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Columbia's LGBT Business Association |
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Columbia's LGBT Business Association |
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An Introduction to Cluster QColumbia's LGBT Business AssociationLast year, Columbia's LGBT community reached critical mass. There are more members, more allies, more events and more opportunities than ever before. We aim to be the largest, most visible diversity organization on campus. Columbia is home to the oldest LGBT society at any university in the United States and we take pride in our status as the largest LGBT organization at any business school in the world. Our membership includes MBA students (LGBT members and allies), EMBA students, PhD students and faculty. Our unique location in New York City ensures that alumni continue to be involved in Cluster Q as active members. We host highly attended alumni mixers every semester. In 2010, we launched Associate membership, allowing students from other schools within Columbia University and graduates of other MBA programs living in New York to engage with our organization. Cluster Q currently has over 60 LGBT members across the MBA and EMBA classes of 2010 and 2011, plus over 500 straight allies. This makes us the largest club at Columbia Business School. On top of this, we have a number of faculty and staff members, over 300 alumni members and a rapidly growing number of associate members. LGBT issues unfortunately continue to be prevalent in the workplace. Business schools can play an important role in raising awareness and visibility of these issues at an early stage of student's€ careers. Working closely with corporate partners is vital to helping us achieve this aim. Providing a means for LGBT students to network and socialize is important, yet we strongly believe Cluster Q has a purpose above and beyond a role as a social club. In 2011, we are focusing our activities in six key areas: careers, membership, events, community outreach, alumni and allies. As a key member of the Reaching Out MBA (ROMBA) organization, we support ROMBA's three objectives: community building for LGBT students, professional development and visibility. We are also committed to leaving a legacy for future Columbia MBAs to inherit and grow through our LGBT Fellowship fundraising initiative. Columbia Business School received an "A" from Aplomb Consulting's Report Card for LGBT Friendly Business Schools! ObjectivesCluster Q has three objectives: Visibility, Connectivity and Continuity; with programs and activities designed for each. VisibilityBy increasing awareness of LGBT issues in the corporate environment, we hope to educate both our LGBT members as well as our straight allies as they enter leadership positions post-MBA.
ConnectivityWe hope to create a vibrant community both within Columbia Business School and our external partners by hosting events that will allow us to build meaningful networks.
ContinuityEnsuring that we have a healthy pipeline of incoming members allows us to build a strong and lasting legacy for Cluster Q.
HistoryWe are keen to document the history of our organization. If you are an alumnus who could help us expand this section of the website, please send an email to the presidents. We are particularly interested to learn more about when the club was founded and key milestones in the LGBT community at Columbia Business school. Former presidents:
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