Kish College Foundation announces new Frances Loubere Ally Activist Endowment

Former Kishwaukee College Counselor Frances Loubere was an early ally for the LGBTQIA+ community at the College. A new endowment through the Kishwaukee College Foundation has been named in her honor.

The Kishwaukee College Foundation has announced the creation of a new endowment honoring a former employee and ally of the LGBTQIA+ community.

The Frances Loubere Ally Activist Scholarship provides funds for incoming or currently enrolled Kish students who have demonstrated activism for the LGBTQIA+ community. Frances Loubere is a former Kish counselor who started the Ally Program and an employee-led committee at the College in 1997 to help make the campus experience more inviting and accessible for all students. Loubere retired from Kish in 2010, but her efforts to improve diversity, equity and inclusion on campus continue through the Committee on Gender and Sexual Diversity (GSD). GSD will oversee the selection process for the scholarship.

“We want to reward students who have shown support and advocacy for the LGBTQ community,” said Ami Irmen, Kish GSD Committee Chair. “With this scholarship, we hope to continue to build a positive, welcoming environment at Kishwaukee College and our surrounding communities.”

To qualify, students need to describe how they demonstrate activism and advocacy for the LGBTQ community and why LGBTQIA+ advocacy matters.

Through community support and private donations, the GSD Committee spent many years fundraising to gain the initial money necessary to create the endowment. Fundraising efforts are still ongoing, and anyone who would like to support the scholarship can reach out to the Kishwaukee College Foundation. To contribute or learn more about Kishwaukee College Scholarships, visit www.kish.edu/kcfscholarships.