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Alumna Una Nowling talks trans awareness
▶ HAILEY DIXON
@_Hailey_Dixon
Aaron Goldstein/KANSAN
Una Nowling is a transgender woman who spoke about the gender divide at a Center for Sexuality and Gender Diversity event on Nov. 17.
U na Nowling, a University alumna, was the keynote
speaker for Trans Awareness Week, which was hosted by the Center for Sexuality and Gender Diversity.
"November is trans awareness month, and then this week is trans awareness week," said Chloe Secor, graduate assistant for the Center for Sexuality and Gender Diversity. "And in honor of that, we thought it would be really pertinent to bring a trans speaker to campus."
"Una Nowling is a woman of many, many talents," Secor said.
Nowling is a transgender woman, and shared her experiences of her transition to the audience, both in and out of her workplace, in the STEM field.
Nowling is an engineering consultant at Black & Veatch, and a technical writer, and adjunct professor at UMKC.
She also hosts a radio show called Trans Talk, which airs on every fourth Saturday on 90.1 in Kansas City, Mo.
Nowling shared her background of her
childhood, and into junior high, high school and post-University life. Being a female in engineering she also described the interactions she had at
work before and after her transition.
"[My coworkers] they've told me that they understand that we are a people with an identity,with
a culture, and with human rights," Nowling said. "They say that they now are going to watch out and respect us."
Nowling said she hopes that people everywhere see
transgender people as the person they are.
We're just average people that want to live, and love, and exist."
Una Knowling University alumna
"We're just average people that want to live, and love, and exist," Nowling said.
Nowling said she thinks people who want to support the LGBTQ+ community should treat them as the gender each person identifies as, and to use the pronouns that each individual wants to be called.
"[We] just want to be Americans and citizens of the world, [we] just want to be ourselves," Nowling said.
Learning a second language provides multiple advantages
- Edited by Lexanna Sims
HAILEY DIXON
@_Hailey_Dixon
German, English, Czech Italian, French, Korean Spanish and American Sign Language; these are the combined languages spoken by Christian Beer and Tessa Newberry.
In this Kansan file photo, the University Spanish Language Table meets at Henry's Upstairs. Language Tables are programs offered by the School of Languages, Literatures and Cultures that offer the chance to converse in different languages in a relaxed setting.
Although it's not essential to learn all those languages, Beer, an outreach coordinator in the School of Languages; Literatures and Cultures, said learning a language in college provides many benefits, both inside and outside the classroom.
A recent study from the Pew Research Center found that 36 percent of people surveyed believe learning a foreign language is necessary to be successful in the modern workplace.
File Photo/KANSAN
Beer agreed, and said that no language is better to study than another. However, students should consider their major and career goals when deciding on a second language to learn.
"It depends on what you're here to study at KU," Beer said.
Newberry, a student assistant in the school, said that she although Spanish is beneficial to learn, there are many other languages that are as important.
"Speaking Spanish in the Midwest — and really the U.S. in general — is very practical on a day-to-day basis," Newberry said. "But if you study something, for example Korean, that gives you specialized insight into not only a language of a very productive company
like Samsung, if you own anything from them that's produced in South Korea but it also gives you insights into a culture thats extremely different than ours."
Beer said that if someone is already familiar with two languages, learning a third can be helpful. Although expanding fluency and knowledge of a language already learned is beneficial too, he said.
Beer said he suggests that learning an additional language in college, if someone is already exposed to one, is helpful for students.
Learning pieces of a language on a conversational
level is valued as well, even if a person is not completely fluent, Newberry said.
"Even just four semesters can make world of a difference. A basic understanding of the language and a basic understanding of the culture," Beer said.
Even just four semesters can make a world of a difference."
Christian Beer Outreach coordinator in the School of Languages Literatures and Cultures
Learning the culture of foreign languages makes a difference too, according to Beer. He said that it is important to know the language and the environment, as both help a person immerse themselves in the language.
The University has
Newberry said there are also various clubs and organizations to join that can expand knowledge on the language and culture chosen by the student. Studying abroad can also be beneficial when studying a language.
many additional resources for students who want to augment their language courses.
The school houses a foreign language library that offers CDs, tapes and DVDs that students can rent in a variety of languages, according to Beer. Beer said that these resources are a better alternative to using translation systems such as Google.
Beer and Newberry both said that learning a language in college can help a person's professional and personal life on all levels.
"You're really learning a life skill," Beer said.
- Edited by Cody Schmitz
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