ANN ARBOR—University of Michigan School of Information graduate students have established ClosetCulture.net, an anonymous online community for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) individuals.

ClosetCulture.net (CCn) provides an open forum where individuals questioning their sexual orientation or gender identity can share experiences. CCn members are not required to submit personal information beyond a user name. “As a community, we hope to raise awareness of closeted LGBT and questioning people,” said Nicholas Johnson, project leader and a human-computer interaction student at the School of Information. Frederic MacDonald-Dennis, director of the Office of Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender Affairs at U-M, says the site is a great resource. “In this age of technology, I’m glad that this site exists for people,” he said. CCn’s features include forums, private messaging and a complete member listing. “CCn uses the Internet to create a virtual space for closeted individuals to connect with one another, since it is impossible to develop a ‘community of hidden identities’ in the real world,” Johnson said. “I think isolation in general makes people’s lives more difficult, and connecting people to each other so that they can share experiences and support each other is a good thing,” said Jim Etzkorn, a psychologist in private practice in Ann Arbor and speaker on LGBT issues. The advisers for the project are Paul Resnick, associate professor of information whose research interests include online communities, and Terry Weymouth, associate research scientist in the School of Information. The project also includes master’s students Jim Harvey, Marjorie Knepp, Nathan Parham and Kelly Tyler. “We’ve been trying to encourage social entrepreneurship among our students, entrepreneurship in service of public goods,” said Resnick, who is also coordinator of the Community Information Corps. “I’m thrilled that Nicholas had a great idea and assembled a team of other students who turned that idea into a real service.” For information about ClosetCulture.net, contact the CCn staff at [email protected] or visit www.closetculture.net. Related links:

Office of Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender Affairs Or
Nicholas Johnson, [email protected]
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ClosetCulture.net (CCn) provides an open forum where individuals questioning their sexual orientation or gender identity can share experiences. CCn members are not required to submit personal information beyond a user name. “As a community, we hope to raise awareness of closeted LGBT and questioning people,” said Nicholas Johnson, project leader and a human-computer interaction student at the School of Information. Frederic MacDonald-Dennis, director of the Office of Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender Affairs at U-M, says the site is a great resource. “In this age of technology, I’m glad that this site exists for people,” he said. CCn’s features include forums, private messaging and a complete member listing. “CCn uses the Internet to create a virtual space for closeted individuals to connect with one another, since it is impossible to develop a ‘community of hidden identities’ in the real world,” Johnson said. “I think isolation in general makes people’s lives more difficult, and connecting people to each other so that they can share experiences and support each other is a good thing,” said Jim Etzkorn, a psychologist in private practice in Ann Arbor and speaker on LGBT issues. The advisers for the project are Paul Resnick, associate professor of information whose research interests include online communities, and Terry Weymouth, associate research scientist in the School of Information. The project also includes master’s students Jim Harvey, Marjorie Knepp, Nathan Parham and Kelly Tyler. “We’ve been trying to encourage social entrepreneurship among our students, entrepreneurship in service of public goods,” said Resnick, who is also coordinator of the Community Information Corps. “I’m thrilled that Nicholas had a great idea and assembled a team of other students who turned that idea into a real service.” For information about ClosetCulture.net, contact the CCn staff at [email protected] or visit www.closetculture.net.

Related links:

Office of Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender Affairs

www.closetculture.net