Going to College: LGBTQ students face discrimination on campus
Our Tomorrow is a campaign to engage LGBTQ people across the country in a conversation about the future of their community. To better understand the hopes and challenges faced by LGBTQ people in America today, the Our Tomorrow research team reviewed more than 100 reports and surveys from more than 50 leading researchers — presenting “a clearer picture than ever before of the U.S. LGBT community,” according to The Advocate.
Over the next few days, we’ll be sharing what we’ve learned about the lives of LGBTQ Americans in a series of posts focusing on each stage of life — from childhood through the golden years. (You can read the previous post here.)
When LGBTQ youth face challenges from their family and people in their hometown, they may look forward to college as a place where “it gets better.” However, research shows that LGBTQ people still encounter roadblocks on campus.
College campuses aren’t a safe haven.
Even in places of learning, LGBTQ people are at risk. Statistics from the U.S. Department of Education show that a quarter of all reported campus hate crimes are related to sexual orientation.
LGBTQ students are also more likely to experience harassment than their straight peers. A study by Campus Pride indicates that LGBTQ students are almost twice as likely to be harassed than their straight peers — and that rate is even higher among people of color.
LGBTQ people are often unprotected from discrimination at college.
Most colleges and universities don’t have sufficient rules to protect LGBTQ students. A report from the Center for American Progress reveals that 80 percent of the country’s 4,000 degree-granting colleges and universities lack nondiscrimination policies that cover both sexual orientation and gender identity and expression.
This lack of protection can create an environment of violence and exclusion. Twenty-five percent of campus hate crimes are related to sexual orientation, while one in five transgender students were not allowed housing appropriate for their gender identity, and one in four reported being denied access to appropriate restrooms.
Campuses aren’t equipped to address LGBTQ health issues.
Despite the challenges that many LGBTQ students face, studies show that only 30 percent of college campuses offered individual counseling to help them, while only 11 percent offered counseling groups.
Even physical health services weren’t guaranteed, with Campus Pride reporting that less than two percent of colleges and universities offer health insurance plans that cover hormone treatments and gender confirmation surgeries for transgender students.
Starting adulthood on the wrong foot.
Harassment and a lack of support for LGBTQ students can transform the college experience from a time for learning and exploration into one of fear and stress.
A 2011 study published in the Journal of Homosexuality reported that gay, lesbian and bisexual students were more likely to be diagnosed with anxiety, depression and panic attacks than straight students. They were also more likely to attempt or consider suicide.
These challenges can have a negative impact on gay, lesbian and bisexual students’ educational experiences, resulting in lower grades, more dropped courses and interrupted work on critical projects, such as theses. Another study showed that 26 percent of LGBTQ students considered leaving their school.
Some face unique obstacles, even among their LGBTQ peers. In a 2011 study, bisexual students reported having more negative perceptions of their campus climate than gay and lesbian students — primarily due to ostracism from both the straight and gay communities, and the insistence by some that they must choose one side of the sexual binary. Perhaps due to this on-campus discrimination, bisexuals graduate at a lower rate than their gay and lesbian counterparts, according to a 2013 Pew Research study.
Because of discrimination and exclusion at colleges and universities, LGBTQ students are perpetually at risk of being denied a full education and entering the adult world at a distinct disadvantage. Yet despite these challenges, research shows that these students continually persevere in the face of adversity — and today, LGBTQ people are more likely to have at least a Bachelor’s degree than their straight counterparts.
But it shouldn’t have to be so hard. While public universities and private schools that receive government funding are required to offer some limited protections for LGBTQ students under federal law, they clearly don’t go far enough in many instances. We must do more to ensure that students at every institution of higher learning have the opportunity to receive an education without fear.
How can we improve the experiences of LGBTQ students on campus? Speak up and share your ideas today at www.shareourtomorrow.org.
Eliana Reyes is a junior associate at Hattaway Communications, which is coordinating the Our Tomorrow campaign on behalf of more than 125 LGBTQ foundations and nonprofit organizations.
