Recognized for its continued support of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual (LGBT) students, Tufts was named one of the most gay-friendly campuses in a ranking released last month.
The Advocate magazine's first ever College Guide for LGBT Students ranks Tufts University as one of their "best of the best" top 20 schools. The ranking is based on a 20-item checklist, which yields what The Advocate calls a "gay point average." Tufts scored recognition in 18 of the items.
"The list reflects the diversity of concerns that LGBT students might have," said Bruce Steele, Editor-in-Chief of The Advocate, which is the nation's longest-running gay magazine. "What the gay point average reflects is whether the college itself is making an effort, and the impact of that effort is very subjective."
LGBT Center Director Dona Yarbrough said that Tufts only missed out on two of the 20 criteria, "actively recruits LGBT students to enroll on campus," and "offers LGBT student scholarships."
"We have no sustained efforts in those areas, so we lost two points," she said. Tufts, however, only awards aid based on students' need, with the exception of National Merit awards.
Tufts' strong suits, however, included the various resources on campus for the LGBT community, which are centralized in the LGBT Center and its home in the Bolles House.
Each year, Tufts hosts the Safe Colleges Conference, which brings students from all over New England to the Hill for workshops and speaking events on cultivating supportive atmospheres for LGBT students in a university setting.
Also mentioned in the guide is the annual celebration of GAYpril, a month-long string of pride-fostering events that take place all over campus.
The center offers men's and women's discussion groups, as well as Queer Peer Student Mentors. Residential Life also offers a housing option called the Rainbow House, where LGBT and ally students may live.
Junior Ari Rosenbaum, who works actively with the LGBT center as a Queer Peer, said that he was not surprised to hear that Tufts was receiving national recognition for its gay friendliness.
"I always thought we should have been recognized earlier," said Rosenbaum. "I feel proud to be here at a time like this."
The list includes schools from all over the nation, although some of Tufts' neighbors, like Harvard and Brown, do not appear on either the top 20 or the 100 best lists.
"When this book went to press, Harvard University did not have a policy against discrimination for transgendered students," said Steele. "Since this was published, Harvard has initiated a policy prohibiting discrimination on the basis of gender identity or expression."
"When I was in high school, I looked for info on [gay friendliness]," said junior Jon Adler, who now lives in the Rainbow House. "There just wasn't something like the guide out there for me. I would have loved this book in high school."
While Yarbrough is excited about Tufts' high ranking, she said much is still left to be done to improve the campus and to eliminate bias incidents.
"I hope the ranking will encourage more prospective students to apply to Tufts," said Yarbrough. "I want the Tufts community to see this ranking as a thank-you for what we have already done, but not as a reason to rest on our laurels."
"Of course Tufts is not a homophobia-free zone; no school is," she said. "What puts Tufts above most other schools is the fact that we are actually encouraging people to report such incidents, we are documenting the incidents, and we are actively working to reduce homophobia."
Yarbrough noted that the majority of reported bias incidents still involve sexual orientation.
Rosenbaum agrees. "The random incidents of scrawling on whiteboards and minor yelling out of cars on certain roads around campus are constant reminders that we still have work to be done," he said.
"I think there's room for growth in the community," said sophomore Sophia Nelson, who works at the LGBT Center, "but we're headed in the right direction."
