Michael Harrington, budge director for academic affairs (left), representing the LGBTQ
Faculty/Staff Caucus (formerly USF Pride), and Veronica Vasquez ’10 (second from left), Maggie Mullen ’09 (second from right), and Erika Carlsen ’09 (right), representing Communities
Against Sexual Assault (formerly Students Taking Action Against Sexual
Violence), were among those honored recently with USF Gender Justice Awards. Photo by Kelci Baughman-McDowell.
The University of San Francisco recently honored members of
two campus groups as Gender Justice Award winners for 2011.
Announced by the President’s Advisory Committee on the
Status of Women (PACSW), the founding members of the student club Communities
Against Sexual Assault (formerly Students Taking Action Against Sexual
Violence) were named inaugural winners of the annual award. The group was
recognized for its efforts in raising awareness among the campus community
about sexual assault and prevention and for helping to establish the USF
Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Resource Center.
Honored were USF alumnae Erika Carlsen ’09, Erin-Kate
Escobar ’09, Maggie Mullen ’09, Jennifer L. Reed ’10, Samantha
Sheppard-Gonzalez ’10, Jamie Trinh ’10, and Veronica Vasquez ’10.
The second group honored were members of the LGBTQ
Faculty/Staff Caucus (formerly USF Pride) who in 2002-03 succeeded in obtaining
domestic partner benefits for USF faculty and staff. The members’ success made
USF one of the first Jesuit institutions to offer domestic partner benefits to
employees, and paved the way for other Catholic institutions to offer similar
benefits, said Deborah Benrubi, chair of PACSW and associate librarian of
technical services in the Gleeson Library/Geschke Center.
“In the spirit of USF’s mission, these honorees truly were
leaders who fashioned a more humane and just work – here at USF,” Benrubi said.
On top of publicly recognizing honorees in a
ceremony attended by USF Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs
Jennifer Turpin, PACSW donated $100 to a charity chosen by each group.
