UMSL’s LGBTQ+ Coordinator Harry Hawkins (back left) received a Lead OUT Loud Award on Thursday at the 2019 Midwest LGBTQIA Rights Conference. He was joined during the awards presentation at the Washington University in St. Louis School of Law by (from left) Professor Karen Tokarz; Senior Lecturer Amy Eisen Cislo; Chief Strategy Officer and Legal Director at Lambda Legal Sharon McGowan; law student and OUTLaw Co-President Lennox Mark; Professor Susan Frelich Appleton; and Dean Nancy Staudt. (Photo courtesy of Washington University in St. Louis School of Law)

Harry Hawkins, the LGBTQ+ coordinator at the University of Missouri–St. Louis, received a Lead OUT Loud Award on Thursday at the 2019 Midwest LGBTQIA Rights Conference.

The annual event, which was hosted by the Washington University in St. Louis School of Law, honored Hawkins for his contributions as chair of the Transgender Spectrum Conference hosted in November on UMSL’s campus.

“All through my life, I’ve said, ‘How can I help my community? And if my community ever needed anything I would answer the call,’” Hawkins said. “When I was asked to chair the conference last year, I said, ‘Tell me what I need to do, and we’ll make this happen.’ I’m very humbled and very honored to receive this award.”

The 2018 Transgender Spectrum Conference broke previous attendance records with a crowd of nearly 400. It was also a homecoming as UMSL hosted the first two conferences in 2014 and 2015. The goal of the annual program is to provide an opportunity for the broad community to gather and enhance the visibility of the transgender community in St. Louis and throughout the Midwest.

“I was completely blown away by the attendees,” Hawkins said. “I’m glad to hear that people come from all over the Midwest to attend and that they love when it is on our campus. I think this fits right into our mission of ‘We Transform Lives.’”

WUSTL will host the next Transgender Spectrum Conference on Nov. 8-9.