PennGALA Student Award

The Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Alumni Association (PennGALA) is pleased to present the recipients of the PennGALA Student Leadership Award. This award recognizes a student who has demonstrated a commitment to serving and advancing LGBTQA diversity at the University of Pennsylvania.

The 2009 PennGALA Student Leadership Award was presented to Yana Sigal NU'09 GNU'12 on May 1, 2009. Yana is the epitome of a Penn student-leader. Yana has achieved the heights of academic success as a published student-scholar and a student recognized by faculty for her excellent academics. Additionally, Yana’s work outside the classroom has significantly impacted the Penn community, and energized the LGBT community. Yana has served as co-chair for JBaGeL (Jewish Bisexual Gay and Lesbian student group), dramatically increasing the number and religious diversity of attendees at Friday night Shabbat dinners. This year, not shying away from extra commitments, Yana co-founded NursesPUSH (Nurses at Penn Understanding Sexuality in Healthcare) to help raise awareness about sexuality issues in the healthcare profession; the group has already made significant strides in curriculum changes, faculty support, and high profile speaker events. Yana has been an outstanding citizen of the Penn community, and will no doubt take leadership roles as an alumna.

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The 2008 PennGALA Student Leadership Award was presented to KeAndra Dodds C'08 on May 2, 2008. KeAndra majored in Urban Studies with a Minor in American Public Policy. KeAndra worked to bridge the gaps between the LGBT community and both the Athletic Community and Penn's communities of color as Chair of Penn Athletes and Allies Tackling Homophobia (PATH) and as Co-Chair of Queer People of Color (QPOC). Under her leadership, QPOC transitioned from being a taskforce to a SAC funded student group, a constituent group of the Lambda Alliance, Penn's queer student coalition, and a member organization of Penn's United Minorities Council.

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The 2007 PennGALA Student Leadership Award was presented to Alexis Ruby Howe C'07 on April 27, 2007. Alexis Ruby Howe majored in Political Science and Women's Studies. Alexis' helped to establish the questioning student initiative. As co-chair of the Queer Student Alliance, she pushed for increased membership and LGBT presence on campus. Alexis also helped found the Lambda Alliance, a coalition of LGBTQA organizations, and encouraged the discussion of gender identity issues and sexuality studies.