2021 KSUG Student Newsletter

by students for students

Image courtesy of KSUGeaugaTAC Social Media

Issue 3 Spring 2021

News in a FLASH

June Is Pride Month

What Makes an Ally?

By: Abby Clarke and Courtney McCombs KSUG Staff Writers

During Pride month, a subject that often comes up is the term "ally." So what does it mean to be an ally? How can I be an ally? How do allies affect the members of the LGBTQIA community? All of these are questions many allies face. Below is a brief summary of student experiences and advice on being an ally.

Being an ally comes in many shapes, forms, and sizes. Many people often assume having the box checked “ally” means one thing and one thing only. However, allies play many vital roles in the LGBTQIA community. Allies provide safe spaces for fellow LGBTQIA members to feel safe and discuss their personal lives in anyway they need to. They also are supportive of any and all members of the community, such as supporting marches, protests, fundraisers and even volunteering for LGBTQIA causes such as the Trevor Project. According to an article published by the Counseling Center at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, “Being an ally with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual (LGBTQIA) individuals is the process of working to develop individual attitudes, institutions, and culture in which LGBTQIA people feel they are valued. This work is motivated by an enlightened self-interest to end homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, heterosexism, and cisgenderism" (J. Jay Scott and Vernon Wall, 1991).

A Local Perspective

In the heart of downtown Kent, Ohio, on a buzzing weekend night, you might run into someone with a little bit of glamour and a little bit of sass. A gender queer man, Owen Reinear, who works at a bar downtown, also goes by "Cara Bowdit" as a drag artist on other nights. Cara is usually around town, expressing her gender through her fashion. Today, in a world where it is hard to determine who is supportive of the civil rights of the LGBTQIA community, it is essential to let people in the community know that you are supportive of the Pride movement.

Geauga staff and faculty celebrate Lavender Graduation.

Image courtesy of KSUGeaugaTAC Social Media

It takes a lot of courage to go into a public place and to be yourself when you know someone else might be uncomfortable with it. Owen is the perfect person to ask: What makes a good ally? In a recent interview, Owen expressed what makes him feel as if people are on his team. “I feel that what makes a good Ally is when someone goes out of their way to create a safe space for anyone in the LGBTQIA community. It’s important to make us feel comfortable and welcomed. For example, when I go out in Drag outings my friends always go out of their way to support me and to stand up for me if anyone decides to say something rude to me about how I am dressed.”

Owen feels that being an ally can be an individual thing or a way that a business can foster the community that surrounds them. He used an example of a local business who recently did a remodel and people were referring to the remodeled lobby as looking “gay.” He said the business made a post on their Instagram to let their customers know that they do not tolerate this type of slander, and they are supportive of the Pride movement. Having a flag, giving out Pride pins, or making posts on social media is a great way for any business to show that they stand up for the civil rights of the LGBTQIA community. It also provides a safe place where anyone can feel welcomed to be who they are without judgment.

Op-Eds: Pandemic Year Reflections

A (Virtual) Silver Lining

By Makiyah Harris KSUG Staff Writer

My mom and I used to joke about enrolling me in an online school. “It’s an introvert’s dream,” we’d laugh, “and you wouldn’t even have to get up early.” Last year, for students across the United States and beyond, this unlikely scenario became a shocking reality. When COVID-19 swept across the globe in 2020, people suddenly found themselves scrambling to adapt to a myriad of new problems. Hospitals overflowed, schools shut down, and businesses closed. Computer screens became classrooms; like many others, I finished my academic year in my bedroom, logging out of virtual school and into a virtual summer at the end of May.

While adjusting to pandemic life was not easy, the transition to online schooling gave me an opportunity. I had already scheduled courses for my senior year of high school before quarantine began, but I started to question my choices as the summer dragged on. At that point, I did not know what school would look like in the fall or how AP testing would go in the spring. Even after getting more information from the school district about the upcoming year, I remained unsure; however, an unexpected scheduling conflict between two of my classes pushed me to search for a solution that would allow me to take both of them.

That solution was College Credit Plus.

I ultimately decided to exchange most of my high school classes for CCP courses at Kent State’s regional campuses. While I had taken dual enrollment courses at my school before, this was my first time taking multiple CCP courses at once. Over the course of the academic year, I got to experience college course structures and workloads at Kent State’s Geauga/Twinsburg and Stark campuses before I set off for the main campus in the autumn as an Animation Game Design major. I was also able to improve my time management skills, complete my Kent Core requirements, and join Media Club!

I’m glad that I had the chance to learn so many things and meet so many wonderful people despite the unconventional academic year. Now that the spring semester is over and summer is upon us, I am excited to continue my educational journey this fall.

_______________________________________________________

Dear college pandemic year,

By Courtney McCombs KSUG Staff Writer

It’s hard to sum up the words for a year filled with so many different emotions. Uncertainty bothered me and adapting to constant change had become crucial. Quality time feeds my soul and isolation isn’t comforting. I would consider myself a non-traditional student who had to overcome many obstacles to arrive at the point of attending college. January 2020, the start to my first semester, my new lease on life. I wasn’t expecting a pandemic to hit but who was? Uncertainty can be overwhelming, and I was uncertain on how long COVID was going to last. I was uncertain about my job and school. I felt uncertain about interpersonal relationships. COVID was an adjustment, but after a while I found myself grateful.

Although 2020 was a tragic year for a lot of people, I will say that 2020 was a year of growth. I learned to rely on what surrounded me. I learned to find comfort through my support system. I was lucky enough to still work from home. Most of everyone in my family got sick, but they all made it out well. I learned of new ways to connect with others and I found comfort in doing little things that made me happy. I took time for me, by eating a lavish meal, spending time in nature, picking up a book or even journaling. I found myself the most comforted by listening to music. The pandemic started over a year ago now and I have made it through almost 4 semesters. I now sit with my kitty feeling loved, safe, and happy. Someday when I reflect back on 2020, I will think of a year of when I felt thankful.

"Brothers"

Artwork

Hanna Fabian

Commencements:

Endings As New Beginnings

This Spring 2021 KSUG Student Newsletter marks the end of a beginning. That beginning launched under Morgan Lee, a 2018 founding member of the KSUG Student Media Club who also served as editor-in-chief of the club’s signature project, the Student Newsletter, for three annual issues: 2019, 2020, 2021. Morgan led in her vision for the newsletter to reflect Geauga students' own experience, to be an artifact of their time and place. She strove, in her words, to “Geauga-ize” newsletter content, just as she wanted that content to mirror the variety of student voices on the Geauga Campus. As Morgan graduates this spring from Kent State University with degrees in English and Pan-African Studies, she leaves behind her legacy of work on this newsletter with 12 of her peers—some who have moved on, some who will provide continuity in the future, and some who are new. May the conclusion of her well-spent time here inspire those who take up the opportunities she has forged.

Dr. Bonnie Shaker

KSUG Media Club & Newsletter Adviser

KSU Geauga Student Newsletter Staff

Editor-in-Chief: Morgan Lee mlee7@kent.edu

Adviser: Dr. Bonnie Shaker bshaker@kent.edu

KSUG Staff Writers: Abby Clarke, Makiyah Harris, Courtney McCombs

Illustrator: Hanna Fabian

Web Designers: Abby Clarke, Dani Zilka aclark98@kent.edu; dzilka@kent.edu

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