SU selected among 100 best campuses for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) students

SU selected among 100 best campuses for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) studentsAugust 01, 2006Adrea Jaehniglgbt@syr.edu

Syracuse University has been recognized as one of the 100 Best Campuses for LGBT students and is included in “The Advocate College Guide for LGBT Students,” the first comprehensive campus guide to highlight the 100 most LGBT-friendly campuses in the United States. SU’s positive environment, programs and services, and LGBT student coalitions earned it the distinction.

“We are extremely pleased and honored that Syracuse University was recognized for its commitment to a diverse campus,” says Barry L. Wells, senior vice president and dean of student affairs. “Syracuse University recognizes the need to provide an inclusive and nurturing environment for all our students, including LGBT students, and our campus leaders have worked diligently to create a safe space through services, programs and initiatives that are being recognized as model practices nationally.”

The LGBT Resource Center was established at SU in the fall of 2001 through the unanimous support of the University Senate. The Division of Student Affairs was charged with creating and staffing the center to provide safe space, support, education and advocacy for the LGBT community on campus.

The LGBT Studies Program at SU was created in April 2006. It will offer a minor in LGBT studies beginning this fall and first year forums for LGBT students and allies.

The launch of the program coincides with the start of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Allies (LGBTA) learning community at SU, an academically supportive environment for students focusing on a specific subject area.

Students in the LGBTA learning community will take QSX 112: Sexualities, Genders, Bodies, which is being taught this fall by acclaimed poet and activist Minnie Bruce Pratt.

Additionally, SU’s overall University and student policies on non-discrimination have recently been updated to protect gender identity and gender expression, changes that have been brought forth through the efforts of the University Senate Committee on LGBT Concerns. A subgroup of that committee is working with officials within the Office of Human Resources to develop recommendations for revising SU’s domestic partnership policies and procedures for students, staff and faculty as well.

Released Aug. 1, “The Advocate College Guide for LGBT Students” profiles 100 colleges and universities from across the country that offer resources and create a positive living and learning environment for LGBT students. Campus PrideNet, the leading national organization for LGBT and ally student leaders, with support from a team of expert LGBT professionals from the National Consortium of Directors of LGBT Resources in Higher Education, developed the criteria and a questionnaire for nominations to gather feedback from current LGBT students, faculty and staff regarding personal experiences and opinions about their campus.

After receiving nominations from 680 campuses and conducting more than 5,500 online interviews, 100 campuses were selected for the book based on institutional policies, commitment and support, academic life, housing, student life, counseling and health services, campus safety and recruitment and retention efforts. The list of 100 is broken down in multiple indexes such as region, state, type of institution and size. Individual campus profiles include information on size, tuition, admission application deadlines, gay-affirmative policies, events, LGBT student groups and resources, housing for LGBT students and more.

“The top 100 colleges and universities profiled in `The Advocate College Guide’ lead the way for the rest of higher education to be LGBT-friendly. These campuses take to heart the value of supporting all students — what better way for a campus to come out as LGBT-friendly?” says Shane L. Windmeyer, executive director of Campus PrideNet and author of “The Advocate College Guide for LGBT Students.”

For more information about Campus PrideNet or to order a copy of “The Advocate College Guide for LGBT Students,” visit http://www.campuspride.net.

For more information on SU’s LGBT Resource Center, visit http://lgbt.syr.edu orcontact Adrea Jaehnig at (315) 443-3983 or lgbt@syr.edu.

For more information on the LGBT Studies Program, contact program directors Margaret Himley at (315) 443-4947 or mrhimley@syr.edu, or Andrew London at (315) 443-5067 or anlondon@syr.edu, or visit http://thecollege.syr.edu/depts/lgbt/Minor.htm.