LGBT Resource Center, 1970-2014 | Northern Illinois University

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Collection Overview

Title: LGBT Resource Center, 1970-2014

Predominant Dates:1970-2010

ID: RHC/UA/30/-8

Extent: 1.75 Linear Feet

Date Acquired: 02/00/2010

Scope and Contents of the Materials

The records found in the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Resource Center Collection are sub-divided into two series, LGBT Programs, and the LGBT Resource Center. Series I - LGBT Programs, contains materials dealing with various lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans-gender programs, groups, and activities on the Northern Illinois University campus, from 1970 to 2010, with the majority dating between 1997 and 2003. There is also one folder of referral information on non-NIU groups, located here. And also found in this series is biographical information on Margaret M. “Margie” Cook. Series II - LGBT Resource Center, contains materials information on the establishment of the Center in 2003, and events and programs, between 2003 and 2010. Photographic documentation of many LGBT activities from 1994 to 2009 is also located in this series. Researchers should also consult related materials in the various gay and lesbian organization files located in the Student Activities collection (UA 35), and on the President’s Task Force/ Commission on Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation, found in the Boards, Councils and Committees collection (UA 17).

Collection Historical Note

Student activism following the Stonewall riots that took place in New York in 1969, resulted in the establishment of the NIU Gay Liberation Front, a group which received recognition from the NIU Student Association on April 12, 1970. The Gay Liberation Front continued its activities, and in April of 1975 changed its name to the Gay Community Organization. The first Gay Awareness Day took place in April 1980 sponsored by the Gay Community Organization, which soon after changed its name to the Gay/Lesbian Union. On November 21, 1986 the NIU Student Association amended its constitution to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation. Two months later, a University wide Task Force on Discrimination was formed, and in the spring of 1988 NIU revised its constitution to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation. In the Fall of 1991 the Gay and Lesbian Alliance was established, the first organization specifically for faculty and staff. NIU President John LaTourette formed a Task Force on Discrimination based on Sexual Orientation in January 1992, and in the Fall of 1994 established the President’s Advisory Committee on Sexual Orientation to monitor the implementation of the Task Force’s recommendations. Meanwhile, with continued growth and awareness, the Gay/Lesbian Union changed its name to the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Coalition in the Fall of 1993. In April of 1996 the Presidential Committee on Sexual Orientation together with the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Coalition established the Eychaner Award to recognize positive contributions to the gay lesbian bisexual community. A Safe Zone Program was launched in February 1997, the first program involving allies in the LGBT community at NIU. The culmination of all the growth of gay lesbian bisexual transgender organizations and activism came on August 17, 1998 when Northern Illinois University established a half-time staff position for a Program Coordinator of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Programs in the Office of University Programming and Activities. Margaret M. “Margie” Cook, was hired to fill the position, and just over a year later on October 1, 1999 the position became full time. The Lesbian Gay Bisexual Coalition changed its name to Prism in October 1998. The Presidential Committee on Sexual Orientation, in November 2001, recommended that a Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Resource Center be established at NIU. In October 2002 office space was officially designated for the LGBT Resource Center, and on March 17, 2003 the Center opened on the seventh floor of the Holmes Student Center. The Resource Center contains two offices for staff, an office for Prism, and a resource room with a library, com-puters, and other informational resources. After nearly twelve years of coordinating LGBT programs, Margie Cook left her position as Director of the LGBT Resource Center in April of 2010 to take a position as assistant director of the Center for Student Diversity at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. She was replaced by Molly Holmes.

Administrative Information

Repository: Northern Illinois University

Access Restrictions: Literary Rights are dedicated to the public.

Use Restrictions: There are no restrictions on access to the records.

Acquisition Method: The University Archives acquired the records of the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Resource Center in February 2010.

Box and Folder Listing

Browse by Series:

[Series I: LGBT Programs],
[Series II: LGBT Resource Center],
[All]

Series I: LGBT Programs

Box 1

Folder 1: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Community, Historical Timeline, 1970-2003
Folder 2: LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) Programs, Correspondence, 1999-2002
Folder 3: LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) Programs, Press Releases, 1999-2002
Folder 4: LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender), Advertising/Flyers, 2000-2003
Folder 5: NIU-LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) Student Experiences, 1997
Folder 6: Sexual Orientation Issues in the Residence Halls, (1997-2008)
Folder 7: LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) Programs, Reports, Fall 1998-2001
Folder 8: LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) Programming Committee, 2000-2001
Folder 9: Straight Talk! Speakers Bureau [LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) Programs], Training Guide, October 2002
Folder 10: Transgender Support Group, circa 2001
Folder 11: LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) Student Support Group, 2003-2004
Folder 12: LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) Relationship Workshop Series, April 4, 2000
Folder 13: Brochure: Information Resources for Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Students, Faculty, and Staff, 1998
Folder 14: Selected Bibliography - Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Books, compiled by Margaret M. Cook, December 2002
Folder 15: LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) Video Resource List, November 2002
Folder 16: Safe Zone Programs, and Related Materials, (1998-2003)
Folder 17: Safe Zone Ally Training, 1998-2002
Folder 18: LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) Programs, Miscellaneous, 1999-2003
Folder 19: Eychaner Award Dinner, (1998-2008)
Folder 20: Eychaner Award, Nomination Forms, 2002, 2002, 2004
Folder 21: Margaret M. "Margie" Cook, Resume and other Information, 1998-2002
Folder 22: EPCO 522 - Student Development in Higher Education: Programs, Issues, and Practices, Margie Cook's Presentation Outline, February 1999
Folder 23: Margie Cook, Nominations and Support Letters for others, 1998-2002
Folder 24: Margaret M. "Margie" Cook, Letters to NIU Credit Union on Domestic Partner Status, 1999-2000
Folder 25: President's Task Force on Undergraduate Life and Academics, Margie Cook's Correspondence, October-November 2000
Folder 26: "Margie Letter: Celebrating the Splendid, Extraordinary, and Remarkable Margie Cook", upon her leaving NIU, April 2010

Box 2

Folder 1: Related Activities/Committees/Projects: Social Justice Coordinating Committee, 1996-1997
Folder 2: Related Activities/Committees/Projects: Understanding and Preventing Sexual Harassment, January 6, 1999
Folder 3: Related Activities/Committees/Projects: Ryan Moravcik, Memorial Service, February 7, 2002
Folder 4: Related Activities/Committees/Projects: Campus Climate - Sociology Internship Research Project, Spring 2002
Folder 5: Related Activities/Committees/Projects: Unity in Diversity, 2002-2003, 2007-2008
Folder 6: Related Activities/Committees/Projects: Miscellaneous Materials, 2000-2005
Folder 7: Referral Organizations: P-FLAG of Northern Illinois, 1993-1995
Folder 8: Referral Organizations: Room for All - Teen Drop-In Center, 1995
Folder 9: Referral Organizations: Project Alliance, Flyer; Honors Gary Judd, no date; circa 2003
Folder 10: Referral Organizations: Spectrum Support and Discussion Group, NIU, circa 2008
Folder 11: LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) Related Groups and Information, not NIU, (1970-1999)

Browse by Series:

[Series I: LGBT Programs],
[Series II: LGBT Resource Center],
[All]