Today: Mar 28, 2024

Free clothing closet located in the Sage Center

Sofia Rositani Arts & Entertainment Editor

The SAGE Center is a safe haven for students who seek aid with their sexuality, gender, problems at home or any other situation.

SAGE stands for sexuality and gender equality, it is located in the Adanti Student Center on the third floor. The center offers many different resources including an open-door closet, a place where students can obtain free clothing.

“Our open-door closet, I believe, was started a couple years ago. We saw that a lot of students were experiencing insecurity around clothing and they needed more access to free clothes,” said the center’s graduate intern, Aaron Morabito.

“Transgender and non-binary students weren’t able to get clothes that kind of matched how they wanted to express their gender,” said Morabito. “Someone started the closet and now we have a full collection of clothes, accessories, and other things that students can have access to for free.”

Morabito said that since the SAGE Center opened the open-door closet, they have noticed people coming in using it, but due to COVID-19, they have been noticing less traffic. Even though COVID-19 has impacted the university and lessened the number of students on campus, it is still open for those who need it or would like to donate clothing.

“The SAGE Center works to support our LGBTQ+ students as well as their allies. We do things likes social and educational programming events. Some of the resources and stuff that we have are open-door closet, we also have things like the preferred name policy, the map of all gender restrooms that are on campus, as well as links for the gender inclusive housing,” said Morabito.

COVID-19 has made it harder to reach students on a virtual platform, but Morabito said they have been working to try and support students both virtually and in-person because they know many first-year students are online this year. Trying to reach out to the students has been their main focus.

“Over the past few weeks as it’s been getting warmer and COVID is starting to lift up a little bit. I’ve been seeing more students come by and access all of our resources,” Morabito said.

Theater major Samhain Perez, a freshman, said he is always at the SAGE Center and it is a regular haunt. He often visits when he has the chance.

“The clothing rack has definitely been a lifesaver. There have been times where I have an interview on campus and it turns out I don’t have things that match. Even for this past show, for ‘Songs for a New World,’ I needed a button up for the house and I didn’t have any. It turns out I don’t have things that match,” Perez said.

For the recent musical, “Songs for a New World” Perez said he used the open-door closet to get a button down because at the time he didn’t have one in the material he needed.

“I am really happy that it’s an option on campus and that they keep it running its very well stocked,” said Perez.

Photo credit: Roma Rositani

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