California, New York and North Carolina students are leading the way for positive, LGBT-inclusive change on their campuses and in their communities

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Students and young leaders across the country are making change, speaking out and taking the reins of leadership on their campuses and in their communities. Marco Flores, Tovah Leibowitz and Jacob Tobia, the three young adult leaders chosen as this year’s recipients of the Campus Pride Voice & Action National Leadership Award, are no exception.

In partnership with OUTmedia, the Campus Pride Voice and Action National Leadership Award is an honorary recognition highlighting the outstanding accomplishments of young adult leaders at colleges and universities across the United States. The award, the only of its kind, is bestowed upon undergraduate students who use their “voice” to speak up and take “action” to create change for LGBT and ally issues within their campuses, local communities and region of the country. The award also acknowledges the vital role nationally that young adult leaders play in the present and for the future of our movement for LGBT fairness and equality.

“The talent and commitment to the movement shown by all the applicants is the reason Campus Pride developed this national honor,” said Voice & Action Award Committee Chair Christopher Bylone. “These three students have gone above the call of duty expected of any student leader in our movement.”

Campus Pride congratulates this year’s recipients:

Marco Flores, University of California, Berkeley (‘12), is a gender and women’s studies and LGBT studies major, an undergraduate student organizer for Queer People of Color (QPoC) and a student representative for the Immigrant Students Issues Coalition.

Tovah Leibowitz, New York University (‘12), is double-majoring in gender and sexuality studies and documentary filmmaking. Tovah serves as the president of the NYU Queer Union.

Jacob Tobia, Duke University (‘14), is studying human rights advocacy and leadership. Jacob serves as director of LGBTQ policy and affairs in the Duke University Student Government.

Flores will be honored at the upcoming Western Regional LGBTQUI Conference at University of the Pacific, in Stockton, Calif., Feb. 24-26. Leibowitz and Tobia will receive their awards at the Northeast LGBT Conference at Sage Colleges in Albany, N.Y., March 30-April 1. Each of the students also receives a free artist, speaker or entertainer of their choice, courtesy OUTmedia, to appear on their college campuses in 2012.

Twenty-five applications were submitted for this year’s award review process. Twelve applicants were chosen by a panel of peers and student volunteers with Campus Pride and honored in early January as Campus Pride’s “Top 12 Leaders in Action.” Flores, Leibowtiz and Tobia were chosen from this pool of 12 outstanding LGBT student leaders.

This year’s awards committee was comprised of Chris Bylone, Campus Pride volunteer and Voice & Action Award Committee chair; Kyle Byrer of the Northeast LGBT Conference and Sage Colleges; Vincent Garcia of The Point Foundation; Anthony Villegas of the Western Regional LGBTQUI Conference and University of the Pacific; and Shelly Weiss of OUTmedia.

Visit www.CampusPride.org/voiceandaction.asp to learn more about the national awards program or email chris@campuspride.org.

[Media: Interviews with award winners are available upon request. Please direct any inquiries to Christopher Bylone at 704-277-6710, ext. 5 and chris@campuspride.org or to Matt Comer at 704-277-6710, ext. 6 and matt@campuspride.org.]

Campus Pride, the nation’s leading non-profit working to create safer, more LGBT-inclusive colleges and build future LGBT and ally leaders, is proud to announce the dates for its LGBT-Friendly College Fairs in New York City and Boston.

The New York City event is the third in the program’s five-stop 2010-11 tour. It will be held on Nov. 5 at the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center, 208 W. 13th St., New York, NY 10011, 4 p.m.-6 p.m. The event is in partnership with the Youth Enrichment Services (YES) Program of the Center. It is free to current or prospective college students and this year will bring together nearly three dozen colleges and universities who seek to recruit out LGBT and ally students to their campuses.

“The schools at our New York City college fair understand what it takes to create a truly welcoming, safe and inclusive campus for LGBT students, and they’re working to make it happen,” says Shane Windmeyer, executive director and founder of Campus Pride. “In light of the string of gay youth suicides reported this fall, these schools’ participation in the fair is a show of support and a welcome sign of change.”

Among the schools participating: American Academy of Dramatic Arts, Binghamton University, Bucknell University, Carleton College, Columbia College Chicago, Columbia University in the City of New York, Dartmouth College, Davidson College, Drexel University, Elon University, Emory University, Eugene Lang College, Harvard College, Indiana University Bloomington, Ithaca College, Indiana University Purdue University-Indianapolis, Marlboro College, Marymount Manhattan College, Michigan State University, Penn State University, Rutgers University, St. Lawrence University, SUNY Potsdam, Syracuse University, The Sage Colleges, Trinity College, Tufts University, Union College, University of Pennsylvania, University of Richmond, University of Rochester, Vanderbilt University, Vassar College and William Paterson University.

Colleges and universities can still register for the event. For more information and to register, visit www.CampusClimateIndex.org/events.

The event also includes workshops and other learning opportunities. Organizations participating include EqualApp, Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, Point Foundation and Trevor Project. Campus Pride executive director Shane Windmeyer will speak.

Campus Pride’s LGBT-Friendly College Fair will also stop in Boston on Nov. 6. The fourth stop in the tour, the Boston fair will also feature educational workshops and speakers. The event, planned in partnership with The Boston Alliance of GLBT Youth (BAGLY) and Friends of GLBT Youth, Inc., will be held 1 p.m.- 4:30 p.m. at City Year Boston's Headquarters, 287 Columbus Avenue, Boston, MA.

For more information and to learn more about Campus Pride's LGBT-Friendly Campus Climate Index, visit www.CampusClimateIndex.org.

Photo via WallyG, Flickr.

"Pride," to me, is not just about my LGBTQ identity. While the word 'pride' has been powerfully rendered a symbol of our community by the decades of struggles - which are nothing short of heroic - on the parts of our LGBTQ brothers and sisters, I believe that it means more.