The OutCenter, Benton Harbor, MI
Despite taking violin lessons next to the rainbow building for years, I never knew what it was. It wasn’t until I asked my old high school counselor about possibilities for LGBTQ related internships in my hometown that I finally found out about The OutCenter. The OC is the only LGBTQ resource center in the tri-county area of Southwest Michigan, and one of only seven in the entire state. When I finally crossed the rainbow exterior I’d glanced past for years, I knew immediately that this was the perfect place for me to complete my internship.
During my time at The OutCenter, I researched queer inclusive, comprehensive sexuality education materials. Initially, I looked for pre-existing curricula that we could introduce to schools through Sex Ed Advisory Boards (SEABs). I also had plans to introduce this information to faith leaders (as faith leaders are required on SEABs in the state of Michigan). It quickly became apparent, however, that there aren’t any curriculums that are truly comprehensive, queer-inclusive, and affirming in the ways that we felt were important for the youth in our area. I found that, for those pre-existing curriculums that managed to hit some of the key topics, none had a chance at being approved by the SEABs in this largely conservative, rural area. The process alone of getting a curriculum through a SEAB, regardless of the contents of the curriculum, would be a very large project for a small organization like The OC to take on.
In hopes of setting this project up for future success and helping current students as much as I could, I created recommendations for the Michigan Organization of Adolescent Sexual Health’s “LGBTQ Inclusivity Toolkit” and Advocates for Youth’s “Rights, Respect, Responsibility” K-12 sexual health curriculum. These recommendations would help both of these resources better support LGBTQ youth and introduce healthier sex education for all students. I also did a small amount of outreach and educating with faith leaders in the area so The OutCenter has a list of contacts for support on inclusive sex education. Several local organizations also played important roles in my outreach. I contacted the regional Planned Parenthood to start discussions about co-running LGBTQ-inclusive sexuality education session together in the future. I also received free condoms (internal and external), dental dams, and lube from CARES, an HIV prevention organization, for The OutCenter to give out.
After doing this research and outreach, my focus shifted towards creating a healthy sex resource. Because this resource isn’t connected to schools or SEABs, I could include all of the information that these kids actually need to be safe and healthy, rather than continuing to give them some (but not enough) information and putting them at risk for things like STIs or emotionally damaging relationships. In efforts to make the resource as accessible and expansive as possible, I covered 115 topics (as the count currently stands) using almost entirely free online resources and a few books available in the OutCenter’s library. The resource covers everything from sexual orientation and STI prevention to technology, yeast infections, racialized desire, and a diverse plethora of other subjects. Information can also easily be added or edited to address new problems or as information gaps emerge. This resource will provide information that queer students don’t receive in school or at home, which results in higher rates of STIs and pregnancies among LGBTQ students, and could even be one of many contributing factors in LGBTQ suicides. By giving these folx the information they need to be safe, this resource has the possibility of keeping LGBTQ youth healthy and alive.
Creating this resource showed me the overlaps between my Williams education and real world experiences. Some of the things I’ve learned about in my classes at Williams, like racialized desire and intersectionality, are incredibly applicable to the youth of The OC’s service area. Some information that feels important in educational settings, however, aren’t necessarily usable in the scope of what I created for The OutCenter to use. For example, I’ve used Foucault’s theories in several of my classes at this point, but saw no point in including him in my resource.
This also shows some of the gaps in the types of learning that happens in any classroom: certain important issues remain unheard. My research and my interactions with the LGBTQ youth will hopefully allow me to bring this information into discussions at Williams. And, having a younger perspective can also give us some base to look at how things are changing or evolving, which is incredibly important when looking at or creating theory.
Beyond the classroom, my work with the OutCenter showed me how impactful combining my education and passion can be. By creating a healthy sex resource, I will hopefully be able to reach the at-risk youth in a very rural, conservative area and help them have safer and healthier sex and relationships. After watching so many friends and classmates get pregnant or go through abusive relationships, this is a very meaningful result for me. And, beyond my individual work, I saw the ways in which the organization as a whole could impact communities. The OutCenter does incredible work, and everyone involved with the organization is passionate and open. My internship was valuable beyond measure from an academic and career point of view, but it was also more emotionally impactful than I can describe. Meeting all of these amazing people, and creating something that will have such an important impact on the young people growing up in my hometown, means the world to me and is something that will stay with me for the rest of my life. I’m exceptionally grateful to my coworkers and walk-in visitors for inspiring me and helping me with my research, in one way or another. It was wonderful to meet these people and experience the joy that they bring into others’ lives.
In addition to those personal connections, I also built connections for my future career. The outreach I did with other organizations—including MOASH, CARES, and Planned Parenthood—will benefit me in a future non-profit career. My coworkers at The OutCenter are also amazing connections. They were able to teach me about what it’s actually like to work in or run a non-profit and helped me learn some of the specific skills that are required to be successful in this type of career. I’d like to especially thank The OutCenter’s Executive Director, Mary Jo Schnell, and Program Coordinator, Kathryn McBride, for providing me with so much invaluable experience and taking the time to teach me.
This amazing internship was made possible thanks to the generosity of the Class of 1972 and the ’68 Center for Career Exploration. I am incredibly grateful for the opportunities and experiences I had because of their support.