GLBT group pulls double duty raising funds
GLASA hosts a date auction and an art show with live performances to benefit groundbreaking events highlighting diversity and tolerance on the CSU campus-- a prom and four scholarships for GLBT students and their allies
By Eric Sever
lliance is raising funds for the first GLBT scholarship to be offered at CSU. The group is planning an evening of events at Bounce Nightclub to include an art sale, live performances and an auction on Saturday, April 4 from 5-9 p.m.
All featured artists will donate 50 percent of any artwork sold to the scholarship fund. All proceeds from the auction, to feature donated items from local businesses, will be added to that amount. Bounce is donating all cover charges, $5 per person, to the scholarship as well.
The money will be divided among four scholarships to be given to students who have contributed to the GLBT community on campus or in the city. One award will be for a graduate student, one for a law student, and two awards will go to undergraduate students.
GLBT Student Services Graduate Assistant Maya Simek explains that the scholarship will be given regardless of sexual orientation.
“This is for anyone who works towards LGBT issues on campus or in general, whether gay or straight,” says Simek. “This is not based on sexual or gender identity. It will be based on community involvement, as well as grades...and a short essay,” said Simek.
The applications will be reviewed by a panel at the Office of Diversity And Multicultural Affairs. Recipients will be allowed to use the funds at their discretion.
GLASA is currently seeking art submissions, auction donations and performers to aid in the fundraising. Performers are asked to create a 15 minute set of material to showcase their talents in everything from music to stand-up to dance.
To participate at the event, please contact Maya Simek at glbt@csuohio.edu.A date auction will be held on Friday, March 6 at 11 p.m. at Bounce Nightclub to benefit the upcoming GLBT prom at CSU.
The fundraising auction and subsequent prom will be hosted by the Cleveland State chapter of GLASA.
Auction attendees will get a chance to bid on dinner-for-two with one of several “highly desirable” dates, most of them being GLASA members. Dinners are donated by local restaurants. All proceeds will go toward the prom budget.
The money raised at the auction will provide support for a masquerade-themed prom to be held at the Wolstein Center on May 2 from 6 to 11 p.m.. The formal event will provide a safe, comfortable environment for the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered communities along with their straight allies.
Maya Simek, GLBT Student Services Graduate Assistant, explains the inclusive mission of the prom celebration, “We want the GLBT community, but we also want anyone GLBT-affirming to attend. We want all people of all sexual orientations to come.”
Prom attendees will dine on a three-course meal and dance the night away in costume-ball fashion. Dress may range from a tuxedo with a mask to a full-on costume, as long as it is “classy and appropriate.”
Invitations will be extended to all northeast Ohio college students age 16 and above, including students from Kent State University, Case Western Reserve University, University of Akron, and Bowling Green State University, as well as the LGBT Community Center of Greater Cleveland. Attendance is anticipated to be around 200.
Tickets for the prom will be $25 per person and will go on sale at the end of March. Ticket sales will be announced in Campus Mailbag.
Sponsored heavily by GLBT Student Services and the Office of Diversity And Multicultural Affairs, the members of GLASA hope the date auction will raise extra money to make the prom “bigger and better.”
GLASA board member Dan Simon explains, “This an opportunity to promote an enduring message of diversity. The prom is open to everyone, irrespective of orientation. We hope there will be many straight allies there. The only thing we ask for is understanding.”
For further information, or to make contributions of time, money, or goods to benefit the prom, contact Maya Simek at glbt@csuohio.edu. All donations will receive a formal, tax deduction receipt.
To get involved in prom planning, the prom committee meets every Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. on the fourth floor of the library.