IU Bloomington makes Campus Pride list of top 30 LGBTQ-friendly campuses
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- For the fourth time, Indiana University Bloomington has been included in the Campus Pride List of the top LGBTQ-friendly colleges and universities.
Campus Pride, founded in 2001, is a national nonprofit network of student leaders and campus groups devoted to improving college life for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students across the United States. This year Campus Pride recognized 30 campuses.
Campus Pride's 2016 "Best of the Best" list, which was announced today, is based on LGBTQ-friendly benchmarks for policies, programs and practices in higher education. Results are determined through a voluntary self-assessment survey. The list includes public and private colleges with student populations ranging from 807 to 45,000.
“I am thrilled and proud that IU has been named once again to the top LGBTQ-friendly colleges and universities in the nation,” said Mike Shumate, IU Foundation Board director and former president of the IU GLBT Alumni Association. “It is another confirmation that diversity remains fundamentally important to the university. In the midst of the political rhetoric, IU continues to ensure it's a welcoming environment where all of our students can learn on a level playing field and in a safe environment.”
IU Bloomington appeared on the list in 2012, 2014 and 2015. In 2011, the campus received a top rating of five stars in Campus Pride's LGBT-Friendly Campus Climate Index.
To earn a spot in the Top 30, an institution had to score the highest percentages in the LGBTQ-friendly benchmarks.
IU alumnus Shane Windmeyer, executive director of Campus Pride and creator of the Campus Pride Index, said parents and prospective students today expect colleges to be LGBTQ-friendly and want to know about programs, services and resources available on campus. The Campus Pride list, he said, represents the “top campuses leading the way.”
Doug Bauder, director of IU’s Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Student Support Services Office, said the university has remained committed to LGBTQ students, especially in a time when there is still work to be done regarding LGBTQ rights.
“The fact that we were invited to become part of the Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Multicultural Affairs a few years ago speaks to me of the campus’s commitment to the intersectionality of issues of race, gender and sexuality and the importance of various aspects of students’ identity development,” Bauder said. “Support from the president’s and the provost’s office as well as schools, departments, student organizations and the alumni association all are important factors in helping LGBTQ+ students feel welcome at IU Bloomington.”
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