The programs and services below are led by the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (ODEI), as well as a number of campus and community partners who share in this important work. We invite you to explore some of the many ways that we work to foster an inclusive campus community.
The Kenyon Educational Enrichment Program (KEEP) is a selective program aimed at supporting and empowering students committed to building an inclusive campus community. As a KEEP Scholar, you participate in an intensive academic program the summer before your first year, where you form close connections with other scholars, faculty advisors and peer mentors that continue throughout your four years. From this strong foundation, KEEP Scholars have gone on to become leaders in our community and expand the tapestry of experiences at Kenyon.
KEEP Scholars are selected on the basis of their intellectual engagement and commitment to leadership and service. They receive a stipend for the summer program and a financial aid package free from loans and work-study for all four years
Recognizing Each Other's Ability to Conquer the Hill (REACH) is a peer mentoring program coordinated by the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. REACH connects first- and second-year students with juniors and seniors who have similar experiences and backgrounds. These peer mentors offer support, insight and positive reinforcement to help you adjust academically, emotionally and socially to campus life — and set you up for success at Kenyon.
Kenyon has been recognized as a national leader for LGBTQ+ inclusivity in higher education. LGBTQ+ students are supported with inclusive policies, LGBTQ+ focused courses, signature programs and events, and student-run spaces.
Being the first in your family to attend college can be intimidating, but it doesn't have to be. At Kenyon, there are a number of faculty and staff who were first-generation college students themselves. These staff members — along with campus partners and fellow students — help to ensure that you don’t face these challenges alone. Below, you can learn more about the resources that Kenyon offers to first-generation college students.
If you are a student with an unexpected need — related to course supplies, graduate school applications, interview attire, everyday needs, or something else — the Student Success Fund is one of many resources that may be able to help with ensuring your support and success.
Kenyon alumni welcome the opportunity to mentor current Kenyon students and eagerly participate in a variety of programs, all of which are open to all alumni and all students. The Alumni of Color Mentoring Initiative supplements broader initiatives like Kenyon’s “Just Ask” program, providing all interested students the opportunity to network with, learn from and share feedback with alumni of color. Additionally, this mentoring initiative also provides participating alumni with the opportunity to give back to the campus community in a transformational way that can help shape students’ academic and personal success.
Program Houses
The Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion oversees three distinct program houses: the Crozier Center for Women, the Snowden Multicultural Center, and Unity House. Each of these program houses help to support residential learning experiences, while also providing additional opportunities for student leaders to help shape campus programming. These program houses actively collaborate with other community centers on campus, including Hillel House and Thomas House for Muslim Life, which are managed by the Office of Spiritual and Religious Life.
The mission of the Crozier Center for Women is to be a safe space for all people to discuss and think critically about gender and gender identity/expression; to be a presence on campus that addresses issues across the gender spectrum while focusing special attention on marginalized gender experiences (i.e. those of women and transgender/non-binary people); and to provide safer sex programming, information and resources.
The mission of the Snowden Multicultural Center is to educate the Kenyon community about the wide range of cultures represented at Kenyon through student-focused programs and to increase understanding and respect for people of varying backgrounds and cultures.
The mission of Unity House is to offer a supportive, educational, social and cultural environment; to enhance the awareness and acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community across campus; and to erase stigma associated with non-straight and non-cisgender identities in order to promote greater equity both on and off campus.
Additional Kenyon Resources
The Hillel House enthusiastically invites anyone who wishes to learn more about, study and or commune in the Jewish faiths and traditions to join our community. At Kenyon, we encourage dialogue about our faith and demonstrate our openness through social, cultural, educational, political and religious life.
The Center for Global Engagement promotes global learning by offering a multitude of study abroad programs, providing orientation programming for international students, and organizing host families throughout the year.
Kenyon Interfaith Partnership (KIP) promotes relationships and mutual understanding among communities of different religious and moral traditions and supports the programming of individual student organizations. We work to encourage interfaith cooperation and exploration while promoting respect for religious life in the pursuit of the liberal arts.
Thomas House, overseen by the Office of Spiritual and Religious Life, celebrates Muslim student life on campus.
Student Accessibility Support Services (SASS) coordinates the provision of academic accommodations for students with disabilities. All accommodations are individualized, confidential and based upon both the nature of the disability and the demands of the academic environment.