The University of Tennessee Pride Center is is no longer under the umbrella of the Office for Diversity and Inclusion after a new state law pulled the office's funding for a year. The center remains on campus as a student meeting space. (MICHAEL PATRICK/NEWS SENTINEL)

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Mj Slaby Mj.Slaby@Knoxnews.Com 865-342-6305

An already-scheduled forum about ways to support the mission of the University of Tennessee Pride Center is more poignant after the shooting in Orlando this weekend, an organizer said.

The UT Faculty Senate Diversity Task Force is having a forum Friday to discuss the center's role on campus and ways to continue its work after changes due to a new state law. The meeting is 1 to 3 p.m. Friday at the Hodges Library Auditorium and is open to the public.

The event, which is the day before the Knoxville PrideFest festival and parade, was planned before the shooting at the gay nightclub in Orlando. But the tragedy stresses the need for the center and makes it more poignant, said Beauvais Lyons, chancellor's professor and a co-chair of the task force.

"Every community needs a safe place," he said. "Hopefully, we can create safe places throughout campus where people can feel valued and can be who they are."

The Pride Center gives students a place where they are understood and where they are not marginalized, said task force co-chair Professor Bonnie Ownley.

Last month, a new state law pulled funding from the UT Office for Diversity and Inclusion for one year and redirected funds to scholarships for minority engineering students. The law also prevents UT from using state funds to promote gender-neutral pronouns, to promote or inhibit religious holiday celebrations and to fund Sex Week.

Pulling the diversity office funding meant the Pride Center no longer had funds for a staff and was no longer under the umbrella of the now-dissolved office. The center is still a student meeting space on campus.

Since the law's passage, students have raised money and been vocal about their concerns the changes will cause the center to cut programming and hours.

Margie Nichols, UT spokeswoman, said administration supports the center and is working hard to have solutions that are within the law.

"We're working on a plan and hope to have answers to questions by the end of the week," she said.

Friday's forum by the faculty includes a presentation about the center's history as well as perspective from current and former students, faculty and staff about the center and its role. Plans also include discussing the center's future needs and what the state law means, Lyons said.

He and Ownley said there is still a lot to understand about what the law will look like on campus.

"What we do know is the Pride Center is in a vulnerable situation," Lyons said.

The faculty senate created its diversity task force this spring to support diversity and inclusion on campus as state lawmakers proposed UT-related bills. And the group has made supporting the Pride Center a high priority since the new state law.

Ownley and Lyons agreed training from the center has created awareness about bias and student interaction. Plus, they said, as UT works to be a top 25 public research university, the student population is becoming more qualified and more diverse. So now the challenge is to meet diversity goals, but stay within the law, Lyons said.