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Working It Out

"So what are you doing next year?" Sound familiar? How about "what are you doing this summer?" For those of you leaving the comfortable PENN nest and venturing out into the "real world" next year (be it for the rest of your life or for a couple of months of checking your e-mail), these words can be painful and pleasurable at the same time. As someone who is currently in limbo when it comes to his career, I am stressed out whenever these words are said to me. This stress comes largely, of course, from my indecisiveness or lack of direction. I know what interests me, but how the hell do I know what I am going to like? And to throw another log onto the fire, there is the question of my sexual orientation. How should I handle my sexual orientation in a new job where I have everything to lose and the entire world before me?

Well... almost as a direct response to my stress, the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Center and Career Services held Out in the Workplace, a program that has been held every other year for the past fifteen years. It was a series of four panels held on February 15 and February 22. Each panel concentrated on areas of employment that many PENN students pursue. Most of the panels also had a couple on them in order to highlight issues related to LGBT families and work.

The first panel was entitled "Law and Public Policy." The panel began with Katherine Kolbert, Professor of Communication at the Annenberg School, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center, and the Executive Producer of Justice Talking on National Public Radio. She is a graduate of Temple Law School and began her career at the Women’s Law Project in 1979. It was around this time that Kolbert first explored her lesbianism, and therefore, faced issues surrounding being out at work. Throughout her career, Kolbert has worked at the national office of the ACLU, founded the Center for Reproductive Law and Policy, and argued before the Federal Supreme Court to ensure a woman’s right to choose.

In choosing what career path to follow, Kolbert wanted to be out and comfortable in her workplace. Kolbert stressed, however, that just because individuals who work in public advocacy wear more casual clothing, does not mean that they do less work. She also felt that many LGBT students who applied for internships expected they would be treated better primarily based on their sexual orientation - an attitude that she advocates against. She expects all of her interns to do top notch work, no matter their background.

The next panelist was Joann Hyle, a lawyer at the law firm of Pepper-Hamilton in Philadelphia and Kolbert’s partner of approximately twenty years. Her decision to apply to Law School came much later in life than Kolbert’s and after graduating from Temple Law School, she chose to work at a private firm for the financial security it offered. She chose Pepper-Hamilton because her partner had done work with some of the lawyers and she knew that they would be accepting of "a lesbian who is also a lawyer." At Pepper, there are several other out members of the staff and that Hyle’s colleagues are supportive of her. She believes that outing yourself on the job is a matter of personal preference.

One of the major themes of Hyle and Kolbert’s comments was that of family as they have a sixteen-year-old son and a thirteen-year-old daughter. Kolbert felt that distance has played a significant role in her personal life with her partner. Around the time that she was arguing before the Supreme Court, she rarely saw her children. It was because of her family that she decided to alter her career from the practice of law to teaching classes and to working at the Public Policy Institute. This gave Kolbert more time at home with her children, an experience that she describes as "fabulous." Both Hyle and Kolbert have dealt with the issue of LGBT families, primarily when it comes to their children’s schooling. This task was "hard and stressful, but it wasn’t an option. If you want to be a parent, you do it."

The next panelist was Kevin Vaughn, former Regional Director for the Department of Health and Human Services and former director of the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations. A few years after graduating from PENN, Vaughn pursued his interest in politics by running for State Representative. After his campaign was unsuccessful, he became Democratic committee member for the University City area. Following Angel Ortiz’s election in 1986, Vaughn was asked to be the director of legislation for the councilman. In 1993, then Mayor Edward Rendell asked Vaughn to become director of the Commission on Human Relations. One of the major battles that he fought was for domestic partner benefits in the city. Then, in June of 2000, Vaughn was asked by President Clinton to be the Mid-Atlantic regional director for the Department of Health and Human Services. In this position, he worked with former Secretary of HHS Donna Shalala and governors of six states to develop policy. Unfortunately, following the election of President Bush, Vaughn lost his position and currently works as a consultant.

Vaughn felt that being out was an important part of his experience working in politics. He was able to use his position and his outness to advocate for the LGBT community, and he feels that his being out has not affected his career negatively. As Vaughn says, "It all comes down to how well you do your job."

The fourth panelist was PENN Law graduate Kathy Gomez, who works at Community Legal Services. Her experience with dealing with her sexual orientation began while she was at Columbia. She was not out to her friends and she struggled with telling them after they had already established a friendship. She was also working as a babysitter at this time, which created some issues with internalized homophobia. When she took a position with a New York City assemblyperson, however, she found a mentor in a very out staff member who gave her the mantra of "what is more important to you?" This advice has guided her actions by giving her the position to judge her options. Following this advice, she was out on her applications to law school and on her resume when she was applying for jobs. At the moment, Gomez is balancing the demands of her fellowship funders who assume she is straight versus her personal reality.

The final panelist in the area of Law and Public Policy was Mike Marsico, a legislative aide to Angel Ortiz, the same councilman that gave Vaughn his first step into politics. His career, however, was less direct than Vaughn’s. Marsico started out his career in the Navy and then attended Temple where he was an active member of the Coalition for Peace and Justice. Marsico’s activism did not end when he graduated as he started working with ACT-UP, through which he began to learn about city politics. His interest in politics then drifted to the Liberty City Gay and Lesbian Democratic Club. From his work with Liberty City, he was contacted by Vaughn and was asked by him to take a position in Ortiz’s administration. Like Vaughn, he feels that Ortiz is not only accepting, but encouraging of legislation that deals with LGBT issues.

The panelists who spoke on being out in "Academia" gave a unique perspective to students wishing to become academics. The first panelist was Jorge Oliveras, professor of Romance Languages at Colby College in Maine. Oliveras came out while a professor, which played a rather interesting role in his career. After earning his degree from Michigan in 1973, he held several assistant professorships. He settled at Colby College and became a tenured professor in 1987. When he fell in love with a fellow academic in 1992, Oliveras had to come out to his boss, because as dept. chair he would be expected to chair the search committee, and his partner was applying for the position. This changed the view of Colby’s community in many ways. By 1996, the Fabulous Fifteen were on campus, the largest number of out staffers in Colby’s history. This was also when he meant his current partner and another panelist, Marc Stein.

Stein is a professor of history at York University of Toronto and graduated from the PENN Ph.D. program in history in 1994. He was conscious of his outness from the beginning of his career, as prior to coming to PENN, he was the editor of Gay Community News in Boston. Stein also wished to study the history of sexuality, which of course included studying homosexuality. This required him to out himself at orientation events. While Stein experienced some negative situations at PENN, the most negative experience arose when he was applying for professorships. He received four different one-year appointments and finally, in his last attempt for a full-time position, Stein was offered a position at York, where he teaches courses on the history of sexuality. He attributes the amount of time he endured to receive his full-time position to the nature of his research. Stein and Oliveras also discussed the ins-and-outs of a long distance relationship and the effects it has had of them personally and professionally.

The final academic on the panel was Angela Gillem, professor of psychology at Beaver College. Gillem started her academic career as an Assistant Dean at Haverford College, when the current Dean was an openly gay man. This set the tone for how LGBT people would be treated on campus. After a brief period teaching at Penn State, Gillem began working at Beaver College. Although she was not out on her resume or in her interview, after accepting the position she found a community of lesbians and began to become active in campus issues related to her sexual orientation, such as fighting for domestic partner benefits. Following this development, Gillem decided to out herself in her third-year review and discovered from her superior that he felt being out would not negatively effect her tenure. Overall, Gillem would state that her being out has positively effected her relationship with her colleagues and her students.

The second night of panels began with a group of PENN graduates working in varying business careers. Lisa Pols, finance director for consumer marketing at Time, Inc., received her undergraduate degree from Wharton in 1984 prior to attending Harvard Business School, from which she graduated in 1988. Since graduating from Harvard, Pols has worked at Time and she considers herself lucky. When she was looking for work, the furthest thing from her mind was the company’s attitude toward LGBT issues as she had not explored her sexuality. Throughout her history at Time, though, their commitment to maintaining the best staff regardless of sexual orientation was tested. The first major test came five years into her career. A Time employee sued Pols and her manager claiming that the employee was fired because of her "straightness." The company stood behind Pols and defended the unfounded accusations, which quickly became national news. More recently, when Pols’ partner was killed in a car accident, the company treated her in the same way that they would treat any of their heterosexual employees in a similar situation. These incidents solidified Pols’ opinion of Time as a positive place to work.

Following Pols was Michael Placencia, an associate at Goldman Sachs and 1998 Wharton MBA graduate. At Goldman Sachs, Placencia describes himself as "completely out;" however, he feels that not everyone "believes or admits [that] I’m gay." Goldman Sachs was the second investment bank to provide domestic partner benefits to employees and has a firm-wide gay and lesbian support group, of which he is co-chair. Placencia felt that the company was accurate in their claim that they wish to hire the "best and the brightest" regardless of sexual orientation, a claim which is supported by diversity of their recruiting interviewees.

The third panelist was Ricardo Zapata, a 2000 Wharton MBA graduate. Prior to attending Wharton, Zapata worked for Anderson Consulting. Although he was not out at first, Zapata expressed that through the help of a mentor he was able to portray his life comfortably and accurately for his coworkers. He became active in the company’s gay and lesbian group, which began its fight for domestic partner benefits while he was there. Zapata now works for Universal Gear as an executive. As Universal Gear is a gay-owned and operated company, he has not had any negative experiences, nor does he expect that many will happen.

The last panelist was Scott Davenport, Vice President of Human Resources at Capital One and a graduate of Wharton in 1979 and MBA in 1980. Upon completing his studies, Davenport spent thirteen years working for Strategic Planning Consulting. Upon making partner at Strategic Planning, he began to drift into working in human resources. In 1997, Capital One approached him to be VP for Human Resources and he is still there. Davenport has been out in the workplace since 1984, and he said that he had not experienced anything negative. Davenport also discussed his relationship with his partner of 25 years, Tim Fischer, also a PENN alum. They have two children - one eight-year-old and one ten-year-old. Davenport expressed that being a parent is a lot of work and requires that he and Tim are clear about their personal and familial needs.

The final panel was "Health and Helping Professions." The first panelist was a nurse at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Margaret Demany. As a student at the PENN Nursing School, Demany experienced a very closeted atmosphere. There were rumors about closeted faculty members and the lack of organizations for graduate and undergraduate nursing students making it difficult to find support. When she began working at the hospital approximately eight months ago, Demany had forgotten how conservative the staff could be. She is slowly feeling her way out of the closet and outing herself to coworkers.

The next panelist was Johandre Suarez, a social worker at Einstein Medical Center. Suarez is a PENN School of Social Work graduate, which he found to be a very easy place to be out. While completing his degree, he had two very different internship experiences that have affected his career goals. His first placement was at the HIV clinic at Einstein, which he found to be a very positive place to work and be gay; his second was at a community service center where the majority of the staff members were Latino/a, which he found more conservative. In his current position, Suarez educates doctors about gay men and HIV and is comfortable out.

The first doctor on the panel was Sallyann Bowman, a physician at PENN’s Student Health Services. A graduate of Penn State University Medical School, Bowman spent the first 19 years of her career at MCP-Hanneman where she rose through the ranks and became a top physician and faculty member. When she came out at 33, her career and reputation had been established and she had fewer risks. Bowman explained that her positive experiences being out with coworkers and patients greatly out numbers her negative ones, however she feels that her outness may have affected her candidacy for a position as Dean of Students at MCP-Hahnneman.

After Dr. Bowman, we heard from Marc Zwanger, an Emergency Room doctor at Jefferson Hospital. Zwanger discussed his experience since being out at the end of his career as a medical student. His department chair’s outness and the fact that the patients do not have a say in what physician sees them facilitated his positive experience. Zwanger felt that self-disclosing his sexual orientation was important when it comes to educating any individuals that he felt needed it. Zwanger’s partner, Malcolm Kram is a veterinarian who works in Pfizer’s animal medication division. Kram expressed his belief that most vet schools are relatively homophobic, but he did state that things might have changed since he attended Cornell in the 1970s. Following his education, Kram went to New York City where he worked in a private practice for eighteen years. His private practice work gave him an excellent reputation that enabled him to attain a job working for the Dept. of Agriculture. Kram’s only negative experience with being out at work was when he owned his own practice and was sued for anti-gay discrimination by one of his former employees who happened to also be gay. The more corporate atmosphere at Pfizer caused some acclimation issues, but Kram feels quite comfortable bringing his partner to company events as well as having photographs of them on his desk.

All of the panels gave the audience a look at the diverse opportunities available to students looking for a career. It is important to note, however, the panel organizers were unable to find someone who would be able to speak about never being out at work. What a change since the program was first held fifteen years ago!

~Michael Hartwyk is a senior Sociology major from Washington Twp, NJ whose song is "Reunited" by Peaches & Herb.

A Night at... motherSON

Okay kids, let’s think back (or ahead) to that moment. You know the one I’m talking about, the one where your parents find out that you’re gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender (or whatever other flavor you come in). Maybe Mom noticed that you were hanging out with your "friend" a bit too much, or perhaps Dad found that letter or magazine you had hidden away in your room. Then again, maybe you got up the courage to tell them yourself, or perhaps the day hasn’t arrived for you yet (and you’re hoping it never will!). Whatever your circumstances, if you saw MotherSON, it definitely made you think about that day when you said (or will say) "Mom, I’ve got something to tell you."

On Friday, February 2, and Saturday, February 3, MotherSON made it’s Philadelphia premier at the Iron Gate Theater on PENN’s campus. The one-man show, written and performed by Emmy-Award nominee Jeffrey Solomon, first premiered Off-Broadway in September 1997, and has since traveled to college campuses, conferences, religious institutions, and theaters across the nation.

The show begins with Bradley, a writer living in Los Angeles, coming out as a gay man to his mother, a middle-class Jewish housewife from New York. We then follow the lives of the two protagonists to examine the manner in which their relationship evolves following this revelation.

Bradley, living in Los Angeles, loses a partner to AIDS, and finally returns to New York where he settles down with a physician. Simultaneously, we examine his mother’s development from reluctant homophobia to full-scale P-FLAG parade marching activism. The dynamics of the relationship vary from conflict and estrangement to eventual reunion and mutual loving acceptance.

Gauging the reactions of my friends and those around me in the theater, some responded with indifference or a blasé attitude, while many others appeared deeply moved. (I, myself, I have to admit, shed a tear or two during the more poignant moments of the play.) For many of my fellow LGBT students, it was opportunity to revisit (or look ahead to) our own coming out experiences, to reflect upon what was or what we wish had been. Several of the P-FLAG parents in the audience seemed to have similar reactions, recalling their own journeys of fear and acceptance with their children.

Many of these attitudes were revealed during the half-hour question and answer session held by Solomon following the performance. He revealed that the play is inspired by his own relationship with his mother and that its events are "seventy-five to eighty percent autobiographical." One audience member questioned whether or not the play painted too rosy a picture of the coming out process. However, Solomon affirmed that his work does not attempt to speak for all members of the LGBT community and their families. It is simply a reflection of his life experience.

Several organizations at PENN and in the Philadelphia community collaborated in bringing MotherSON to campus. The venue, the Iron Gate Theater, was provided by Student Performing Arts. The February 2 show was co-sponsored by the LGBT Center and Philadelphia P-FLAG (Parents, Friends, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays), while Hillel of Greater Philadelphia and the Congregation Beth Ahavah sponsored the February 3. The show was a fundraiser for Philadelphia P-FLAG and Congregation Beth Ahava, but was free to all students.

~Kent Carter is a junior Psychology major from Liberty, TX whose song is "(Love is) Thicker Than Water" by Andy Gibb.

I am a Hag Fag

So I don’t have a boyfriend.

Maybe I should have started that, "so I’ve never had a boyfriend." And strangely enough, at this point in my life, I’m okay with that. I’m fairly certain I won’t be a spinster when I enter my post-30 golden years. But if by some great karmic faux pas I do turn out to be old and alone, that too is fine by me. I always wanted a place of my own anyway. I realize that it will likely reek of cat piss. I can even visualize the neighborhood children as they ring my doorbell and sprint away in fear of being caught by scary, bitter, queer Mr. Roberts. Such is the life of an old maid.

You’re probably thinking that this impending, perpetual bachelorhood of mine can be traced back to some major personality flaw or physical deformity. You’re probably right about that. But if we’re going to place blame then I’m going to put it entirely in the hands of women. Not specific women, really. No, I mean the whole sex.

They have left me with absolutely no incentive to go out and actively pursue a legitimate relationship because the sweetest, most genuine, most thoughtful people I know are women. I suppose I could be out there looking for Mr. Right, but what’s the point when I’m getting pretty much everything I want without having to leave the comfort of my own hallway? I have someone to cook for me and watch old movies with me, and who shares my tastes in television and men. It’s a surrogate marriage. One which happens to be fulfilling to the point where I’m not quite sure I’m missing anything by not having a boyfriend.

Maybe this is the nature of the gay man/straight girl dynamic and no one clued me in. I mean, it’s working out the same way for Will, everyone’s favorite asexual television character, and he seems happy enough. It’s just that I hear so many gay boys whine about their love lives, or lack thereof, that I can’t help but think I should be more stressed about the Sahara-like dry spell that I’m caught up in.

This problem could be solved very easily if I could just be attracted to women. Then I’d have both the emotional and sexual aspects covered. I’ve tried submerging myself in lesbian porn, but no such luck. I’m far more fascinated by the sheer size of their hair than anything anatomical. And it’s, like, bangs all over the place with them, too. I’m convinced these women must do all of their own hair and make-up. Totally unprofessional.

~Beau Roberts is a first-year Digital Arts & Design major from St. Louis, MO whose song is"Ebony & Ivory" by Michael Jackson & Paul McCartney. He and his surrogate wife, Erin Rhoades, created the comic No Ordinary Love based on their lives.

OUT & In-Focus: Jeff Wolper '82 & '89

Born and raised a Philly boy, Jeff Wolper attended La Salle University, from where he graduated in 1981 with a degree in psychology. From La Salle, Jeff came to Penn’s Graduate School of Education seeking a master’s degree in psychological services. Upon his arrival at PENN, he was absolutely startled by the queer resources already available (though obviously they were nothing as they are today). Before coming to PENN, Jeff had never been in an environment in which he felt he could come out. La Salle was not exactly the most open and accepting place while he was there. In fact, it was not until his senior year at La Salle when he went to his first gay bar. So it wasn’t until PENN that he felt comfortable coming out, and come out he did.

Jeff didn’t waste any time getting involved in queer activities once he came out. He attributes much of his immediate involvement to the perception that people had of him. Since he was in graduate school for psychological services, people assumed that he had already gone through the process of coming out. Thus, he went directly from being in the closet to being out, without any defined transition period.

On campus, Jeff became heavily involved with residential advisor training and workshops through Residential Life. He and Terry White designed a diversity program in which all freshmen had to take part. The program was very comprehensive, including such differences as race, culture, religion, and, of course, sexual orientation. He also taught a human sexuality course in the Graduate School of Education, which dealt with both straight and queer sexuality.

Socially, Jeff and a few of his fellow classmates started the tradition of monthly graduate student socials, now dubbed Lambda Grads. He often found himself organizing things, such as the three or four busloads of PENN students who would go to New York City’s pride parade.

Along with Bob Schoenberg and others, Jeff started the Philadelphia AIDS Task Force. He began as an intake coordinator, and later became a team leader and then a supervisor of group leaders. Jeff was also a founding member of Action AIDS, along with Jim Littrel, Alan Goldberg, and again, Bob Schoenberg.

Off campus, Jeff has been involved with SafeGuards, the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund of Delaware Valley, the Human Rights Campaign, and the William Way Community Center. He served as vice president of PrideFest America for three years and was a founding supporter of gay bingo and the Philadelphia Gay and Lesbian Film Festival.

Jeff has also played a large role in the development of PENN’s Gay and Lesbian Alumni Association, also known as PennGALA. What started out as six to ten men munching on bagels during homecoming has blossomed into an alumni organization now officially recognized by the university. Not only has the homecoming event grown from bagels to an impressive brunch, but also PennGALA will for the second time in as many years sponsor a dinner over alumni weekend. Jeff served as one of the first co-chairs of PennGALA. He hopes that PennGALA continues to develop and help alumni maintain an affiliation to PENN beyond two annual events, and that it becomes a model and a source of networking for current PENN students.

But Jeff’s life isn’t all about founding organizations and volunteering to help the queer community. He has his own private practice in psychotherapy and corporate consulting. He also teaches an intensive course on group processes at PENN that has been very popular.

With all of this involvement, you would expect Jeff to eventually take a step back and spend some time focusing on himself. In fact, those are his exact plans for the near future. I would say he deserves a break!

~Kurt Klinger is a senior Computer Science major from Warminster, PA whose song is "Do Ya Think I’m Sexy" by Rod Stewart.

Carriage House Developments

Interior demolition and asbestos abatement at the LGBT Center’s new home have been completed. Construction of the building’s exciting new interior is expected to begin some time in April 2001 and to be completed in Spring 2002.

A major gift to fund the Center’s expansive Reading Room was received recently from a generous PENN alumnus and his partner. The space, which most likely will be named in honor of the donors, will include 24 feet of built-in bookcases, fixed and free-standing work surfaces, and moveable furniture which can be arranged for group discussions and presentations. The adjacent conference room will be named in terms of two additional donors who met at PENN in 1976 and are about to celebrate their 25th anniversary.

The Carriage House’s lead donors, David Goodhand and Vincent Griski, have pledged $1.5 million, with an additional $500,000 made available to match gifts received from others. Thus far, almost $200,000 has been raised and is thus eligible for the matching gift. An additional $300,000 must be raised to provide the total needed to complete the renovation.

Events will be held later this Spring in six cities to introduce alumni and their friends to the Carriage House project. David Goodhand and Bob Schoenberg, LGBT Center Director, will present the project in Los Angeles on March 9 and in San Francisco on March 12, 2001. Events will be scheduled in April and May in Philadelphia, New York, Washington, DC and Boston.

Questions about the Carriage House project or interest in making a donation should be directed to Bob Schoenberg - or 215-898-5044.

~Bob Schoenberg is the LGBT Center Director whose song is currently unavailable.

Spiritus

He spoke to me and I drowned in a tidal wave of rapture

He looked at me and I burned in the light of heaven

He touched me

and my spirit left my tortured vessel to join with his

until I ceased to exist within myself

but dwelt solely within his sweet and glorious essense

- Angelus is currently a PENN student.

B-GLAD 2001 Preview

Over the past several weeks, while many of us were submersed in the hustle and bustle of our daily responsibilities, a group of students and staff took on the task of planning this year’s Bisexual Gay Lesbian Transgender Awareness Days (B-GLAD). From March 23-30, 2001, PENN’s campus will be buzzing with an array of events that they have worked so diligently to put together that will celebrate the diversity and persistence of the queer community.

This year’s B-GLAD theme, 2001: A Queer Odyssey, was chosen because it projected an image of the LGBT community moving forward into the new millennium with a collective purpose and identity. The events planned reflect on the adversity which we have faced in our journey, as well as the joys we have shared and our hopes and commitment to the future. Among the many events of the week, are a day of community service in West Philadelphia, an interfaith service celebrating the religious diversity within our community, and a panel of family members and friends of LGBT students sharing their experiences. There is also no shortage of fun and entertainment as there will be a dance, a night of Oscar-style entertainment, and the infamous Cabaret.

This year’s keynote address will be given by Leslie Feinberg, transgender activist and author of Stone Butch Blues. Ze was one of the most important selections for this year’s celebration because ze advocates for a community that many of us neglect or just don’t understand: the "t" in LGBT - transgender. While hir work focuses on transgender issues, ze does bring with hir another important message, why transgender issues are all of our issues, queer or not. Oppression is oppression is oppression.

So, as you whisk yourself off to some exotic spring break destination or of you will just be campus, keep B-GLAD in mind. It is our presence and pride that lay the strength and foundation of our community. So be there and be queer!

For a complete schedule of events, locations, and sponsors, please go to: <http://dolphin.upenn.edu/~qsa/bglad2001/>

~Ninah Harris is a senior Sociology major from Hempstead, NY whose song is "Bad Girls" by Donna Summer.