St. Cloud State University library faculty member Rachel Wexelbaum was awarded the Inter Faculty Organization’s (IFO) 2020 James Eric Chalgren Award. The James Eric Chalgren Award recognizes an IFO member who has improved the professional lives of LGBTQ+ faculty through leadership and activism at the campus and statewide level.
Rachel has advocated for inclusive work environments for LGBTQ+ faculty, staff, and students, not only on her campus but across the state system by serving as a representative on the Inter Faculty Organization LGBTQ+ Caucus. She has been a part of implementing the preferred name policy and creating campus caucuses to offer support for LGBTQ+ faculty, faculty of color, and women faculty. In order to build an LGBTQ+ inclusive environment, she has served as co-chair for the President’s Advisory Council, and she has led the council in strategic planning for diversity, equity and inclusion on campus.
In her position as a librarian, Rachel has integrated the LGBTQ+ collection into programming tied to the grant funded National Library Medicine’s “Surviving and Thirving: AIDS, Politics and Culture” which she sponsored with the University Library, LGBT Resources Center, the Art Department, the Film Studies Department, School of Health and Human Services, the peer to peer sex education student group, and local HIV/AIDS organizations. Rachel’s commitment to this work has provided access for people in other countries where LGBTQ+ information is restricted or even illegal. She has provided access to information and resources that extends beyond her campus population and community.
Rachel’s work with the Wikimedia Foundation and as a Wikipedian have been instrumental in helping a larger project of “queering Wikipedia.” Rachel’s Wikipedia work is focused on LGBTQ+ individuals and topics, and the intersections between LGBTQ+ identity and other identities. She also “queers” articles that should address LGBTQ+ issues. In 2017, Rachel became the Twitter administrator for Wikimedia LGBT+’s Twitter account @wikilgbt. As Rachel notes in an interview about her work: “I use @wikilgbt to promote LGBTQ+ focused edit-a-thons and Wiki Loves Pride photo shoots at Pride festivals, as well as any intersectional Wikimedia events that would include LGBTQ+ content creation. @Wikilgbt promotes those Wikipedia editors doing great LGBTQ+ work, and followers use @wikilgbt to collaborate on translation of articles, to ask for Creative Commons licensed photos or other media to enhance entries, or to share photos of their edit-a-thons. We have grown the followers to 600 in less than a year, from all over the world. Followers include Wikipedians librarians–LGBTQ+ and otherwise–and LGBTQ+ organizations in addition to Wikimedia Foundation chapters and employees. This community builds trust among LGBTQ+ Wikipedians from different countries, working across languages and cultures.”
In addition, Rachel has served on the local human rights commission as a liaison to St. Cloud State University, where she educates the campus about the St. Cloud Human Rights Office, state anti-discrimination laws and how to file discrimination claims. As a volunteer for human rights commissioner, Rachel initiates difficult dialogues with the purpose of action and for an affirmative work, living, and learning environments in St. Cloud.
Rachel has provided significant service to the IFO LGBTQ+ Statewide Committee, her institution and campus community. Her commitment and work to create equity and opportunities for LGBTQ+ faculty, staff and students, exemplifies being a recipient of the James Eric Chalgren Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Advancement of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Issues.
2020 James Chalgren Award Presented to St. Cloud State University library faculty member Rachel Wexelbaum