Mission Statement
Our mission is to empower the LGBTQ+ students and alumni of Brigham Young University in achieving their intellectual, social, and professional potential. We do this by completing initiatives based on the needs of our students and alumni. Some of our initiatives include:
Scholarship
Since the launch of our #OUTStanding Scholarship program in 2019, The Out Foundation has awarded a total of $24,000 to 22 LGBTQ+ students at BYU Provo, BYU Idaho, BYU Hawaii, and Ensign College.
Therapy
Since January of 2020, The OUT Foundation has partnered with Flourish Therapy, Inc. to provide free, queer-affirming therapy to LBGTQ+ students at BYU Provo. This service provides queer students with tools and support to help mitigate the trauma impacted upon them at BYU. As of September 2021, we've provided:
Access to therapy for 41 students
650+ sessions
An estimated cost of $37,000
Students have paid zero out-of-pocket
Transfer Fund
Many queer students at BYU evolve in their understanding of who they are and what their gender identities and sexual orientations mean for them. For some students, it reaches a tipping point where they decide to leave. This is often a hard decision and it isn't the choice for everyone. Since the launch of our Transfer Fund in 2020, The OUT Foundation has awarded a total of $10,000 to help 12 queer students transfer out of BYU.
#OUTSPOKEN
Our ongoing #OUTSpoken campaign focuses on documenting and sharing alumni stories. This includes conducting interviews and taking portraits of LGBTQ+ alumni and sharing these stories on social media, our website, and in print publications. #OUTspoken showcases various paths LGBTQ+ alumni have taken—both during and after BYU—to validate our experiences as a community of alumni and to provide a model for current queer students at BYU.