The Women, Gender, and Sexuality Resource Center (WGSRC) works hard to provide RIT students with all sorts of helpful items. Located on the second floor of the Campus Center, it overflows with resources ranging from hygiene products to mental health info sheets. On one of the walls, several cork board squares hold colorful sticky notes with encouraging messages.

The WGSRC has been at RIT for approximately two years. It started as two separate places: the Q Center and the Center for Women and Gender. These groups combined two years ago to better serve and reach students. Currently, the WGSRC is run by three co-directors: Skye Parasnis-Samar, Elizabeth Schwartz and Kristen Clineburg. Skye Parasnis-Samar, the assistant director of LGBTQIA+ Programs and Outreach, is from Rochester and has worked at two previous institutions in the Rochester area. Parasnis-Samar stated that they had loved the idea of an intersectionality job at RIT, and that it was nice because it had kept them around their family in Rochester. “I was like, Yes! I can be professionally and personally queer and then can focus more on my community,” they reflected.

Since then, Parasnis-Samar has worked to support students and provide RIT faculty and staff with the resources to assist them. They believe strongly in helping build community at RIT and helping people — both queer and not queer — to be allies. They especially emphasized how allyship is not a stagnant destination. Queer people from different backgrounds and communities have their own ways of supporting each other based on their varied identities. Allyship is as much a journey for those within the community as it is for those outside. They also mentioned that the Women, Gender and Sexuality Resource Center was originally meant to be a placeholder name. “I think that’s a fine fun fact, ’cause I think that’s important for students to know that during a process of creating something … naming something’s very hard.”

Since the WGSRC emphasizes inclusivity and intersectionality, it was additionally difficult to name it in a way that would include all students at RIT. Elizabeth Schwartz — the assistant director of Women and Gender Programs and Outreach — is also from Rochester. After working at Northern Illinois University, where she was a program services specialist, she came to RIT excited for opportunities.

“I’ve loved being able to come here, and doing even more programming in an assistant director role and get[ting] to create some of my own programming, as well as take on some of RIT’s traditions like Lighting the Way for our women and nonbinary students … It’s really been an honor getting to carry those things on and also create new programming and new training,” Schwartz said. Schwartz originally got a bachelor’s degree in creative writing, so she has enjoyed bringing that side of her studies into her job. “I’ve gotten to do some fun things… like book groups and poetry open mics for our students,” she mentioned. Kristen Clineburg, the assistant director of Intersectional Programs and Outreach, hails from York, Pa. She has a background in nonprofit work and elementary education, but she stated that she “had a goal for a long time of working within higher education.”

She mentioned one of the most important elements of her job is creating a sense of belonging for students. She considers it vital to affirm people in who they are, and she said that RIT seemed to have a supportive environment perfect for fostering an inclusive program like WGSRC. She wants students to know that WGSRC is available as a resource — or many resources, as WGSRC has something for everyone. For students who menstruate, the WGSRC has reusable period cups and pads, as well as both normal and organic tampons and pads. The reusable menstrual supplies can be ordered online and picked up with little to no contact. For dry or sensitive skin, the WGSRC has Vaseline and Cetaphil, as well as throwaway washcloths to help students wash their faces. The WGSRC also has a wide selection of items for hair care needs: edge control, leave-in conditioner and a brush set designed to work for all different types of hair. Additionally, they possess other materials such as toothbrushes, toothpaste, mini-deodorants, condoms and lube.

Parasnis-Samar encourages students to offer suggestions for any other supplies the WGSRC should provide. Within the center, a set of clear plastic mini-drawers houses a diverse selection of pride flags and pronoun pins. Parasnis-Samar noted that if there is an identity missing, students are encouraged to put in a request so the WGSRC can buy the new pins. A bowl of stickers with various pride themes is also available. The WGSRC has many programs, often hosted at the PRogressive Intersectional Space to Meet (PRISM) in the Campus Center. These include monthly community gatherings, allyship sessions, workshops relating to building relationships on campus and a fair for women and nonbinary students. The assistant directors emphasized the importance of finding joy in community, solidarity and authenticity, even when times are tough. Schwartz stated, “It’s not all about difficulties and issues that our communities face, but it’s also about the joy and what we’ve accomplished.” The WGSRC aims to uplift and empower each RIT student’s ability to be joyfully authentic, and they will continue to provide the resources and spaces necessary to do so.