Ally Program graduates 13 new allies

The University of West Florida’s Gay-Straight Alliance held their eighth annual Ally Program on March 3 in the Commons Conference Center. 

The Ally Program is a diversity training program for students, faculty, and staff to educate them about LGBT issues and how to be an ally.

“Ally’s designed to train individuals to be aware of LGBT issues and be able to help somebody as they are going through the coming out process or any issues relating to their sexuality or gender identity,” Liz Southworth, president of GSA said. “Basically, we’re creating safe places on campus.”

Last year, about 35 to 40 students and faculty graduated from the Ally Program as compared to this year, about 20 students graduated.

“The good thing about this year is that we had a majority of students attending,” Southworth said. “In the past, we’ve had a lot of professors and faculty, which is great, we love to have professors that want to be allies, but it’s important to have students as well because they’re the first responders. If you’re going to come out to anybody in college, you’re going to come out to your friends, other students, first. So, it’s extremely important to have students certified in the Ally Program.”

The Ally Program began at 9 a.m. with a session about the coming out process taught by Southworth. It was then followed by group discussions, ice breakers, sessions about LGBT history and bullying in the LGBT community, and a panel question and answer session.

“I have a love for LGBT history, which is why I nominated myself to Liz to be the speaker about the LGBT history,” junior public relations major Adam Faircloth said. “I have been personally researching it ever since I started my coming out process several years ago.”

There were also skits performed by the participants showing the positive and negative way of responding to a friend coming out to them.

“I attended the Ally Program because I wanted to find out more about it and I wanted to become an ally,” freshman political science major Diego Santiago said. “I feel that the Ally Program is really important on this campus especially in this area of the country.”