When students are disowned by family because of their sexuality or gender identity, some students find another family through the IU LGBT community, said Doug Bauder, office coordinator of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Student Support Services.
Scholarships available through the IU GLBT Alumni Association can alleviate financial burdens and also act as symbolic support.
“It is a token, but it makes a difference,” Bauder said.
IU GLBTAA scholarships are expanding thanks to a campaign that has raised over $810,000 since its start in 2013.
Bauder said there is a possibility of raising up to $2 million by the conclusion of the campaign in 2017.
“We are the first university campus to raise scholarships for LGBTQ students and our allies,” said Mike Shumate, former president of the GLBTAA. “It reflects on the environment of our university.”
The GLBTAA wants more flexibility to determine need, Bauder said, which could potentially include full tuition.
Full tuition coverage is a long-term goal with GLBT scholarships.
For the past 11 years, the GLBTAA has offered two kinds of scholarships to LGBT students and their allies.
The first are academic scholarships, which are available to students who show strong classroom performance and active leadership on LGBT issues.
The second are emergency scholarships, which are available to students who face financial hardship because of their sexuality or gender identity. Often, these students’ parents have disowned them or cut them off financially.
Scholarship amounts were recently doubled, so academic scholarships are $2000 and emergency scholarships are $3000.
“This is the first step we’ve taken,” Shumate said. “We intend to continue to increase the amount depending on the continued success of the campaign.”
When students say GLBTAA scholarships helped them stay in school, Shumate said it confirms his feeling that the campaign is the most meaningful volunteer project he has been involved with at IU.
He said the campaign and GLBTAA scholarships are guided by a saying: Students should not have to choose between living openly and honestly and receiving an IU education.
Shumate said he could never have imagined the support and resources currently available to LGBT students when he was an IU student in the ’60s.
“It’s so different today,” Shumate said.
Some money from the campaign will be invested in the IU Foundation, of which Shumate is the board director.
This investment will ensure the continuance of the fund as money in the IU Foundation is invested and receives returns, Shumate said.
The campaign, which has received national attention, is part of a larger trend in the United States, Bauder said.
“What we’re doing is symbolic of what’s happening in this country — just greater acceptance of GLBT individuals,” Bauder said.
Shumate said progress in acceptance of LGBT people is worth celebrating, but added that when he reads news about issues particularly facing gender-nonconforming individuals, he is reminded of the work that lies ahead.
“We still have a lot to do,” Shumate said.
