The Spectrum Alliance helped the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students kick off the fall semester with its first on-campus pool party at the James E. Martin Aquatic Center Aug. 22.
The event was hosted by co-presidents Katie Lushington and Nicholas De Pompa, both graduate students.
The Spectrum Alliance is an organization that supports lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgender students as well as the allies who support them.
The purpose of the party was to welcome back old members and bring in new members of the organization.
"We want to get them familiar with each other so that they'll have a supportive network of friends," Lushington said. "It's often hard to find students who are LGBT within the community who are out and let others know about it."
This party is the first of many events that the alliance will host throughout the fall semester.
"We will be doing events for Coming Out Day in October, and we'll be doing one event for World Aids Day in December," De Pompa said.
The Spectrum Alliance recently received the Best Student Organized Event Award from the Center for American Progress for putting together an event that occurred last fall called "What the Bible Really Says About Homosexuality."
De Pompa said the Spectrum Alliance is an important organization that strives for diversity amongst students as well as the community.
"We play an important role in bringing diversity to the Auburn campus," De Pompa said. "Diversity is key on so many levels."
For most members, the Spectrum Alliance is more than an organization that brings people together on different occasions.
"It's giving me a personal space where I can connect with like-minded people," said Ralph Wood, a graduate student in the Auburn University Veterinary School. "And it gives me a place where I can share in my experience with other folks who are politically intouch and likeminded."
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
