HOW IS THE LGBT COMMUNITY REPRESENTED AT CLU?

Inclusivity is a standard at California Lutheran University which includes many different groups, including LGBTQ. So what’s the LGBTQ community like at CLU?

Oct. 11, 2017, was National Coming Out Day and the PRIDE Club of CLU celebrated by having a table set up at the Spine. Members of the club joined to spread awareness about PRIDE with rainbow flags around their table and a canvas painted with rainbow handprints to represent the club.

PRIDE stands for People Respecting Individuality, Diversity, and Equality. The club strives to create a safe environment for LGBTQ groups and educates students about worldwide LGBTQ issues.

For National Coming Out Day, PRIDE Club had set up a booth and talked about the club and how the LGBTQ community is represented.

“I think that the LGBTQ community is represented well at CLU because of having PRIDE Club,” said Thomas Little, sophomore and PRIDE club member. “Cal Lutheran is already so inclusive with all communities and having the LGBTQ community represented on campus is great.”

CLU, as a religious and private institution, has made steps towards equal rights for everybody on campus by spreading the movement of inclusivity of all students.

On CLU’s website, under “Mission and Identity”, the university made a statement titled “LGBTQ Inclusivity” regarding the LGBTQ community at the institution stating,

“California Lutheran University is an intentionally diverse community committed to inclusivity and respect for the dignity of each individual. As such, we seek to be a place of welcome for students, faculty and staff who are or come to know themselves as gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered persons.”

As part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA), Cal Lutheran affirms to the church’s policy that gay and lesbian people, as individuals created by God, are welcome to participate fully in the life of the congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The mission of this statement is to prevent any discrimination against minority groups who identify as LGBTQ, trying to create equal opportunities and experiences for everyone.

CLU offers Safe Zone allies which is a support group composed of students, faculty, and other staff members who are willing to strive for a campus free from discrimination, harassment, and oppression. An ally works to end oppression and discrimination through support and advocacy. To become an alley, the person would attend a Safe Zone trainings held by CAPS, Counseling and Psychological Services, which consists of learning about and demonstrating their support for the presence of a culturally diverse campus that embraces underrepresented groups.

“It’s hard to say how effective it is having Safe Zone allies on campus, as that is extremely difficult to measure. When we provide Safe Zone trainings, we always follow-up with an evaluation to gain valuable feedback for our future trainings, however this does not capture the experiences of those who are seeking support from allies. One piece of effectiveness is giving Safe Zone allies a sticker to display, and putting names and contact information of faculty and staff who have completed the training, so that they can be identified,” said Dr. Beth Turner, Outreach Coordinator and Licensed Psychologist.

Comparing Safe Zone allies to other institutions, many universities focus on different aspects of diversity and inclusivity.

“Safe Zone trainings are fairly common on university campuses. Many large and small, public and private universities have some form of safe zone trainings. Some universities have differing types of safe zones that focus on many different aspects of diversity. Some universities have some sort of LGBTQ or multicultural office, or a pride group, who facilitates the trainings. I am unsure if there is a difference between religiously-affiliated universities and non-affiliated universities with facilitation of these types of trainings,” Dr. Turner adds.

There is a lack of research on LGBTQ students at religiously affiliated institutions like CLU which raises some questions about LGBTQ students and their experiences on campus. Brooks Masters, Coordinator of Peer Assisted Learning and Allies in STEM, conducted a survey with responses from 213 students at CLU and produced a thesis on this subject in May 2017. Of those students, 82 percent identified as heterosexual and 18 percent identified as LGB/Q. One interesting finding was that having an affiliation with an affirming religion had a positive correlation to greater self expression for LGBTQ students, greater diversity in sexual orientation and gender identity and more positive perception of environment amongst LGBTQ students.

Students were asked if they knew what sources were most responsive to LGBTQ concerns and issues. 48 persent said residence life and PRIDE club were most responsive but 19 percent of students said they didn’t know any source to be responsive. “This could be due to centralized versus decentralized LGBTQ sources as CLU’s LGBTQ resources are scattered throughout the university; one can find information at residence life, the multicultural office or counseling services,” said Brooks Masters.

The lack of research on LGBTQ students at religiously affiliated institutions make it more difficult to determine if students of the community are being represented well compared to other universities. Although CLU may not have a centralized LGBTQ resource center, CLU is making big strides to promote equality and inclusivity.

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