News

January 2, 2023

Following a competitive national search, Jesse Beal has been chosen to lead the University of Michigan's Spectrum Center as its director. Beal, formerly the associate director of the center, had served as interim director following the promotion of Will Sherry to be Student Life's director of strategic initiatives. Their role was made permanent on December 1, 2022.

September 13, 2022

U-M has been named a “Best of the Best” university for building an inclusive, welcoming and safe environment for LGBTQ+ students, faculty and staff.

May 1, 2022

You’re invited to join the Spectrum Center for the Jim Toy Celebration of Liberation, happening Friday, May 20 at 7:00 p.m. at the Michigan Theater. This event is an opportunity for community and friends to come together to honor Jim Toy, who passed away on New Year’s Day. Jim was co-founder of the Spectrum Center, and his legacy has been felt deeply across campus.

January 3, 2022

Spectrum Center co-founder and U-M alumnus Jim Toy, MSW ‘81, passed away over the weekend at the age of 91. Toy was known as an outspoken activist and advocate for LGBTQ+ rights, and worked to establish the Human Sexuality Office in 1971, which later became the Spectrum Center. 

December 7, 2021

When Kenneth Hillenburg (MS ʼ86) and Alan Burg made the decision to make a bequest to the University of Michigan, their goal was to give back to the school that brought them together some 38 years ago.

December 3, 2021

Jesse Beal (they/them) has joined the Spectrum Center as associate director. Prior to arriving at the University of Michigan, they served as the director of The Gender and Sexuality Campus Center at Michigan State University. They bring over a decade of experience leading student-facing affinity-based resource centers at Amherst College, Brandeis University, Suffolk University, and MSU.

November 18, 2021Spectrum Center awards two scholarships each year, and we'd like to introduce you to this year's recipients.

October 30, 2021

The halftime show commemorated the 50th anniversary of the Spectrum Center with songs by Lady Gaga, Diana Ross, Cyndi Lauper and Sister Sledge, among others, as they marched into hearts and word formations.

October 15, 2021While the oral history project provides agency to marginalized communities, it also preserves an accurate record of their lived experiences.

October 1, 2021

The university’s band played songs by Lady Gaga, Diana Ross, Cyndi Lauper and Sister Sledge, among others, as they marched into hearts and word formations. Michigan's LGBTQ-themed halftime show Sept. 25 in The Big House—for its game against Rutgers (the Wolverines won, 20-13)—honored the 50th anniversary of the Spectrum Center, the first LGBTQ space to be formed on a college campus.

September 10, 2021

Growing up in the Midwest in the 1960s, without a lot of peers or role models to look to, Howard Bragman never quite fit in.

“As a fat, Jewish, gay kid in Flint, Michigan, I always felt like a Martian,” he said.

That all changed when he got to U‑M.

August 27, 2021

Bequest celebrates 50th anniversary of the Spectrum Center, the nation’s oldest LGBTQIA+ college support center, with its largest ever gift.

August 12, 2021Like many of her peers, Dyanna Bateman knew the University of Michigan felt like home as soon she arrived on campus. But one thing set her apart: She wanted to figure out why.

July 15, 2020

Carmelita Perrien Naccarato grew up listening to her mother tell stories, and from a young age, Carmelita grappled with questions of justice and well-being.

July 15, 2020

| In “What It Meant to Me,” Leaders & Best invites some of U‑M’s most revered alumni to tell their Michigan stories. Chris Armstrong is a graduate of the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts (LSA). Here, he reflects on his maize and blue heritage, the controversy surrounding his student body presidency, and the enduring impact of U‑M’s Spectrum Center.

Kaden Hyvonen joins our team as the Spectrum Center’s temporary Office Manager and fifth full-time staff member. Hyvonen’s duties include providing administrative support and handling day-to-day operations of the office such as answering any phone calls that the center may receive, along with directing inquiries from any walk-in questions.

Spectrum Center Director Will Sherry expressed his excitement over the new addition to the staff.

June 3, 2020

While different forms of oppression continue to be pervasive in everyday society, the staff at Spectrum Center recognizes the impact that anti-Black racism and anti-Asian racism/xenophobia has had on our students, staff, faculty, and alumnx communities near and far. We would like to restate the center’s commitment to intersectional advocacy, support, and allyhood work especially with Queer, Trans, Black, and Indigenous People of Color. 

May 6, 2020  |  By Smitty Smith (they/them/theirs), Writer/Photographer Student Lead

April 1, 2020  |  By Smitty Smith (they/them), Photographer/Writer Student Lead

December 4, 2019  |  By Hannah Brauer, Photographer/Writer Student Lead