When Donald Straney was an undergrad at Michigan State University, he said he was “absolutely convinced” he was the only gay person on campus.
It was the 1970s and the 40,000-student MSU didn’t have an LGBTQ+ center — a hub for lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer and/or questioning individuals to convene, access resources or get help.
“There was no way for me to know otherwise,” Straney, chancellor at the University of Hawaii at Hilo, told about 50 students, staff and faculty members on Tuesday.
This fall, Straney, along with other UH-Hilo administrators and student leaders, helped start the new LGBTQ+ Center on the Hilo campus.
The center is located in a small room on the edge of campus formerly used as faculty offices. Costs — which include operations and funding a center coordinator position — are estimated to run about $45,000 per year, according to Interim Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Gail Makuakane-Lundin.
Straney, who was keynote speaker for an on-campus celebration of National Coming Out Day, said Tuesday he hopes the center gives students a place to meet, get information and — most importantly — increases the LGBTQ+ community’s visibility on the Hilo campus.
“From my point of view, the most important thing the center does is it lets people know that we’re here,” he told the smattering of attendees gathered in the Campus Center Plaza. “It lets prospective students know that (LGBTQ+) students have a place on campus.”
Laura Sherwood, a UH-Hilo alum tapped to fill the center coordinator position, said Tuesday she’s spent the past month revamping the dated office space and getting the word out around campus. Sherwood said she hopes to bring in a slew of guest speakers this year and organize events with existing organizations on campus.
Sherwood said she plans to bring in a community speaker Nov. 17 in observance of Transgender Awareness Week and eventually hopes to see the center move to a larger, more centrally located spot.
“The main purpose is to be a safe place on campus,” Sherwood said. “Really, my goal is to do a lot of events that are inclusive. Having the chancellor speak sends a huge message to the community and academic world that this university embodies diversity. We are welcome and inclusive and supportive of people regardless of their gender, sex or identity.”
Up to 7 percent of adults ages 18-35 identify as LGBTQ+, some studies show. Sherwood said it’s unclear how many UH-Hilo students identify as such but the campus has “a substantial population that are very openly out.” But there’s another substantial population likely not out “because of fear,” she added.
UH-Manoa’s LGBTQ+ Center — the only other campus in the UH system that has one — has been in operation since 2002. Manoa center director Camaron Miyamoto said about 25 students use it daily as a meeting spot, a place to eat and study or simply hang out.
“A lot of students describe us as their home away from home,” Miyamoto said. “ … This is something with resources, that advocates and supports students who are LGBTQ+ and allies and all are vital parts of our campus community.”
UH-Hilo student Sadie Dossett, 22, president of a student group called Pride Hilo, said they’re looking forward to using the center as a place for LGBTQ+ students and straight “allies” to hold meetings — “before there really wasn’t a lot,” the group said.
“If we needed a place to meet, there really wasn’t much available,” Dossett said. “Even planning events was really hard.”
“We were really lucky this year we got an LGBTQ+ center because we’re able to have multiple spaces we can go and a lot of different resources.”
Email Kirsten Johnson at kjohnson@hawaiitribune-herald.com.