History

History of the GLOW Wednesday Night Discussion Group (1971 – 2009)

The Wednesday Night Discussion Group (WNDG) has been running – in one form or another – at the University of Waterloo for over 35 years!

The WNDG has traditionally been a service offered by GLOW- The Queer and Questioning Resource Centre at the University of Waterloo (Visit www.glow.uwaterloo.ca for more information). While GLOW has had many forms since being founded on March 8, 1971, the group is currently a service of the University of Waterloo (UW) Federation of Students – the body which represents undergraduate students at UW. Not surprisingly, the WNDG was known as the GLOW Wednesdat Night Discussion Group (or variations thereof) for much of this time.

As GLOW has evolved, so too has the discussion group. The group has historically acted as a planning group for community activism, a safe-confidential environment for seeking peer support and an opportunity for social networking within the Kitchener-Waterloo (and surrounding area) queer community. At all times, the group has been based on a community support model, welcoming all UW Faculty, Staff and Students (both Undergraduate and Graduate) as well as members of the local community. The potential to hear the experiences and knowledge of individuals representing many different gender identities and sexual orientations, at different stages of life, is seen as one of the strengths of the discussion group.

For the past 25 years, the discussion group has been facilitated by a UW Graduate Student, Staff Member or Alumnus. This approach has allowed for the group to be offered year-round (with the exception of University Closures during the holiday season- and the occasional bout of illness) and has helped to maintain a consistent model of facilitation that participants can rely on. Consistency in the facilitation model and approach is a key element of creating a comfortable environment for all participants.

Changes to the Wednesday Night Discussion Group in 2009

While the GLOW Wednesday Discussion Group has enjoyed much success over the years, there are always opportunities for improvement. In the Fall of 2009, participants in the discussion group began to look at the possibility of expanding group sponsorship beyond GLOW (a service of the UW Federation of Students, which represents undergraduate students). The expanded sponsorship was considered for a number of reasons:

1. The make-up of the discussion group participants has often extended beyond undergraduate students at UW. As such, it would be beneficial to have a sponsorship model for the group that reflects the diversity of participants.
2. There are many groups and organizations that have been supportive of the discussion group over the years. It would be nice to find a way to raise the profile of such organizations and their assistance.
3. As the discussion group has been traditionally facilitated by a non-undergraduate student, it has been able to operate without extensive support from the GLOW Executive. This has allowed the group to operate year-round, even between terms when there is no active GLOW Executive. It would be beneficial to find some way to recognize the independent organization of the discussion groups.

In light of the above, the GLOW Executive decided that, as of September 30th, 2009, the GLOW Wednesday Night Discussion Group would operate as a separate entity that would continue to be sponsored by GLOW, but could also include sponsorship from other groups and organizations that may better represent the make-up of the group participants. That is to say, the group will no longer be the GLOW Wednesday Night Discussion Group but rather, the Wednesday Night Discussion Group, sponsored by GLOW (and others).

The group has been operating under this new mandate ever since!