To most, Wichita isn’t known as the pillar of improvement or advocacy for LGBTQ+ rights and people. At a local level, though, dozens of students have helped pave the way for modern acceptance, from which many benefit.
From student organizations to parades to queer-centric events, Wichita State students have contributed to the LGBTQ+ community’s presence in Wichita.
Student Homophile Association
The ‘70s were the beginning of a cultural change for LGBTQ+ individuals nationwide. The first pride parade was held in 1970. In 1973, the American Psychiatric Association no longer considered homosexuality a mental illness. On a local level, Wichita State students were making changes, too.
Gay organizations at WSU started with Gary Gardenhire and Bruce McKinney. They both had been involved in different gay groups off-campus and were disappointed to find that WSU had none.
The pair founded the Student Homophile Association, which was the first gay student organization recognized by the Student Government Association in September 1976.
“One of the founders talked about seeing their friends get beat up and just needing a safe space for people to come together,” said Jennifer Pearson, the current faculty adviser of Spectrum: LGBTQ & Allies. “But then also, many of those members were more politically active and (were) wanting to work to end discrimination and … communicate with administration.”
The first event the group held was a dance where everyone wore pink roses and danced under a disco ball borrowed from a local bar.
Throughout the year, the group regularly held meetings and formed a sense of belonging.
This continued until 1977 when most of the original members moved away.
The LGBTQ+ community, locally and nationally, began to struggle with the AIDS pandemic in 1981. Queer people also faced the criminalization of gay sexual activity with legal rulings such as Bowers v. Hardwick, which criminalized certain sexual acts between same-sex partners.
During this time of crisis and uncertainty, queer student organizations at WSU adapted.
Gay/Lesbian Resource Association and Students for Education on Liberal Concerns
According to Robert Teutsch’s dissertation, “Contextual History of LGBTQ Student Groups at Wichita State University,” Doug Glaze founded the Gay/Lesbian Resource Association (GLRA) in 1984. Glaze found it necessary to create an organization that could provide resources, like a crisis line, to the LGBTQ+ students at WSU.
The organization held the first annual Gay Pride Week at WSU in 1985. They also had various guest
speakers who discussed topics like coming out and discrimination.
According to Teutsch, through the lectures and activities, the GLRA asked the Student Government Association (SGA) for funding on multiple occasions, only to be denied by SGA President Jeff Kahrs, who thought it was primarily a social group and not enhancing the academic community.
The group lacked involvement after Glaze dropped out of college, and members began to fear for their safety while attending meetings, according to Teutsch.
Students for Education on Liberal Concerns
In 1987, the GLRA was rebranded as the Students for Education on Liberal Concerns (SELC), which offered resources to a broader range of students at WSU and offered a space for discussions about issues. They also had lectures on feminism, free speech and many other political topics. According to Teutsch, this helped them gain funding from SGA.
This organization didn’t last very long and, in 1989, the student participation level dropped once again.
Responsible Active Gays (RAG)
In 1989, after the fall of the SELC, Debbie Carruth and Julie Bayes founded Responsible Active Gays (RAG) to support gay students, according to Teutsch’s dissertation.
RAG participated in many campus activities, such as National Coming Out Day and a gay rights parade.
Eventually, the group dwindled to non-existent, and the last record of the group was in 1991.
In 1994, former U.S. President Bill Clinton signed the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, which Clinton labeled as a “compromise.” It allowed gay and lesbian people to serve in the military as long as they did not disclose their identity.
Shortly after, in 1996, Clinton signed the Defence of Marriage Act, which made it so gay couples weren’t federally recognized as such.
This was an era where anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment was heavy, but the community’s issues were garnering national attention.
Act-Up, Choices and 10 Percent
According to Teutsch, Scott Curry and Todd Wesche founded the WSU chapter of Act-Up, designed to help spread awareness of the dangers of AIDS, in 1990. Act-Up WSU was only around for a little over a year before it became Act-Up Wichita.
At the end of RAG, Scott Smith founded Choices in the spring of 1991, a group for members to meet for discussions on homosexual experiences.
The group was rebranded as 10 Percent in 1993, referring to a study in which it was reported that 10% of the United States population was gay.
The group requested recognition from SGA but was denied due to the claims that the group promoted sodomy. According to Teutsch, some of the WSU community expressed disapproval of SGA’s decision.
Nevertheless, 10 Percent maintained a presence on campus until its demise in the 2000s.
Transgender Union
Denise Hemmingway founded the Transgender Union in 1991 as no group in WSU’s history had openly addressed trans issues.
There is not much information on the Transgender Union but, according to Teutsch, it wasn’t around for more than a year.
Despite the majority of the 2000s operating under conservative administrations on the national level, Massachusetts became the first state to legalize same-sex marriage in 2004.
That Gay Group!
In 2000, WSU’s activities director Michael Madecky and a WSU student named Fabian began to pass out blue cards, which became a signature for That Gay Group!
In the fall of 2000, the group was recognized as a student organization.
The group hosted events around campus such as mini-conferences, pride weeks and the annual drag show.
In 2009, Pearson, whose area of research was on LGBTQ+ youth, became the faculty adviser for That Gay Group!.
Pearson said it “just made sense” to take over as it was connected to her passions.
“I don’t think I ever felt pushback for being involved,” Pearson said. “Sometimes, our group received a little bit of pushback for specific things they wanted to do, especially in the early days, there were concerns that they might call too much attention to themselves, or give the wrong impression of what the group was about.”
The group though, according to Pearson, was not invincible to all issues. Membership still struggled, but the support for the LGBTQ+ community developed over the years.
“I’d say early on, That Gay Group! felt like they were on their own in terms for being supporter(s) for LGBTQ students at Wichita State,” Pearson said. “Over time, there’s been much more support from other offices and departments across campus.”
Brad Thomison, the president of That Gay Group! from 2008 to 2009, said that while there were plenty of struggles, it was indicative of change.
“I would find myself at the table, reminding folks that queer identity is part of it, there were struggles in some places for folks to bring that into the same level of agreement, the same level of acceptance,” Thomison said. “That growth must take time. The places that are now comfortable weren’t when they first came around. But even as I encountered struggle, I was grateful for that struggle, because that meant people were trying.”
During the 2010s, the Obama administration signed progressive policies. In 2010, “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” was repealed, and in 2013, the Defence of Marriage Act was deemed unconstitutional.
Additionally, in 2015, the Obergefell v. Hodges Supreme Court ruling banned states from denying same-sex marriage.
And, at the local level, hope developed for the future of LGBTQ+ organizations and movements at WSU.
“I loved my colleagues at the diversity office,” Thomison said. “I still believe that all of us were there with the heart and mind and mission to reach out to marginalized students and give them an incredible college experience. And since I had the privilege of having one, I wanted to, again, create that space for others.”
Spectrum: LGBTQ & Allies
In 2014, That Gay Group! realized that the word “gay” did not include everyone under the queer umbrella, so the group decided to change its name to Spectrum: LGBTQ & Allies.
In 2015, Spectrum held its first “Gaypril” as well as the first Pride Prom and Lavender Graduation. Beyond just the social events, Spectrum members think the group has made an impact on the WSU community — including members’ personal lives, too.
“I’m from Dallas, so there’s no presence really unless you dig and fight for it,” Spectrum ambassador and officer Vincent Farwell said. “Before this, I was the one of the oldest gay people I knew, but coming here and meeting people that are older gay people, who have fought their way here, it’s really given me hope as a trans man myself, giving me something to look forward to. I can make a life for myself as a queer individual.”
“(Spectrum offers the space) for even straight and cis students to come and learn about the queer experience,” Spectrum Treasurer and Vice President Iz Ahmed said. “So I believe we do (have) a positive impact just by having the space and room for these students who may not feel safe otherwise.”
In 2021, Rick Muma was announced as the 15th president of WSU, making him the first openly gay president in the campus’ history.
“I think it’s historic; I think it’s important for Kansas,” Muma said when he was first selected for the role in a previous interview with The Sunflower. “I think it’ll say a lot of things to a lot of different people in different ways about inclusions diversity and just the way our society is.”
But progress also came with caution. After 12 years of an annual drag show, an age limit was imposed for the first time in 2023. Wichita State administration required attendees to be at least 18.
Kansas Senate Bill 180 was also passed in 2023. This new bill bars individuals who were not assigned the female sex at birth from being able to use women’s restrooms, women’s locker rooms, and other gender-specific areas.
When the bill was first passed, Zach Gearhart, chief of staff for President Muma, said there would be no changes “in either policy or practice.” Under state law, though, any student at WSU can report a trans individual using a form provided by the Title IX office.
SGA, in response to this bill, partnered with Spectrum to help ensure gender-neutral bathrooms would be available around campus.
“I really feel that the administration that we worked with really closely to make sure our students felt safe, pre-passing legislation in SGA and afterwards, were amazing,” Dawson Jaques, former president of Spectrum, said. “Gabriel Fonseca, who is the head of SEAL, was there, helping write that bill. It was really nice to have those discussions with him and know that he was going to do everything that he could to help support us. And so I feel like SEAL and ODI did a really good job of listening to the needs of the students that are represented by Spectrum and making sure those were met.”
Upcoming initiatives
In 2023, a group of graduate students with WSU’s Department of History decided to go ahead with a project chronicling the history of the LGBTQ+ community in the Wichita area.
The department is collaborating with Jay Price, the chair of the history department. Price created previous photo books through Arcadia Publishing.
Price said that the goal of this photo book is to collect stories, photographs and more to help convey the history of the community. Price aims for the book to be released in 2025, around or during Pride Month.
“I think the greater awareness (is) that this was a community that had a very distinct presence in the ‘90s and early 2000s and that presence has changed,” Price said. “And so documenting that brought to the fore(front) that if you don’t do it now, it’s not going to be here in five (or) 10 years from now.”
Students can get connected with Spectrum through their Instagram or by going to meetings. Spectrum holds weekly meetings every Thursday from 7 to 9 p.m. in the RSC.
“It’s not just to get people together or have food or something,” Farwell said. “It’s really providing a safe space for queer individuals, and I think Spectrum is a great place to start.”
