At colleges across the region this week, boxes are being unpacked, families are being hugged and dorm doors are being closed as thousands of students embark on their college careers.
Late August can be a daunting time for all college students, especially freshmen or those returning to the classroom after a break, as they’re tasked with meeting new people, learning new schedules and facing new pressures — not only to earn good grades but also to assimilate in their new surroundings. Those are challenges that can be further exacerbated for LGBT students.
Though college campuses have long been considered bastions for liberal thinking, that’s not to say every student, teacher or classroom is LGBT-affirming. Even on welcoming campuses, new LGBT students may need to repeatedly come out — during intro sessions in classes, when discussing significant others with dorm mates or when connecting with classmates on social media — a taxing task that can leave students weary of the anxiety associated with repeatedly coming out.
That’s where on-campus LGBT communities come into play. Even if students don’t feel like they necessarily need to belong to a gay-straight alliance, checking out such organizations can’t do any harm; students may even be surprised by how much comfort they get from finding a circle of students who are facing the same situations they are.
However, colleges and universities shouldn’t expect students to come seek out those safe spaces: The start of the school year is the best time to actively introduce and engage students with the LGBT resources on campus. Showcasing LGBT safe spaces on equal terms as communities and organizations for other groups of students can go a long way in reaching students who are grappling with more than homesickness.
Professors can also make strides to make their classrooms LGBT-affirming. In addition to overt gestures like installing rainbow stickers on their office doors to communicate that they are safe spaces, teachers can go the extra step by reducing the pressures of long-binary systems often used in higher education. They can eliminate classroom activities that segregate students into “men” and “women” classifications, and use gender-neutral language in classroom discussions, such as “partner” instead of “boyfriend” or “girlfriend.” No matter how small such steps may seem, each can alleviate the obstacles LGBT students face.
The start of a new semester is an exciting prospect, though many LGBT students may view it instead as a mountain of challenges. Student leaders, campus administrators and faculty can play an important role in ensuring all students are welcomed to campus, and that they welcome the opportunities that await them.