10% Society changes its name

Spectrum: Gender and Sexuality Alliance wants students to know what it’s about.

Spectrum, formerly the 10% Society, changed its name in the beginning of November to lessen the confusion the old name brought.

“People didn’t know what 10% meant,” said Gretchen Stanley, president of Spectrum.

First-year Seth Wiederhold, Spectrum’s secretary, said the new name tells people what the group is about by using both a name and an explanation.

“10% wasn’t recognizable,” Wiederhold said. “It didn’t really mean anything.”

The name change follows a shift in the dynamic of the group, which Stanley said is younger than previous years. The group has also seen recent successes, like this semester’s drag show which more than 250 students attended.

Wiederhold said the group provides support such as finding churches that have accepting attitudes toward the LGBT community. The group also works to create awareness about LGBT issues.

Spectrum currently has 20-30 consistent members from multiple sexual orientations and has a closed members list, including allies, community members who support the group.