The Texas A&M Pride Center will be rebranded to the Student Life Center in the coming months, according to a Nov. 2 press release by the Queer Empowerment Council, or QEC.

The change is another repercussion of SB 17, a Texas law passed in the last legislative session that prohibits diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at public institutions. The statement said that while the physical space will remain unchanged in the Student Services Building, LGBTQIA+ campus groups and organizations will be continuing activities and initiatives the pride center previously sponsored.

The QEC will be taking over multiple events the Pride Center previously hosted, such as the Lavender Graduation, a separate graduation ceremony for LGBTQIA+ students, the Coming Out Monologues, an event where participants told their coming-out story to an audience, and the Pride Mentors, a mentorship program that focuses on LGBTQIA+ students and community members. The QEC will also be hosting Draggieland in the spring, according to the statement.

The QEC is a newly-formed council of LGBTQIA+ student organizations, including the Queer Graduate and Professional Aggies, Transcend, oSTEM at A&M, LGBTQ Aggies, FLAKE, PrideSVMC and MedPRIDE.

“We will also act as a resource for the LGBTQIA+ population here at [A&M] and plan to release a collection of resources for LGBTQIA+ students and community members to ease this transition,” the statement reads.

The Pride Center’s rebranding to the Student Life Center will be done no later than Jan. 1, 2024, according to the statement, as that is the latest date institutions need to be in compliance with SB 17.