About

Mission and Vision

The LGBTQ+ Student Center (LGBTQ+SC; est. 2005 as the LGBT Resource Center) is one of seven student-support centers housed under Student Culture & Community (SCC) in Student Life. The mission of the LGBTQ+SC is to provide support, education, advocacy, and community for all undergraduate and graduate students at the University of Southern California with an emphasis on students across the spectra of gender and sexuality. In carrying out its mission, the LGBTQ+SC is committed to engaging in its pillars of support, education, advocacy, and community by programming across the multiple intersections of identities within the diverse LGBTQ+ community, collaborating with its SCC and university partners, and fostering intentional identity development and leadership development for all USC students.

This program is open to all eligible individuals. The LGBTQ+SC operates all of its programs and activities consistent with the University’s Notice of Non-Discrimination. Eligibility is not determined based on race, sex, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or any other prohibited factor.

Learning Outcomes

Support

Students will be able to identify and access resources available for LGBTQ+ students at USC, off-campus, or online.

Education

Students/Staff/Faculty will be able to explain relevant concepts, terminology, and identities related to gender identity and sexuality; practical knowledge will be demonstrated through social interaction.

Advocacy

Students will be able to articulate cultural and social contributions of the LGBTQ+ community and identify their roles and opportunities in this ongoing contribution.

Community

Students will be able to discuss their sense of belonging at USC as it relates to diverse gender and sexual identities and its intersections with race, ethnicity, nationality, ability, religion, and more.

Center Staff

Megan van der Toorn

(she/they)

Director, SCC Community Development

Megan van der Toorn (she/they) joined the Trojan Family in July 2020 when she began her role as Director of SCC Community Development overseeing the LGBTQ+ Student Center and Students with Dependents Program. Prior to coming to USC, Megan worked for six years at UCLA’s LGBTQ Campus Resource Center, serving first as Program Coordinator and then as Assistant Director. Throughout her higher ed career, Megan has had the privilege of mentoring countless students through their identity development journeys and finding their power through their own personal narratives.

Megan comes to Los Angeles by way of Nashville, TN, where she earned her M.Ed. in Higher Education Administration at Vanderbilt University.

Alyssa Alegre

(they/them/siya)

Center Supervisor, LGBTQ+ Student Center

Alyssa Alegre (they/them/siya) is a disabled, gen 1.5, Filipinx immigrant navigating higher education as a first-gen student/professional/scholar. Alyssa has been in multicultural affairs since their undergraduate career, having served San Diego State University’s (SDSU) Center for Intercultural Relations & APIDA mental health initiative – (AAPI)phany, as well as Cal Poly Pomona’s Asian & Pacific Islander Student Center. There, they provided culturally responsive programming, social justice education, strategic planning, and curricular development throughout their time.

Inspired by activists like Mia Mingus, Alyssa imbues collective radical imagination and trauma informed practices to uplift the students they serve and foster empowered decision-making. They hold a B.A in Interdisciplinary Studies (Psychology, Sociology, and Counseling & Social Change) from SDSU and are also a proud USC alum, receiving their M.Ed in Postsecondary Administration & Student Affairs from the Rossier School of Education. As a part of the Trojan Family, they served as a Graduate Assistant in areas such as the Volunteer Center, RSVP, and the Center for Education, Identity, and Social Justice. You can talk to Alyssa about anything from student life, your hyperfixations, to loves like Avatar: The Last Airbender, astrology, witchcraft, live music, and their heart eyes for Rina Sawayama.