Archives West Finding Aid

Alex Cofield was a student at Whitman from 1989 to 1994 and a history major. She got involved in the Gay Lesbian Association at Whitman soon after her arrival and came out publically as a lesbian early in her first year. After spending several years as a member of the Gay Lesbian Association and being an out LGBT student on campus, Cofield helped create the LGBTQ-activist group Coalition Against Homophobia, which was the political and issue-focused counterpart to the GLA. A well-known LGBTQ activist on campus, she was a leader in the community, organizing many events and protests against military recruitment on campus, "Don't Ask Don't Tell," and other LGBT issues, and giving many talks about LGBTQ issues and her experiences as a lesbian. After leaving Whitman, she went on to complete a Master's degree in History at Ohio State, focusing on gay and lesbian history. Cofield currently lives in Ohio with her partner and child.

Lynn Greenough was a student at Whitman from 1982 to 1986 and was a German major. Coming to Whitman from Spokane, WA, she quickly became involved in women's and feminist groups and issues at Whitman. Greenough developed connections to both other LGBTQ folks at Whitman as well as folks in the local community. During her time at Whitman, a small social support group for LGBTQ students formed and Greenough was a member. After leaving Whitman, she traveled before getting a job at Oregon State University, and she now lives in Corvallis with her partner and daughters.

Jed Schwendiman arrived at Whitman in 1988 and graduated in 1992 as a psychology major. A Student Academic Advisor (SA) and a Resident Advisor (RA) while a student, he worked in Residence Life after graduating until 1995 before leaving for graduate school. He returned as a staff member in 2000, working as Assistant Director for Residence Life and later for the President's Office. While a staff member, he took on a leadership role in Whitman's LGBTQ community as an advisor for the student group known as GLBTQ, and established the GLBTQ student internship position. He left Whitman in 2011 and now lives in California with his husband, Paea LePendu.

Professor Robert Tobin was a German Language and Literature professor at Whitman from 1989 to 2008 and was a major presence and leader in Whitman's LGBTQ community. After finishing graduate school at Princeton, he came to Whitman to teach. Soon after his arrival on campus, Professor Tobin became involved with the fledging LGBTQ student group, the Gay Lesbian Association, and he helped found the LGBTQ-issue focused activist group, Coalition Against Homophobia in 1992. First offered in 1993, his class "Sexuality and Textuality" was one of the first classes at whitman focused on sexuality. Professor Tobin served as an advisor and contact person for both GLA and Coalition throughout his time at Whitman and was known as a voice of LGBTQ activism on campus. He left Whitman in 2008 and now works for Clark University. Recently, he helped Professor Yuhl from the College of the Holy Cross and Professor Joseph Cullon from Worcester Polytechnic Institute create "LGBTQ+ Worcester: For the Record", an exhibit focusing on LGBTQ history in Worcester, MA, which can be seen at the Worcester Historical Museum.

Chris Wolf was a psychology major and was a student at Whitman from 1994 to 1998. She was involved in theatre and environment activism, and helped found a student group known as SEED (Student Efforts for Equality and Diversity) that was focused on diversity and raising awareness of race and equality issues. Wolf got involved with the LGBTQ-only student group known as GLBA at the time and took on the position as contact person and representative of the group, coming out as bisexual. After Whitman, Wolf got a Master's in Counseling and does counseling work today. She was a co-founder of the group, Growing Veterans, along with vereran Chris Brown. Growing Veterans helps vets find support and community through farming. She currently lives in Bellingham, WA, her hometown.