MCC honored for LGBT equality efforts

The Human Rights Campaign, the country’s foremost authority on civil rights for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) communities, presented MCC with an award last week in recognition of the college’s policies and practices that support LGBT employees and constituents.

The award was presented by HRC’s Kansas City chapter at their fifth annual Corporate Celebration of Equality on Thur., March 31.

MCC was chosen for the honor because of
policy revisions and educational programs intended to create a more inclusive environment for LGBT students, employees and vendors. Specifically, HRC-Kansas City acknowledged the recent revision to MCC’s nondiscrimination policy to include sexual orientation as a protected class as well as the addition of domestic partner benefits for employees. The three-tiered MCC SafeZone training program, developed in 2008 to increase awareness of issues around LGBT equality and to build skills for creating a supportive environment in the workplace, was recognized at the awards ceremony as a best practice.

A total of twelve local employers were presented with awards at the event; MCC was the only not-for-profit honoree. For-profit businesses were recognized based on results of HRC’s nationally recognized Corporate Equality Index.

MCC's Julianne Jacques, Nancy Harrington and
Chris Henson pose for a photo with
Joe Solmonese, HRC national president.

Nancy Harrington, MCC-Penn Valley biology instructor and LGBT advocate, views the award as public acknowledgement of MCC’s past accomplishments and a vote of confidence for future progress.

“HRC (Kansas City) doesn’t award this nonprofit honor every year, which, to me, means that they only select employers that truly deserve recognition,” said Harrington. “It is especially gratifying to be held up as an example of best practice in a room full of large corporations and law firms. Though we know there is still work to be done, I am proud of MCC for many years of work towards LGBT equality for our employees and students.”

Harrington, who also leads MCC’s efforts to support AIDS Walk Kansas City, was joined at the ceremony by three colleagues who have long been involved in MCC’s inclusion efforts: Julianne Jacques, MCC-Penn Valley counselor; Gerald Palmer, MCC-Penn Valley academic advisor; and Chris Henson, MCC-Penn Valley testing center project coordinator.

The awards celebration was hosted by Stinson Morrison Hecker, LLP, in downtown Kansas City, Mo. Special guest Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign's national office in Washington, DC, addressed the honorees and presented the awards.