Page 8 GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE May, 1990

Clevelanders To Take Pride In

by Lois Lane

Dolores Noll made her way through the hall of the Lesbian-Gay Community Service Center while exchanging friendly greetings with those who know her. The Kent activist has gotten to know many people in the Cleveland area and has become quite popular.

With her hair pulled back and a pink triangle pinned to her sweater, Noll discussed recently her personal and professional life, which seem to go hand in hand.

Noll has a thing for activism. The 59year-old has been fighting for change for almost 30 years.

Originally from Kentucky, Noll has an impressive educational background. She graduated from the University of Florida in 1951 with a bachelor of arts degree before becoming a fourth-grade teacher in Charleston, Ind. Her next stop and challenge was becoming an instructor for the Department of English at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn. Noll went on to obtain her master's and doctorate degrees from the University of Kentucky.

Noll took the road to Kent State University in 1961, where she accepted a position as an English professor. She's been living there ever since and has since retired from teaching.

While at Kent State, Noll flourished with organizational leadership experience. She served as faculty adviser for the Student Peace Union and president of the Kent Committee for a Sane Nuclear Policy from 1962 to 1964. Noll then went on to become vice president of the Kent State Chapter of American Federation of Teachers in 1971 and 1972. In 1971 Noll came out as a lesbian. Noll said, "I remember coming out when speaking before one of my classes. Other students approached me to start a group."

That group, the Kent Gay Liberation Front, is now known as the Kent GayLesbian Foundation, or KGLF. "We had 70 students at the first meeting," she recalls.

Noll served as faculty adviser and coadviser until resigning in 1986.

Noll's continued activism included serving on the Portage County American Civil Liberties Union Board for three years.

"While working with the ACLU, I was working with the ACLU project on getting an anti-gay discrimination law passed," Noll said. Her term ended in 1976.

Noll also developed a Gay and Lesbian Caucus for the Modern Languages. "This was the largest profession for college language teachers," Noll said.

In addition, Noll served as chairperson of the Division of Gay Studies with the Modern Language Association and vice president of the Ohio Lesbian-Gay Rights Coalition.

Noll also has a list of honors which includes the Crompton-Noll award.

"The Crompton-Noll award is a $200

prize for the best essay on a gay or lesbian piece of literature. This has been going on since 1973 when the Modern Language conference was formed."

Each year at the conference the award is presented in honor of Dolores Noll.

"I'm proud of this organization", Noll said. In 1981 she was named one of the five outstanding teachers at Kent State University. She also received awards from the Kent Gay-Lesbian Foundation and Peer Services Inc., of Northeast Ohio.

What more could one do? Well, it seems only fitting that an insightful lesbian English professor, quite a verbal one at that, would not go without writing on gay and lesbian issues.

Dolores Noll

Noll has enlightened people on such issues as "A Gay Feminist in Academia," "Professional and Union Caucuses," and Our Right To Love: A Lesbian Resource Book.

Furthermore, she was a member of the Editorial Board on Homosexuality, Lesbian and Gay Men in Society, History and Literature. Noll also participated with the reviews of the Gay Academic; It's Time, the newsletter of the National Gay Task Force; and Immodest Acts: The Life of a Lesbian Nun in Renaissance Italy.

In 1986, Noll decided enough was enough. “I backed off. I was getting

burned out."

Noll decided to resign from most of her regular boards and committees and take it easy for awhile. A two-year break was all, and she was back.

"Not until this past summer did I start looking around to get active again. I was looking around for a group to join because I wanted to get back into the gay rights movement."

What Noll found was the Lesbian-Gay Community Service Center with open arms awaiting her experience. It was a

perfect match and Noll once again became active in the movement.

"In the fall of 1988 I got on the board. I work 20 hours a week and commute from Kent everyday. I work as the center's acting director. We're currently trying to raise money to hire a full-time executive director and are conducting a national search."

While describing her role, Noll seems to have an intense interest in making changes for the gay and lesbian community.

"I am interested in trying to find space for more women's groups. We are concerned about the lesbian community and dissension of the lesbian-gay community."

Photo by Pat Young

Noll adds: "I'm also very interested in the HIV support groups we have here. One of the things that interested me was the gay rights part and the HIV part. We are trying to raise money to get groups organized."

Noll is optimistic about the center's progress on the HIV and AIDS issues.

“Now I'm back dealing with this AIDS issue and I think we're making a difference and I'm proud to be a part of that movement."

Noll also hopes to strengthen the center's Speaker's Bureau. That seems to be a sharp area for Noll, who has spoken many times as a lesbian to high school and college classes and at feminist, lesbian and gay conferences. Included in the experience is a keynote address to the National Gay Bicentennial Conference in Washington.

Noll said of her work at the Center: "I hope that what I've done is to help the organization and get its administrative business more in line, and move towards a professional organization and prepare for a full-time director."

Noll praised services director Aubrey Wertheim, and board members Judy

Quilt movie wins Academy Award

Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt has won the Academy Award for Best Feature Documentary for its study of the Names Project AIDS Memorial Quilt.

Common Threads aired on HBO in October 1989 and also was recently awarded the George Foster Peabody Award, a broadcast-industry award. The film is on videotape and available from the Names Project.

"HBO made it possible for Common Threads to be created and distributed as a fund raiser for us; all profits benefit the Names Project," said David Lemos, executive director of the project. "So, not only does the film introduce the Quilt to an audience of millions, but it also raises money for the project to continue its work-educating, comforting, and opening people's hearts and minds to the reality of the AIDS epidemic.”

Common Threads is a portrait of the first decade of the AIDS epidemic in America. Through the quilt, the film introduces five people who have died of AIDS, from an 11-year-old suburban boy to a gay Olympic athlete to an inner-city IV-drug user.

The film is narrated by Dustin Hoffman and Bobby McFerrin performs the original score.

Common Threads was directed by Academy Award winner Rob Epstein (The Times of Harvey Milk) and Jeffrey Friedman (Faces of the Enemy), and produced by Epstein, Friedman, and Bill Couturie (Dear America: Letters Home From Vietnam). Executive Producer was Sandollar: Howard Rosenman/Sandy Gallin/Carol Baum.

A toll-free number has been established for ordering the video: 800-USANAME: Cost is $25 and all profits support the Names Project Foundation.

The foundation, sponsor of the AIDS Memorial Quilt, was established in June 1987 in San Francisco. Its goals are to illustrate the impact of AIDS, to provide a powerful expression to those who must confront AIDS and to raise funds to support people with AIDS and their loved

ones.

Rainbrook and Nick Palumbo for their

work in shaping the center.

On a more personal note, Noll describes herself as an animal lover. "I have five cats and one rabbit and I like to feed the ducks and geese."

Noll and her lover of eight years, Pat, live in Kent.

Longtime friend and associate Bob Laycock describes Noll as a risk taker and committed.

"She is a real leader and came along [to the Center] when some important work needed to be done and brought stability to us,” Laycock said. ▼

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