After sharing space with the Pride Center for over three years, Sacramento State’s Women’s Resource Center has relocated to the second floor of the University Union.

The WRC is currently transitioning out of their current location on the first floor of the Union, across from Epicure and down the hall from Round Table.

According to John Johnson, director of the Centers for Diversity and Inclusion, the Pride Center and WRC were not always designed to be together. The expansion has allocated enough space for additional on campus programs to have their own space.

“All communities need to have support, resources, services, etc. that target them,” Johnson said. “It’s been difficult to navigate having a space that serves both populations simultaneously because there’s overlap.”

The Union is an ideal location for the WRC due to its high traffic of students, according to Johnson.

“Our rent is going to double, but we see that as beneficial and valuable,” Johnson said.

According to Aisha Engle, the program coordinator for the WRC, the new space will create more visibility for women-identified students on campus.

The hope for maintaining a space solely dedicated to women-identified students is that it will create a community and bring a sense of belonging, Engle stated.

“The impact will be immense because across the 22 CSU campuses there’s little to no allocated spaces that are specifically geared toward women identified students that even hold the name Women’s Resource Center, so that’s going to be a huge achievement,” said Engle.

Sac State film major Heather Uroff said it’s great that the WRC was able to relocate to the expanded University Union, and hopes the new space will serve even more students.

“I love that there are so many different centers on campus that bring in a sense of community for students,” said Uroff. “The Women’s Resource center having its own space will definitely further that sense of community.”

The new space will provide the same resources the WRC has always provided, which includes free condoms, tampons and pads, an all-gender bathroom, programs, internship information and conferences that students can take advantage of.

“There’s nothing that is going to be different necessarily, but the idea that we actually have an allocated space for women-identified students in it of itself is a huge difference,” said Engle.

Johnson said all the spaces under the Centers for Diversity and Inclusion equally provide services for marginalized identities on campus.

“The existence of the Centers for Diversity and Inclusion has a huge impact that will help students be able to feel like they have a place where they can be their authentic selves in a holistic environment,” Engle said.

In being part of the space, whether using its resources or working part-time at the center, students are able to expand their agency and be part of a community that will provide them skill sets and opportunities to expand their professional development, according to Engle.

“I’m absolutely ecstatic about having a space that’s solely dedicated to the women identified students,” Engle said. “We need it, this is essential.”