With more than 25,000 students at Sinclair Community College, American Sign Language Professor Robbin Hoopes was surprised when he found out there wasn’t a gay organization on campus.
Hoopes, who has been openly gay for more than a decade, has taught at Sinclair for 10 years. Hoopes said he has received a lot of response from students about the founding of the Gay/Straight Alliance, which he advises.
“One of the things (the alliance) provides is just a community and a mirroring of who you are and what your identity is,” Hoopes said. “I think there is a lot of personal strength that one gathers from that.”
A minimum of 10 members is needed for the Gay/Straight Alliance to become an official club at Sinclair. Hoopes estimated around 30 students had arrived at the Gay/Straight Alliance’s first meeting on Sept. 29.
Christopher Perkins, a 20-year-old nursing major, said the Gay/Straight Alliance is a way to feel at home as a gay student.
“I think it makes people feel a little more comfortable about who they are,” Perkins said. “It kind of makes people feel like there (are) other people out there who have gone through the same thing that I’ve gone through.”
Gay teens are at a much greater risk to commit suicide than straight teens, according to the National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality.
“There is a certain sense of isolation and alienation in a struggle you have to deal with yourself,” Hoopes said. “It’s a very lonely place to be in.”
Hoopes thinks the Gay/Straight Alliance can provide a place where gay and straight students can come together in a comfortable setting without feeling the pressures of everyday life.
Rebecca Scisson, 26, is serving as the group’s interim president. The Culinary Arts major said students who are interested in the Gay/Straight Alliance can expect a good mix of people that all support tolerance. Scisson said she sees the alliance growing in the near future.
“Once we have a solid core and we put ourselves out there, people are going to feel more comfortable participating,” Scisson said.
For more information on the Gay/Straight Alliance, contact Prof. Hoopes at robbin.hoopes@sinclair.edu.