The Margaret Sloss Women’s Center changed their name to the Margaret Sloss Center for Women and Gender Equity effective Jan. 7. 

“We realized it was time to update the name to better represent the work we do and the mission we uphold in our community,” said Sandra Looft, director of the Sloss Center, on the their website. “This new name aims to better reflect our goal of providing programming, resources and community to all of you at Iowa State University.”

“We are equally invested in supporting our gender non-conforming, transgender and mis-gendered students, faculty, and staff as we are with supporting and creating a safe space for everyone in our community,” Looft said. 

The Sloss Center, was created in 1981 with a focus on non-traditional students who had left the university to start families, Looft said. The Women’s Center at the time provided resources focused to young mothers and their life as students. 

The current vision of the Sloss Center is to “envisions a campus community that works collaboratively to eliminate barriers that prohibit gender equity and social justice at Iowa State University.”

Now, the Sloss Center provides a variety of resources and hosts events and organizations within it’s building. Some previous events include the Equal Pay Days, Feminist Friday, the Vagina Monologues, Women’s Equality Day and more.