The You Can Play Project is dedicated to ensuring equality, respect and safety for all athletes, without regard to sexual orientation and gender identity and expression. You Can Play works to guarantee that athletes are given a fair opportunity to compete, judged by other athletes and fans alike, only by what they contribute to the sport or their teams success. You Can Play seeks to challenge the culture of locker rooms and spectator areas by focusing only on an athlete's skills, work ethic and competitive spirit. GVSU proudly joins the You Can Play team!

The Lakers join the You Can Play team in supporting diversity and inclusion for all athletes - the first Division II school to join. GVSU hosts 20 intercollegiate sports (11 for women nine for men) that compete in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC), winning eight straight Directors' Cup titles (Best NCAA division II Athletic Program in the Nation) from 2004-2011.

The You Can Play video project at GVSU was student-led, featuring student athletes in several different sports as well Athletic Director Tim Selgo. Student athletes appearing in the video include Brent Showerman, Stephen Fuelling (men's track), Dani Crandall, Alex Stelfox, Briauna Taylor (women's basketball), Derek Mead (men's swimming), Jasmine Ramahi (women's diving), Alyssa Sharrad and KC Christopher (women's softball).

The video was produced and filmed by Joe Miller, Alex Gillis and Mark Switzer, with Switzer providing editing services, and with the assistance of Athletic Director Selgo, the GVSU student athletes and Athletics Department and the GVSU LGBT Resource Center.