Queer Student Commission

Welcome!

The ASUW Queer Student Commission is one of several diversity commissions under the ASUW, our student government here on campus. We’re a student-run organization, aiming to empower the LGBTQ+ community at the university.

The mission of the Queer Student Commission (QSC) is to first support, educate, and to provide an inclusive environment for UW students who are a part of the LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, etc) community via programming, services, and policy-making. The commission aims to create an anti-oppressive and anti-racist community that do not discriminate on the basis of gender, sex, race, ability, or other factors by funding, sponsoring and endorsing events, ideas and information that share these anti-oppressive principles, promoting community, and working to increase acceptance of LGBTQ+ students. QSC also values the development of leadership and public service skills among students by encouraging them to be involved with commission activities and operations. The Queer Student Commission commits itself to inclusivity and intersectional activism by maintaining strong relationships with other ASUW Commissions, student groups, community groups, and UW faculty and the Student Activities Office (SAO) staff.

History

  • Support, educate, and cultivate an accountable and inclusive environment In 1971, the Gay Students Association (GSA) was first established. The name of this group was changed in 1974 to the Gay People’s Association (GPA), and then changed again to the Gay Men and Lesbian Association (GMLA) and finally to the Gay Bisexual and Lesbian Association (GBLA).
  • Then, in May of 1991, the ASUW Board of Control passed Bill #144 which granted commission status to the GBLA. The final name of the commission was changed in September of 1997 to the Gay, Bisexual, Lesbian, Transgender Commission (GBLTC). In December of 2011, after much discussion, the commission’s name was changed to the Queer Student Commission (QSC) to better reflect our mission’s goals, values, and inclusivity. Throughout the years, the commission has promoted activism, community, and equity for queer and trans students at the UW.

Mission

  • Support, educate, and cultivate an accountable and inclusive environment
  • Advocate for an LGBTQ+ affirming atmosphere at the UW
  • Provide non-heteronormative, anti-racist, anti-ableist, and anti-sexist programs
  • Promote solidarity within the community, recognizing our intersectional identities
  • Decolonize conceptions of LGBTQ+ identity

Programming and Services

  • Hosting our annual Drag Show in the spring
  • Staging the QSC Queer Prom (previously known as QSC Ball) during the winter quarter
  • Fought for the implementation of an inclusive name system within UW’s IT system
  • Facilitating community vigils for Transgender Day of Remembrance
  • Sponsoring legislation in the ASUW Student Senate
  • Bringing guest speakers like Laverne Cox and Laura Jane Grace to campus
  • Working closely with the other members of the ASUW Joint Commissions Committee
  • Advocating at spaces like the Student Advisory Board and the Student Safety Advisory Board
  • Connecting students to proper resources
  • …and much more!