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firefly124Today came with a loooooong to-do list. Smack in the middle of it was a student government meeting, which I've somehow managed to avoid ever attending at any college I've been to in my semi-professional-student life. So while in some regards I'd like that hour and a half of my life back, it was probably good to experience it once. Emphasis on once. Better since the one issue that had me there ended up being resolved with much, much, much less drama and venom than all the buildup had suggested there might be.
Less drama is good.
Governance not being allowed to censor us into the most G-rated campus I've ever set foot on is also good. No, seriously, it's actually kind of weird once you notice it. As that was at the root of some of the objections to our club changing its name, once that went away, things were much better.
Oh, what name change?
So, for various reasons, including a major overhaul of our mission statement (which we accomplished in a surprisingly drama free two meetings), we decided that "Gay-Straight Alliance" didn't quite represent us. For one, several members pointed out that they were apparently the hyphen and while not overly troubled by that, would kind of rather have something more inclusive. For two, while there is something to be said for having an affiliation with a nationwide organization, said organization is primarily focused on high schools. We're not in high school. Several of us are old enough to have kids in high school. And we can still affiliate with GLSEN without being a GSA. In fact, that's what organizations at the college level tend to do. Ultimately, we decided that the name we felt was broad enough, and is actually gaining currency in professional literature, was "Gender and Sexual Minorities" to which we tacked on "League." The acronym is a bonus, but was the main objection people had. Again, once the specter of "Governance will squash us all like bugs if we do or say anything remotely suggestive" went away, so did that objection.
The other problem that the hold-outs still had was that they felt the name had actually become less inclusive. Our designated speaker today made the case that the name of the club doesn't determine who's in it, it says what their interests are. He didn't take the analogy quite as far as I had ("Nobody thinks everyone in the Baseball Club is a baseball. It's obviously just something they're interested in."), but that was probably a good thing. One student government member did point out that all of our fliers and things say that we welcome straight allies, so it's not like we're excluding people. Hell, at various points in time, the club and even the executive board have been mostly straight. And we don't ask people to specify their gender identity or orientation, though it ends up coming up in conversation half the time.
Anyway, water under the bridge. Our name change was officially accepted. Now I get to find out what it's going to cost to rip half the stitching out of our nicely embroidered rainbow flag and re-stitch it with our new name. If the fabric can even take it. If not, well, the flag itself was the least expensive part of that whole venture.
Have also somehow caught up all my paperwork for school. This week that meant a multi-page writeup on a patient, clinical reflections, a med sheet, a process recording (which could probably be a useful tool if we got half the instruction in them that our social work counterparts do, instead they're just frustrating as Hell), a "discussion" post with a minimum of five cites, and a response to another group's "discussion" with a minimum of one cite. That's actually all done. I'm not sure how that happened. There's probably something I've forgotten, but right now, I'm not sure I even care.
Next project: get packed to take off to the woods of upstate NY for a three day retreat.* I can't even begin to explain how much I need it. Last week was a disaster of epic proportions on multiple levels to the point that the fact I failed an exam (but have since somehow miraculously gained back enough points to pass) was actually the lowest priority blip on my radar. Considering how I used to wig out over an A-, that's saying something. So a weekend of meditation and Reiki and ritual and music is just what I need. Hopefully, when I check back in either Sunday night or sometime Monday, I'll be all refreshed, renewed, centered, and ready for anything. That's the goal anyway. :-)
Have a great weekend, all! *waves*
Less drama is good.
Governance not being allowed to censor us into the most G-rated campus I've ever set foot on is also good. No, seriously, it's actually kind of weird once you notice it. As that was at the root of some of the objections to our club changing its name, once that went away, things were much better.
Oh, what name change?
So, for various reasons, including a major overhaul of our mission statement (which we accomplished in a surprisingly drama free two meetings), we decided that "Gay-Straight Alliance" didn't quite represent us. For one, several members pointed out that they were apparently the hyphen and while not overly troubled by that, would kind of rather have something more inclusive. For two, while there is something to be said for having an affiliation with a nationwide organization, said organization is primarily focused on high schools. We're not in high school. Several of us are old enough to have kids in high school. And we can still affiliate with GLSEN without being a GSA. In fact, that's what organizations at the college level tend to do. Ultimately, we decided that the name we felt was broad enough, and is actually gaining currency in professional literature, was "Gender and Sexual Minorities" to which we tacked on "League." The acronym is a bonus, but was the main objection people had. Again, once the specter of "Governance will squash us all like bugs if we do or say anything remotely suggestive" went away, so did that objection.
The other problem that the hold-outs still had was that they felt the name had actually become less inclusive. Our designated speaker today made the case that the name of the club doesn't determine who's in it, it says what their interests are. He didn't take the analogy quite as far as I had ("Nobody thinks everyone in the Baseball Club is a baseball. It's obviously just something they're interested in."), but that was probably a good thing. One student government member did point out that all of our fliers and things say that we welcome straight allies, so it's not like we're excluding people. Hell, at various points in time, the club and even the executive board have been mostly straight. And we don't ask people to specify their gender identity or orientation, though it ends up coming up in conversation half the time.
Anyway, water under the bridge. Our name change was officially accepted. Now I get to find out what it's going to cost to rip half the stitching out of our nicely embroidered rainbow flag and re-stitch it with our new name. If the fabric can even take it. If not, well, the flag itself was the least expensive part of that whole venture.
Have also somehow caught up all my paperwork for school. This week that meant a multi-page writeup on a patient, clinical reflections, a med sheet, a process recording (which could probably be a useful tool if we got half the instruction in them that our social work counterparts do, instead they're just frustrating as Hell), a "discussion" post with a minimum of five cites, and a response to another group's "discussion" with a minimum of one cite. That's actually all done. I'm not sure how that happened. There's probably something I've forgotten, but right now, I'm not sure I even care.
Next project: get packed to take off to the woods of upstate NY for a three day retreat.* I can't even begin to explain how much I need it. Last week was a disaster of epic proportions on multiple levels to the point that the fact I failed an exam (but have since somehow miraculously gained back enough points to pass) was actually the lowest priority blip on my radar. Considering how I used to wig out over an A-, that's saying something. So a weekend of meditation and Reiki and ritual and music is just what I need. Hopefully, when I check back in either Sunday night or sometime Monday, I'll be all refreshed, renewed, centered, and ready for anything. That's the goal anyway. :-)
Have a great weekend, all! *waves*
