Come one, come all, because the Open-Door Club is a safe and open space for the LGBTQ+ community and allies that want to hang out together and be reminded how they are not alone in college or in this world.
Want to hang out with your friends or even make new ones? The Open-Door Club is the perfect opportunity to find people like you!
Representation matters, and when students have a safe space filled with people like them, it supports those going through tough times, especially if you just need a friend.
The ODC meets at the Newtown campus in the Rollins Center’s Solarium. The next meeting, a Queer Lunch, will be on April 18 from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.
Currently, the ODC has a lot of faculty and staff helping the club out, but members are needed, and so are student leaders like the club president.
The president would guide other students, handle club organization and give ideas for the future. ODC has been a club for a long time here at Bucks, but each year there are changes in leadership due to students graduating or transferring to a four-year university.
The staff wants more consistent meetings and is planning on having a club meeting on the third Tuesday of every month. It would be entirely up to the students what the club could do, from hanging out to activities to any events planned.
Two of the staff members who are Academic Advisors, Tara Cutler and Debbie Zeigler, believe that a club like this “becomes more important and gives support to students in hard times.” There are more staff members involved in the club, and they will always be there to help students feel safe and to have a nice conversation.
Zeigler also says that “the club can open future meetings with topics of students’ choice, and we could advocate for the community.”
If you have any fun ideas for the club, be sure to attend and discuss them. With all the anti-trans legislation and attacks on LGBTQ+ rights, the OpenDoor Club is more important now than ever and would provide students a place to feel like themselves, be comfortable, and have fun.
Everyone in the LGBTQ+ community is accepted, and so are allies. Safe spaces are important because it helps students feel connected, taking a break from judgment and others’ opinions and beliefs. It’s also just a time for you to escape and feel understood by your peers.
The ODC’s goal is to have a dance or a prom eventually; another possibility is a drag show for the next school year. The club also wants to have guest speakers talk to the students. Although the semester is ending, a new one will soon begin and the ODC remains. Interested in joining the club? You can attend the next meeting or contact ODC@ bucks.edu if you have any questions.