Junior Jake McMillian feels it’s important that students feel welcome on campus.
“SWAAN is a place where students can come and feel safe,” McMillian said. “We’re part of a small community and having a group whose specific goal to make students comfortable is important.”
This semester Student Welcoming And Affirming Network’s main goal is to bring different activities to campus to help students feel part of an inclusive community.
Ryan Louis, director of forensics and faculty advisor for the organization also believes creating such a community is important.
“We help to build an inclusive environment — fostering a physical place to create diversity initiatives and support structures,” he said. “We aim to expand our mission; to show ourselves and this school as a community (we are) not defined by specific letters, stereotypes, or politics. We are gay, straight, friends, family, unsure, sure, angry, quiet.”
One project SWAAN is working on this semester includes offering diversity training to staff and students on campus. McMillian feels this is something that should be offered to the campus, but not be required.
“It loses its purpose if it becomes mandatory,” he said. “It’s important that students and faculty are ready for this training.”
And as a faculty member, Louis agrees this training could be positive for OU.
“We’ve had positive feedback from many students and faculty who would be interested in participating,” he said.
Sophomore Matthew Merrill believes being a member of the organization is helping him make a difference in the lives of other people who need help. He also feels that other mediums on campus can come together for OU.
“I would love to see SWAAN work with BTV and put together a video for the “It Gets Better” project,” he said.
This video would include a video addressing suicide prevention in the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning community.
The group is also planning on bringing photographer Jeff Sheng to campus. Sheng is famous for photographing openly gay military personnel. While on campus, he will be working on a photography project with SWAAN.
Other plans include setting up a resource center in the Adawe Center so students can receive information about LGBTQ lifestyles. McMillian feels this is important to keep in the Adawe Center so students will not have to rent or check out these materials.
SWAAN meetings are the first and third Tuesday of each month.