I'm a prospective student, (accepted for first year engineering, but I won't decide where I'm going until I hear back from a few other places,) and I was wondering how you'd summarize the LGBTQ environment on campus? How's the trans* environment specifically?
Hi! Congratulations! ^_^ Great question and thank you for asking!
As far as the LGBTQ environment on goes, I would score it a 7-8/10 c:The not so good:Residence Halls and BathroomsCurrently, individuals are assigned to the wing that matches the letter on their ID ( :c ) or are placed in Hilltop apartments in single rooms. However Purdue is also in the process of passing legislation to improve the housing situation and I believe a gender neutral hall (or portion of a hall) is being worked on.
Purdue does feature Gender neutral bathrooms in a majority of buildings but they are not as common as """regular""" bathrooms. However, I hear there is university legislation being worked on to increase the existing number.
The pretty good: We are in the 7% of schools that have a University supported LGBTQ center. Additionally, in the recent past Purdue adopted a non-discrimination statement that protects all individuals regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation. Our Health center (PUSH) recently made hormones accessible to students. Our LGBTQ Center offers an education program called Safe Zone so that allies are able to be more visible on campus (over 900 students, faculty, and staff have been safe zone certified!) There is also a way to change your email and log in to preferred name (link attached)And overall, I generally find campus to be accepting and individuals willing to learn and change their opinions, especially faculty and staff. Students can be a mixed bag but are generally respectful especially due to the growing efforts to educate the population on LGBTQ and trans* issues. Bc the campus and population are fairly large, I know not everything is as great as I wish it could be but it is improving.
If you have any questions, feel free to continue to ask c:If you feel like you are still uncertain, let us know and I will ask some individuals of our community who are trans* to communicate their experiences with you.
Also, here is a link to some LGBTQ resources on and around campus http://www.purdue.edu/lgbtq/resources/Good luck wherever you go in the future! ^_^
