April 1, 2015
On March 22nd, Spectrum Center hosted the last of its open Ally Development Training Sessions for the winter semester. The center has been hosting sessions since 2005, and so far this year Spectrum has hosted 4 open sessions which are open to all. Participants have included people from different departments and staff, students on Michigan’s campus, and interested members of the general community. Organizations also have the option of inviting Spectrum to host a session for them, and the center has held 5 this year at Wayne State. Between the nine sessions, the Spectrum Center has trained roughly 300 people in better allyhood practices.
The sessions focus on teaching allies to build their personal awareness, knowledge, and skills, and are described as teachings of social justice allyhood with an LGBTQ focus. The sessions also focus on learning to take action, and go over the importance of bystander awareness and best practices such as asking for pronouns. Attendees are coached through presentations, individual reflection, and partner/group discussions. Though many people may come in to the sessions thinking that they are already being as inclusive as they can be, Spectrum’s training ensures that, no matter where someone is in their learning, everyone can take something away from the session.
While there will not be another open session again until the fall semester, please contact Tynishia Walker at [email protected] if you want to bring a training to your own organization.