In an effort to create a more welcoming and tolerant environment for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people at UCSB, the campus will launch its Safe Zone Project Friday, Feb. 16 with a mailing of brochures and stickers to all 6,000 faculty and staff members.
The Safe Zone stickers are meant to be posted in campus offices to convey a visible message to students and colleagues of the commitment of members of the campus community to providing a safe environment for all at UCSB.
The brochures provide information about creating safe zones, and a list of campus and community resources that support LGBT people. Those who do not wish to participate in the program can simply return their brochures and stickers to the Office of Student Life.
UCSB will join hundreds of other colleges and universities, including UC Berkeley, UCLA, and UC Riverside, that are addressing intolerance and heterosexism by creating campus "safe zones." UCSB's Safe Zone Project is sponsored by EUCALYPTUS, the University Committee on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Concerns, an advisory committee to the Chancellor and is funded by student fees granted by the Student Fee Advisory Committee.
The mission of the University Committee on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Concerns (EUCALYPTUS) is to promote the welfare of its constituent communities, "generating campus awareness of the existence and contributions of these communities, and advancing the acceptance and inclusion of these community members in all facets of campus and university life," according to its mission statement.
The Safe Zone Project was coordinated by a subcommittee of EUCALYPTUS members, including Britt Andreatta (Director of First Year Programs and Leadership Education), Andrea Ebreck (student, member of Queer Student Union), Maurice Hudson (Queer Resource Center), Peter Russell (Counseling & Career Services), and Jack Rivas (College of Letters & Science).
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