Intercultural, LGBTQ and Women’s centers announce expansions

February 23, 2016

In March, the Intercultural Center, LGBTQ Center and Women’s Center offices will begin renovations to increase the size and visibility of their spaces.

The decision to expand the centers is a result of ongoing conversation between senior administrators and students, faculty and staff around how best to create an equitable environment that meets the needs of our diverse campus community.

“The Benson University Center is an incubator of student development, creativity and involvement,” said Barbee Oakes, chief diversity officer at Wake Forest. “Expanding our cultural spaces and aligning them alongside our units responsible for student wellbeing and engagement centers identity and cultural competence in the deep, holistic experience we want to create for our students.”

The Intercultural Center, formerly known as the Office of Multicultural Affairs, will remain in Suite 346. The expansion includes additional office space for more staff as the department evolves to strengthen the intercultural communication skills of all students and provide support for domestic and international underrepresented students.

The Intercultural Center will also have a larger lounge space for students, faculty and staff to convene for intercultural exchange, caucus sessions and campus presentations. A portion of the space will include a conference room and work room for student organizations to host meetings and develop collaborative projects.

The LGBTQ Center and Women’s Center will relocate to Suite 311 in Benson University Center, formerly the home of the Pro Humanitate Institute. While support for gender identity and equality is a value shared by both departments, the space is being modified to keep the offices separate and honor the distinctive nature of their identity development work.

Both the LGBTQ and Women’s Center expansions include larger lounge spaces for students, faculty and staff to gather for center programs and additional office space for staff members. The centers will share a work room that will also be open to student organizations.  The current LGBTQ Center space located in Suite 218 in the Benson University Center will be converted to a meeting and co-working space for student organizations.

All of the centers will host focus groups for students to share their creative insight on space design and utilization. Please visit the center websites for more information.