SAFE granted full organization status
Essentially, this change means that there will be an increase in SAFE’s Student Senate-allocated budget, which will lead to a greater variety of programming.
Not only will this move allow SAFE to further expand on many programs that they have been offering for years (i.e. Transgender Week of Remembrance, Drag Queen Bingo, and Pride Week, just to name a few), but it will also provide the resources that are needed so that they can introduce exciting and innovative programming in the future.
Members of the organization’s executive board noted that this big step has been something that the group has been working to achieve for quite some time. The decision to become an organization is intentional, and much consideration went into what that distinction would mean for the future of SAFE.
“Just the fact that it now is a reality is truly outstanding,” the SAFE executive board said in a statement to The Hawks’ Herald. “As a whole, organization status is a huge deal for SAFE because this most definitely will allow much more flexibility for additional programming and resources for the LGBTQ+ community on campus.”
Students expressed their excitement over the decision and hopes for what SAFE will bring to the campus community in the future.
“I’m excited about this change, and I’m really looking forward to see what SAFE ends up doing now that they are an org,” said sophomore Kaylee Ricker. “Considering the issues that they discuss and educate the campus about, I think it definitely makes sense that they would be in the position of reaching the entire campus community the way that orgs are supposed to.”
“They already put on really cool programming, all of which I would argue is very important from an education perspective,” said junior Tyler Makleski. “I think it’ll be pretty cool to find out what the next steps are in terms of future events.”
“Now that they have the Gender and Sexuality Center to serve as a more central location for meetings and events and stuff, I’m sure the organization will grow in size and in [the number of people they’re able to reach],” said sophomore Mikayla Paiva.
“This will benefit the student body because [it] allows SAFE to have a more prominent and visible presence on campus, allowing SAFE to increase [their] ability to reach the whole campus,” the SAFE executive board added.
