If you are a member of the LGBTQ+ community — or if you're interested in LGBTQ+ issues — you'll discover an active, diverse, and above all welcoming LGBTQ+ community at Kenyon. It includes not only students but also professors and administrators.
At Kenyon, our LGBTQ+ community supports one another, and we seek to form a strong and generous support system, while providing resources to help our queer and transgender students thrive. All are welcome to join in the process of celebrating and sharing our commitment to LGBTQ+ student support and inclusion.
Here, you’ll find a number of resources for Kenyon’s LGBTQ+ community. While these initiatives are led by the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (ODEI), we have a number of campus and community partners who share in this important work.
Please take a moment to explore the various resources on this website, including upcoming and past events, information about inclusive language, resources for transgender students, information about our LGBTQ+ inclusive non-discrimination policy, and much more!
National Recognition
In recent years, Kenyon has been profiled as a top institution for LGBTQ+ students in Ohio and the Midwest, and in summer 2020 and summer 2021, Kenyon was ranked by Campus Pride and Best Colleges as one of the 25 best institutions of higher education for LGBTQ+ students in the country. Previously, Kenyon was also given a 5/5 rating from the Campus Pride Index, and in both fall 2020 and fall 2021, Kenyon was also dubbed one of the “Best of the Best” by Campus Pride.
Institutional Commitment
Despite federal policy changes affecting LGBTQ+ students, Kenyon upholds a strong commitment to LGBTQ+ inclusion, publicly responding to the removal of trans-inclusive Title IX regulations in 2017, to concerns over gender marker changes on passports, and to a federal rule defining sex and gender. The College proudly retains a LGBTQ+ inclusive non-discrimination policy, and the village of Gambier has enacted a LGBTQ+ inclusive non-discrimination ordinance.
Allyship in the Classroom
It is essential for educators to be aware of implicit and explicit biases that come from embedded cultural assumptions and how those behaviors may manifest in a classroom environment. Learn about tips, best practices and resources that can help a classroom be more inclusive for LGBTQ+ students.
Signature Events with National Leaders
Kenyon recognizes days, weeks and months of significance to the LGBTQ+ community, partnering with state and national leaders and organizations. Past events have involved the National Center for Transgender Equality, Equality Ohio, the ACLU of Ohio, the Making Gay History Podcast and interAct Advocates for Intersex Youth.
Trans Inclusion Across Campus
Kenyon is proud to support and celebrate transgender and non-binary students, faculty and staff. The campus has more than 70 single-occupancy bathrooms, and our partners across campus provide a number of resources to support transgender and non-binary students.
Kenyon Queer and Trans Studies Conference
Kenyon was proud to found an inaugural, biennial conference for queer and transgender studies in April 2019. The most recent 2021 conference hosted more than 250 undergraduate and graduate students from more than 50 different academic institutions from over 30 different states. The conference will return in April 2024.