Campus Pride Ranks Ithaca College in its 2021 List of LGBTQ-Friendly Institutions

By Danica Fisher ’05, August 27, 2021

IC ranks ‘Best of the Best’ LGBTQ-friendly.

Ithaca College rated five out of five on the Campus Pride Index, and was recognized in Campus Pride’s 2021 Best of the Best list. IC is one of 30 campuses from six regions of the country receiving this recognition, showing a deep commitment to LGBTQ students and earning a perfect score on the definitive national benchmarking tool, the Campus Pride Index. 

“At Ithaca College we continue to address barriers to full inclusion of LGBTQ students, and develop strategies to create learning, performance and research environments where LGBTQ students are welcomed, valued and affirmed — not only accepted, but expected as integral, necessary, essential members of our campus community,” said Luca Maurer director of the Center for LGBTQ Education, Outreach and Services.

IC has achieved the highest 5-star Campus Pride Index rating for more than a decade. This designation and the benchmarking tool on which it is based evaluates nearly 100 research-based criteria that support LGBTQ student success, and track LGBTQ-friendly policies, programs, and practices.

“At Ithaca College we continue to address barriers to full inclusion of LGBTQ students, and develop strategies to create learning, performance and research environments where LGBTQ students are welcomed, valued and affirmed — not only accepted, but expected as integral, necessary, essential members of our campus community.”

Luca Maurer director of the Center for LGBTQ Education, Outreach and Services

“LGBTQ youth and families want to know what campuses are doing when it comes to inclusive policies, programs and practices. The ‘Best of the Best’ highlights the Top 30 this year across six regions throughout the country,’” said Shane Windmeyer, executive director of Campus Pride and creator of the Campus Pride Index. “Campus Pride applauds the growing number of campuses that are ‘coming out’ and wanting to be the ‘Best of the Best’ each year.”

Maurer also talks about how the Center for LGBTQ Education, Outreach and Services is celebrating its 20th anniversary on campus.

“I particularly want to recognize the students, now alumni, who worked tirelessly to establish our Center,” said Maurer. “They experienced first-hand the impacts of stigma and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity: educational achievement gaps, lowered school and career aspirations, health and economic disparities, and minority stress. Our Center exists because of their efforts to make a difference in the lives of future students they would never know and leave a lasting institutional legacy that grows and evolves alongside our students and our world. Educational equity is an LGBTQ issue. Our students, alumni, staff and faculty want to be part of the solution.”

The Campus Pride Index features LGBTQ student opportunities by highlighting the positive work within higher education across the country. The Campus Pride Index is currently more than 435 campuses and is the premier national benchmarking tool which self-assesses LGBTQ-friendly policies, programs and practices.