT History Month in October.
“We opened in the ’90s, so before the Pride Center formally existed, a few different groups existed on campus,” Pride Resource Center Director Maggie Hendrickson said. “The FoCo Gay Lesbian Bisexual Alliance group did meetups and was a student organization for gay, lesbian and bisexual students to work with (the Associated Students of Colorado State University) asking for money to build the Pride Center. Many events they hosted, like National Coming Out Day (and) their education panel, are still used in the Pride Center.”
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In the 1970s, queer people in Fort Collins would meet in secret in a small storage closet in the basement of the Lory Student Center.
Before the Pride Center, pride meetups on campus would often be hidden and secret for fear of hate crimes and retaliation for being queer. In the 1960s there was a hotline number used by students to call and say a secret word to get the location of the hidden meeting.
When the Pride Resource Center opened its doors for the Student Diversity Programs and Services, many different names were used throughout the years before they settled on “Pride Resource Center.” Originally it was opened as the GLBT Student Services. Adaptation and change are at the forefront of the Pride Center, from their name and location to their inclusivity and the services they provide.
The Pride Center has worked diligently all summer to ensure the space is a bit more accessible to all students. This work has included changing out furniture and moving it around to allow people with mobility aids to access the space easier, hosting virtual programs and changing lighting for people with sensory issues.
“I am real excited because we have three full-time professional staff, and we haven’t had a settled staff of professional staff in a while, so I’m excited to be able to extend the program and try to ensure that the facility is accessible and is a home for multiple students across the community.” -Maggie Hendrickson, pride resource center director.
Liri Sananes, a transgender student at CSU, is currently a resident assistant in Summit Hall in the All Gender & Open Housing hall. This initiative began with the Pride Center to accommodate all students. This hall is chosen by students who need a caregiver or want to room with a fellow transgender student regardless of gender and sex and students who are seeking a mixed-gender housing option.
“I really like the trans advocacy stuff in Pride,” Sananes said. “But we don’t need just one week of the full year — we need at least once a month. We’re struggling right now.”
Sananes went on to speak about hate speech within housing and how it affected them as a first-year. However, the Pride Center had an open door for them.
“I’ve gained a safe space,” Sananes said. “Whenever I walk in there, I always see someone I know, so it’s like a community.”
A future goal for the Pride Center is to not only have the Pride Center as a safe queer space for students but to also have clubs, housing and sports for students to find community.
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“I am real excited because we have three full-time professional staff, and we haven’t had a settled staff of professional staff in a while, so I’m excited to be able to extend the program and try to ensure that the facility is accessible and is a home for multiple students across the community,” Hendrickson said.
On Aug. 25 the Pride Center will be hosting their annual Welcome Back Bar-B-Queer, where they will be serving birthday cake for the 25th anniversary.
In October there will be a video playing that highlights alumni and their experiences at CSU before the Pride Center. Hannah Tran is the videographer behind this project and is planning to interview former directors of the center as well.
Reach Alexander Wilson at news@collegian.com or on Twitter @alexgrey0604.
