News Item
Westchester Rising featured Pace University in "LGBTQ Pride Hoops Night at Pace Another Success"
Pace University hosted its annual LGBTQ Pride Hoops Night during the men's and women's basketball games on Tuesday, Feb. 11, versus Southern Connecticut.
As part of the festivities, hundreds of students, faculty, staff and community members turned out for the doubleheader inside the Goldstein Fitness Center, which marked the fourth Pride Hoops Night as the Pace Athletics Department teamed up with the LGBTQA Center to celebrate the Pace community's inclusiveness and diversity.
“I am extremely proud of the leadership exhibited by our students and our community with respect to this initiative,” said Pace’s Director of Athletics, Mark Brown. “Pace University is a place that celebrates and embraces everyone and truly values the richness that a diverse and inclusive population adds to our community.”
Halftime of each game featured drag performances by Flower Tortilla (Pace University alum and drag queen) and Ms. D. Carter (Pace staff member Suede Graham). Free t-shirts were also given to the first 500 fans in attendance.
Rachel Simon, Interim Director for the Office of Multicultural Affairs who runs the LGBTQA Center at Pace’s Pleasantville campus, is excited about the event’s continued growth and success each year.
"Now that we're in our fourth year of Pride Hoops I can really see its impact,” Simon said. “We have community partners here interacting with a wide range of Pace students. It is wonderful to see so many rainbows and feel the support for the LGBTQA community at an event with such broad attendance and appeal. It is also nice to have a Pace staff member and a Pace alum perform in drag this year!"
