The 2014 participants with Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.) – Photo courtesy NGLF
The Next Generation Leadership Foundation (NGLF), a locally-based national nonprofit dedicated to mentoring and cultivating potential LGBT leaders, announced on Feb. 3 that it will be accepting applications for its second annual Leadership Institute. Held each summer, the institute brings up to 25 LGBT students from around the country to Washington for a week of programming designed to help foster leadership skills and establish networks with successful LGBT community leaders.
“This is a unique program in our community,” says Sean Bugg, NGLF’s founder and executive director. “We know LGBT youth still face barriers, stereotypes and stigma. The Leadership Institute is about showing youth that they can succeed not despite being LGBT, but because they are LGBT.”
“We want to make sure that young LGBT people can do whatever they want in life, without feeling limited by their upbringing, their circumstances, or stereotypes.”
This year’s institute will be held from June 22-26 in Washington, D.C., and will allow the youth a change to meet with leaders from Capitol Hill, the White House, entrepreneurs, and leaders in various fields including art, technology and community activism. NGLF pays for participants’ travel and lodging expenses. To be accepted to the summer institute, interested LGBT youth must submit applications, which can be found on the NGLF website, by Mar. 6. The program is restricted only to those who will be 18 years old as of June 21, 2015. Selection criteria for admission into the institute includes a student’s academic record, community involvement, and an essay or multimedia submission on how selection for the program will impact their lives as LGBT people and their future career goals.
“We want to make sure that young LGBT people can do whatever they want in life, without feeling limited by their upbringing, their circumstances, or stereotypes,” says Bugg. “We put them together with people can show them how to achieve their own hopes and dreams.”
Bugg notes that even though space in the program is limited, he wants as many people to apply as possible. He also hopes to expand the program in future years to accept more students and expand the institute’s offerings.
“When you look at the agenda we put together for last year, it’s really an incredibly broad, deep and exciting agenda,” says Bugg . “The depth and breath of what we’re offering is really unparalleled. I’m very excited we’ve been able to create this opportunity for young people.”
San Francisco has named Per Sia, one of the first performers to read at a Drag Queen Story Hour event, as the city's new Drag Laureate.
Appointed by Mayor Daniel Lurie on October 29, the 44-year-old Per Sia is only the second person -- and the first transgender individual -- to hold the title.
D'Arcy Drollinger, owner of the Oasis nightclub, was San Francisco's first Drag Laureate. The position -- one of only two in the country, alongside West Hollywood's -- comes with a $35,000 annual stipend for a three-year term funded by the San Francisco Public Library, which also supports the city's Poet Laureate and Youth Poet Laureate programs.
Harvard University has drawn criticism from conservatives after announcing that Tufts professor Kareem Khubchandani -- who performs and occasionally lectures in drag as "LaWhore Vagistan" -- will serve as a visiting associate professor in its Studies of Women, Gender, and Sexuality department.
The visiting professorship was established through an endowment from members of the Harvard Gender & Sexuality Caucus, the university's LGBTQ alumni group. It was created to bring in scholars focused on issues related to sexual minorities and sexuality.
Khubchandani is scheduled to teach two courses during the 2025-2026 academic year: "Queer Ethnography," in the fall semester, and "RuPaulitics: Drag, Race, and Desire" in the spring semester, focusing on the cultural influence of the show RuPaul's Drag Race.
The Capital Pride Alliance and WorldPride DC organizers hosted a "wrap-up party" on September 30 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center to unveil the WorldPride 2025 Impact Report, highlighting the celebration's economic and cultural reach.
The event, featuring food, drinks, and live performances, celebrated WorldPride’s success while giving LGBTQ community members a chance to reflect on the experience and the lessons learned from hosting a large-scale festival in D.C., helping build an infrastructure the city can use for future events.
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