Sarah Linz
Engelhardt Hall Director

How do you show support for LGBTQ students living in your hall?

Probably the most obvious is just by being out. Last year I officially came out to my students in the hall newsletter around coming out day. This year my partner lives with me, so it’s pretty obvious. I also have various stickers on my office and apartment doors about being hate-free and a safe place. I also have done a coming out social the last two years with ally stickers and rainbow cupcakes. I also did a program on transgender issues with a documentary film. Sometimes the support has to come from a more reactive place; if homophobic incidents occur in the hall, taking them seriously and responding to them in a way that shows those words and actions are not tolerated and being sensitive to students who may be affected.

What kind of training do you and your staff have around diversity, specifically in working with LGBTQ students?

I personally have a lot of personal experience, being queer, and being active in the LGBTQ community, particularly during my undergraduate experience. When earning my master’s in Student Affairs Administration we learned about the development of a LGBTQ identity and more about the issues that LGBTQ students can face at college. The Hall Directors and RAs go through diversity training prior to the school year about all kinds of identity issues. I speak pretty openly with my RAs about my own experiences and struggles and think this helps them be empathetic to students’ experiences.

How do you create a safe place for the LGBTQ residents in your hall?

At the first floor meetings of the year I always go to each one to introduce myself and to stress that safety is the most important thing to me. I say this includes physical and emotional safety, and that this is why it is important to respect everybody who lives here and that I am a safe person to talk with if anyone does not feel safe or supported. I come out pretty quickly to my students as well, and I’m sure that helps more than anything else.

What programs, initiatives or campaigns do you offer to residents that create awareness around/for the LGBTQ community?

*Coming Out Day Cupcakes! With information on how to be a good ally, discussion, and rainbow cupcake decorating.
*Showing the film “TransAmazon” and having a talk about being transgender.
*A newsletter article about Coming Out and LGBTQ identities.
*A newsletter article specifically about what it means to be transgender and the Transgender Day of Remembrance.

How do you challenge yourself and others to learn and support the LGBTQ community?  How often do you do this?

Many of my friends are in the LGBTQ community, so I think being open about myself and them and our lives can be a challenge for some.

What LGBTQ resources on campus have you utilized and found helpful?

I took my RAs to visit OMSA (the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs) and they met with Ellen, the LGBTQ Coordinator. I think they found that informative and learned about a new resource they could inform students about.

Can you share a story or example of how something you did (program or conversation or action) positively affected someone in your residence hall and/or LGBTQ community?

Since coming to UNH, I have had several students come out to me before they have come out to others. That has felt really good because I know they are comfortable talking with me. I had one first-year student who had bad experiences coming out in high school, so this student was afraid to come out here. I spoke with this student right away and shared some of my own experiences and listened to her struggles. After encouraging her to come out to a friend she trusted here, she did, and had no problems with her friends and people in the hall. That felt really good to support her and be a trustworthy person. I have also served as a resource for students who may be discussing LGBTQ issues in their classes; one student interviewed me for a paper he wrote on the biology vs. socialization debate, and some others recently came to me for recommendations of fictional books with LGBTQ characters. It feels good to be a resource to any student who just wants to talk about these issues.