By Tejas Shastry
Over the weekend, the University of Louisville hosted the 12th annual Come Together Kentucky, a conference for GLBTQ students across the state.
Created in 1995 at the University of Kentucky, CTK offers a means for students in Kentucky to learn from each other and to receive valuable education and training from workshops furthering the causes of GLBTQ students.
This year’s conference was organized by U of L’s commonGround, an RSO for GLBTQ students.
Conference organizers reported that over 100 students from Murray State, Eastern Kentucky University, Western Kentucky University, Northern Kentucky University, University of Kentucky, Bellarmine University and the University of Louisville attended this year’s conference. A number up from last year’s conference attendance.
“We’re trying to build something more solid and professional this year,” said commonGround President Jessica Smith, a junior English major.
The conference opened Friday night with a drag show featuring college students and guest performers across the state.
Performer Michael Heil, a senior political science major whose stage name is Phoenix Skye, said, “Because it’s a statewide event, it has a different crowd. I wanted to perform so they can see what Louisville and U of L is all about.”
The three-day conference, held Friday to Sunday, also included seminars, panel discussions, media activism and a comedian keynote speaker.
“CTK is an amazing event,” said Stephanie Wells of Murray State. “I love interacting with people at this conference.”
Among the conference’s sponsors were the Fairness Alliance at Louisville, Volunteers of America and Vice Provost for Diversity Dr. Modean Taylor-Archer.
