Planned and organized entirely by students—a tradition that proudly continues today—what would later become the Midwest Bisexual Lesbian Gay Transgender Asexual College Conference emerged in the early 1990s as an answer to the question of how to connect, educate, and empower queer students throughout the region. This came at a time when the continued growth of the mainstream lesbian, gay, and bisexual rights movement—largely underrepresenting transgender and gender non-conforming folx—was most present and powerful on the east and west coasts, isolating students in the Midwest from national LGBT work by geography, political realities, and access to resources.
In 1991, college students at another conference in Des Moines came together around this reality and dreamt the Midwest Bisexual Gay Lesbian College Conference into existence. They wanted to be part of the solution; to give a voice to queer students in the Midwest; and to make it and MBLGTACC a destination for acclaimed entertainers, activists, and thought leaders. They sought to create an oasis in what Justin Connor (MBLGCC ‘94) says was seen as “a queer desert.” (Notice the re-ordering of letters in the conference's second year)
The group came together a year later to lay down the organizing principles and logistical roadmap for a conference of LGBT students, to be held each year at a college or university in the Midwest. The first annual MBLGCC was held at Iowa State University in February 1993, a collaborative effort between students at Iowa State and Drake University.
For 30 years, MBLGTACC has brought students together from around the region—and the nation—to learn from one another’s experiences, build-up each other’s knowledge and skills, and share in community. It has attracted respected advocates, thought leaders, entertainers, and artists to the Midwest and created space for growth and togetherness.
The Institute is actively working to unearth more conference history. Were you an early MBLGCC or MBLGTCC planner? Connect with Noah about our MBLGTACC history project.
1993: The 1st annual Midwest, Bisexual, Gay, and Lesbian College Conference took place at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. A year later at the 2nd annual, identities listed in the conference name were re-ordered, and the conference became known as the Midwest Bisexual, Lesbian, and Gay College Conference.
1995: The theme for the 1995 and 1996 conferences was “Building Queer Success in the Midwest.” While it is unconfirmed, later attempts to assemble a conference history suggest the belief that this was intended to be the conference’s official slogan. Later conferences selected other themes, but the commitment to building queer success in the Midwest remained constant.
1997: The conference was renamed the Midwest Bisexual Lesbian Gay Transgender College Conference.
2001: The conference was renamed the Midwest Bisexual Lesbian Gay Transgender Ally College Conference.
2007: Student organizers created the Oversight Committee.
2013: Hosted in Lansing, Michigan by students from Michigan State University, MBLGTACC drew 2000+ attendees for the first time.
2015: Hosted in Normal, Illinois by students from Illinois State University, MBLGTACC reached 2500 attendees for the first time. Later that year, the MBLGTACC Oversight Committee authorized creation of a non-profit with professional staff.
2016: The Midwest Institute for Sexuality and Gender Diversity was officially launched.
2017: The 25th annual MBLGTACC was held in Chicago, Illinois, attracting 2300 attendees.
2018: The conference was hosted in Nebraska for the first time. Later that year, it was renamed the Midwest Bisexual Lesbian Gay Transgender Asexual College Conference.
2019: The conference was hosted in Kansas for the first time.
2021: Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the conference is planned to be held in the fall for the first time ever.
2022: The 30th annual conference was held in Columbus, Ohio.
2023: The conference will be hosted in Kentucky for the first time.
Ames, Iowa. Hosted by Iowa State University and Drake University
Richmond, Indiana. Hosted by Earlham College
Carbondale, Illinois. Hosted by Southern Illinois University at Carbondale
Beloit, Wisconsin. Hosted by Beloit College
Indianapolis, Indiana. Hosted by Indiana State University
Chicago, Illinois. Hosted by University of Illinois at Chicago
Madison, Wisconsin. Hosted by University of Wisconsin-Madison
Saint Cloud, Minnesota. Hosted by Saint Cloud State University
Champaign, Illinois. Hosted by University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
East Lansing, Michigan. Hosted by Michigan State University
Columbus, Ohio. Hosted by the Ohio State University.
Ames, Iowa. Hosted by Iowa State University.
Saint Cloud, Minnesota. Hosted by Saint Cloud State University.
Vermillion, South Dakota. Hosted by the University of South Dakota.
Minneapolis, Minnesota. Hosted by the University of Minnesota at Twin Cities.
Champaign, Illinois. Hosted by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Bloomington, Indiana. Hosted by Indiana University Bloomington.
Madison, Wisconsin. Hosted by the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Ann Arbor, Michigan. Hosted by the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.
Ames, Iowa. Hosted by Iowa State University.
East Lansing, Michigan. Hosted by Michigan State University.
Kansas City, Missouri. Hosted by the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
Normal, Illinois. Hosted by Illinois State University.
West Lafayette, Indiana. Hosted by Purdue University.
Chicago, Illinois. Hosted by the Midwest Institute for Sexuality and Gender Diversity and the Chicago Coalition of Queer and Allied Students (DePaul University, Loyola University Chicago, Northeastern Illinois University)
Omaha, Nebraska. Hosted by the Midwest Institute for Sexuality and Gender Diversity and the University of Nebraska-Omaha.
Wichita, Kansas. Hosted by the Midwest Institute for Sexuality and Gender Diversity and Wichita State University.
Kalamazoo, Michigan. Hosted by the Midwest Institute for Sexuality and Gender Diversity and tWestern Michigan University.
Madison, Wisconsin. Hosted by the Midwest Institute for Sexuality and Gender Diversity and the University of Madison-Wisconsin.
Columbus, Ohio. Hosted by the Midwest Institute for Sexuality and Gender Diversity and a multi-institution, multi-state coalition of student organizers.
Lexington, Kentucky. Hosted by the Midwest Institute for Sexuality and Gender Diversity in partnership with the University of Kentucky and Visit Lexington.
Host to be announced November 2023.
The Institute is actively working to unearth more conference history. Were you an early MBGLCC, MBLGCC, or MBLGTCC planner? Connect with us about our MBLGTACC history project.
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