PRIDE! Kent and Black United Students are preparing for the spring semester.

PRIDE! is Kent State’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and ally student organization. Trae Ruscin, president of PRIDE! Kent, said he has big goals and events planned for the upcoming semester.

The top priority for PRIDE! Kent is to “make everyone, no matter who they are, feel welcome at PRIDE! Kent meeting and events,” Ruscin said.

Other broad goals involve the LGBTQ community, which include working with the LGBTQ center and raising awareness for the community’s issues and the LGBT studies minor. 

The group plans to translate these goals into events such as queer camping, fundraisers, PRIDE! Kent week, sledding and the “Day of Silence” and “Night of Noise.” 

Ruscin said his organization is always looking to “have more regular members at each meeting.”

PRIDE! Kent’s first meeting is at 8 p.m. in the Governance Chambers in the Student Center. 

BUS, which is open to any Kent State student willing to stand up for the educational, cultural, political and social advancement of African peoples throughout the world, has plans for the semester as well.

The programmer, Danea Rhodes, said BUS would focus on Black History Month. 

It plans to hold a “Black and Brown Dialogue,” as well as a special keynote speaker to close out the month. At the end of the semester, she said, the group will hand out the Ebony Achievement Awards. 

Like PRIDE! Kent, BUS’s goals involve other student groups as well.

“Our expectations for this semester are focused around unity and growth with other organizations and the student body,” Rhodes said. “We want to make sure our programs reach the students who need them and fulfill their expectations.”

Rhodes said an official calendar with programs and dates will be released once the group is done working with the USG’s allocations committee. The committee designates money to student organizations for events, retreats, etc.

Both PRIDE! and BUS have Facebook pages and said they encourage students to join them.  

Contact Daniel Moore at [email protected].