Local
Marine biologist Kristian Fauchald dies at 79
Local LGBT advocate spent 35 years at Smithsonian
Kristian Fauchald (left) died at age 79 in April. He’s pictured here with his husband, Leonard Hirsch. (Photo courtesy Hirsch)
Kristian Fauchald, a marine biologist internationally recognized for his research on behalf of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History and a longtime supporter of LGBT rights, died April 4 at George Washington University Hospital. He was 79.
His husband, Leonard Hirsch, said the cause of death was complications associated with the sudden onset of a bronchial and heart-related condition.
Fauchald most recently served as Research Zoologist Emeritus at the Smithsonian’s Natural History Museum, where he continued his life’s work of studying a family of ocean living worms known as Polychaetous Annelids.
During his tenure of more than 35 years at the Smithsonian, Fauchald traveled to oceans throughout the world collecting samples of the marine organisms he and his collaborators studied. His scientific papers and two books considered groundbreaking in his field have been credited with advancing the world’s knowledge of ocean ecosystems.
“He impacted people around the world and in this country, of course – students, scientists and LGBT folks,” Hirsch said. “He was a truly outstanding human being.”
Fauchald was born in Norway in 1935. He received Norway’s equivalent of bachelor and master’s degrees at the University of Bergen before moving to California in 1965, where he entered and completed a doctorate degree program at the University of Southern California at Los Angeles.
In 1969, he became assistant professor of biology at USC and a short time later he was appointed curator of marine annelids at the California-based Allan Hancock Foundation, according to a write-up on Fauchald’s career and life prepared by Hirsch and several of Fauchald’s friends.
The write-up by Fauchald’s friends says Fauchald moved to D.C. in 1979 to begin what became a 35-year association with the Smithsonian Institution’s Museum of Natural History. His first position there in 1979 was with the museum’s Department of Invertebrate Zoology.
“He also involved himself in the gay community in the District, initiating rap sessions at the Gay Community Center on Church Street,” the write-up says. “He was active in the early days of the D.C. Adventuring Group [a gay outdoors organization].”
Hirsch said he and Fauchald met in 1983 and became domestic partners in 2001. They bought and began renovating a house on Q Street, N.W. in 1984, the write-up says, “that became known as ‘gay central” for LGBT organizations and causes as well as a gathering place for the couple’s extended circle of friends they considered to be family.
Fauchald and Hirsch married in California in 2008.
Hirsch said that during his years at the Smithsonian, Fauchald played an important role in helping Hirsch carry out Hirsch’s duties as president of Federal GLOBE, an organization that represents LGBT federal employees.
“Beyond his own scientific research, Kristian was a mentor for many, and the Q Street home became a haven to a long list of biologists,” the write-up says. “His deep knowledge of worms and the breadth of philosophy constantly urged inquiry,” it says.
“He was always willing to listen, and the esteem with which he is held in the scientific community can be seen in the over 30 species named for him!” says the write-up by his friends.
In a recently published obituary for Fauchald in the scientific publication World Register of Marine Species, for which Fauchald was a founding editor, the publication printed the names of all of the species bearing his name, including the most recent one in 2013 called Chirimia fauchaldi Light.
In addition to Hirsch, Fauchald is survived by his brothers Jens and Per Fauchald of Norway along with their wives and his numerous nieces and nephews.
Smithsonian officials and Fauchald’s longtime associates and friends were expected to pay special tribute to him on July 1 when they celebrate International Polychaete Day, which falls on Fauchald’s 80th birthday. Polchaetes are a class of marine worms that Fauchald devoted much of his life to studying.
Rehoboth Beach
CAMP Rehoboth hires new executive director
Dr. Robin Brennan’s background includes healthcare, fundraising roles
CAMP Rehoboth, the Delaware LGBTQ community center, on Monday announced Dr. Robin Brennan as the organization’s new executive director.
Brennan, who is relocating full time to Rehoboth Beach with her wife and daughter, will start on March 23. The position opened up following the retirement of Kim Leisey after more than two years in the role.
Brennan’s background is in health systems. At Nemours Children’s Health in Wilmington, Del., she held senior roles in evaluation, population health, and DEI education, according to a CAMP Rehoboth statement. Most recently, she served as vice president and Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer at Redeemer Health. Brennan is an experienced fundraiser, according to the statement.
“After conducting a comprehensive national search, the Board of Directors selected Robin because of her depth of leadership experience, her fundraising acumen and her overall joyful, focused approach,” said Leslie Ledogar, president of the CAMP Rehoboth board of directors and chair of the Executive Director Search Committee. “The fact that core to her leadership is her belief that community well-being is inseparable from access to health, culture, education and the arts – an approach that mirrors CAMP Rehoboth’s holistic mission – makes Robin the exact next person to lead CAMP Rehoboth today and into the future.”
“I am deeply honored to serve as CAMP Rehoboth’s executive director as we enter an exciting new chapter,” said Brennan. “I was drawn to CAMP Rehoboth because of its unwavering mission, deep roots in the community, and the meaningful role it plays in bringing people together. I look forward to meeting members of the community, listening to their stories, and building meaningful relationships with the many people who make CAMP Rehoboth such a vital community anchor.”
The Comings & Goings column is about sharing the professional successes of our community. We want to recognize those landing new jobs, new clients for their business, joining boards of organizations and other achievements. Please share your successes with us at [email protected].
The Comings & Goings column also invites LGBTQ+ college students to share their successes with us. If you have been elected to a student government position, gotten an exciting internship, or are graduating and beginning your career with a great job, let us know so we can share your success.
Congratulations to Susan Ferentinos, Ph.D., on her appointment to the Advisory Board of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. On her appointment she said, “This is a moment when historians must stand up for accuracy, complexity, and the full breadth of the American story. I look forward to working with my fellow board members to ensure the National Museum of American History continues to fulfill its mission of serving all Americans with the highest standards of scholarship and integrity.”
Ferentinos operates her own national consulting business based in Port Townsend, Wash., with satellite operations based in Delaware County, Pa. Her business helps museums, historic sites, and government agencies expand and diversify the stories they tell about the American past. Her work focuses on interpreting LGBTQ history and women’s history, bringing overlooked narratives into mainstream historical interpretation. Her clients have included the National Park Service, the American Association for State and Local History, Baltimore Heritage, and numerous museums and historic sites across the country. Among her many accomplishments, Susan was part of the teams responsible for getting three LGBTQ sites designated as National Historic Landmarks. Two of those landmarks are in Washington, D.C. She authored the NHL nominations for the Furies Collective, in Capitol Hill, building on research performed by local historian Mark Meinke, and she authored the NHL nomination for the home of African-American educators Lucy Diggs Slowe and Mary Burrill, in Brookland, building on research by Eric Griffitts and Katherine Wallace, of EHT Traceries.
Ferentinos earned her bachelor’s degree from College of William and Mary in International Development and Philosophy; a master’s from Indiana University in United States History; and a Ph.D. from Indiana University in United States History.
Congratulations also to Shawn Gaylord on joining a team at Berkshire Hathaway PenFed Reality in Solomons, Md. His focus will be Southern Maryland – Calvert, St. Mary’s, Charles, and Anne Arundel. Gaylord still leads the LGBTQ+ Strategies Team at The Raben Group and works part-time on federal policy for GLSEN.
Maryland
Md. Commission on LGBTQIA+ Affairs released updated student recommendations
LGBTQ students report higher rates of bullying, suicide
The Maryland Commission on LGBTQIA+ Affairs has released updated recommendations on how the state’s schools can support LGBTQ students.
The updated 16-page document outlines eight “actionable recommendations” for Maryland schools, supplemented with data and links to additional resources. The recommendations are:
- Developing and passing a uniform statewide and comprehensive policy aimed at protecting “transgender, nonbinary, and gender expansive students” against discrimination. The recommendation lists minimum requirements for the policy to address: name, pronoun usage, and restroom access.
- Requiring all educators to receive training about the specific needs of LGBTQ students, by trained facilitators. The training’s “core competencies” include instruction on terminology, data, and support for students.
- Implementing LGBTQ-inclusive curricula and preventing book bans. The report highlights a “comprehensive sexual education curriculum” as specifically important in the overall education curriculum. It also states the curriculum will “provide all students with life-saving information about how to protect themselves and others in sexual and romantic situations.”
- Establishing Gender Sexuality Alliances “at all schools and in all grade levels.” This recommendation includes measures on how to adequately establish effective GSAs, such as campaign advertising, and official state resources that outline how to establish and maintain a GSA.
- Providing resources to students’ family members and supporters. This recommendation proposes partnering with local education agencies to provide “culturally responsive, LGBTQIA+ affirming family engagement initiatives.”
- Collecting statewide data on LGBTQ youth. The data on Maryland’s LGBTQ youth population is sparse and non-exhaustive, and this recommendation seeks to collect information to inform policy and programming across the state for LGBTQ youth.
- Hiring a full-time team at the Maryland Department of Education that focuses on LGBTQ student achievement. These employees would have specific duties that include “advising on local and state, and federal policy” as well as developing the LGBTQ curriculum, and organizing the data and family resources.
- Promoting and ensuring awareness of the 2024 guidelines to support LGBTQ students.
The commission has 21 members, with elections every year, and open volunteer positions. It was created in 2021 and amended in 2023 to add more members.
The Governor’s Office of Communication says the commission’s goal is “to serve LGBTQIA+ Marylanders by galvanizing community voices, researching and addressing challenges, and advocating for policies to advance equity and inclusion.”
The commission is tasked with coming up with yearly recommendations. This year’s aim “to ensure that every child can learn in a safe, inclusive, and supportive environment.”
The Human Rights Campaign’s most recent report on LGBTQ youth revealed that 46.1 percent of LGBTQ youth felt unsafe in some school settings. Those numbers are higher for transgender students, with 54.9 percent of them saying they feel unsafe in school.
Maryland’s High School Youth Risk Behavior Survey reveals a disparity in mental health issues and concerns among students who identify as LGBTQ, compared to those who are heterosexual. LGBTQ students report higher rates of bullying, feelings of hopelessness, and suicidal thoughts. Nearly 36 percent of LGBTQ students report they have a suicide plan, and 26.7 percent of respondents say they have attempted to die by suicide.
The commission’s recommendations seek to combat the mental health crisis among the state’s LGBTQ students. They are also a call for local and state governments to work towards implementing them.
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