The LGBTQ+ Experience at JMU
By Cara Frimet
More than ever before, LGBTQ+ people are obtaining degrees in higher education and are more visible on college campuses across the United States. Climates on college campuses have improved over the last 15 years, making college more socially accessible to LGBTQ+ students. College campuses offer LGBTQ+ students a place to better explore and understand their identity while finding a community of like-minded people. Generally, LGBTQ+ students feel as though college offers a safer and more inclusive environment than high school, and the ways colleges support and help those students contribute to their safety.
What’s it like being an LGBTQ+ student at James Madison University?
On paper, James Madison University (JMU) seems to be a pretty safe place to be queer. Pride Index gives JMU a 4 out of 5 stars, arguing that the areas in which the university lacks are special LGBTQ+ housing and recruiting and retention efforts. In terms of resources, there is Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Expression (SOGIE) - an on-campus office that offers a safe study space (the Lavender Lounge), education and outreach programs, a library, and a self-expression closet. The organization also organizes on-campus activities for LGBTQ+ students like their Lavender Graduation Ceremony which celebrates LGBTQ+ students who are graduating. They also work directly with the on-campus health center and counseling center to ensure LGBTQ+ students have access to the proper care they need.
In terms of student groups, the most widely known organization is Madison Equality. With weekly meetings, this group creates a community for LGBTQ+ students run by fellow students that facilitates peer-to-peer mentorship. The club hosts fun activities for members to allow LGBTQ+ students to have a fun, safe space to enjoy themselves. This includes a pride week on campus that involves informative Q&A sessions along with activities for anyone to enjoy through the week.
Another student group, Shades of Pride, aims to create a community for Black and brown LGBTQ+ students. They host events that highlight BIPOC LGBTQ+ community members while also hosting social events.
The JMU administration has also made it clear that they want LGBTQ+ students to feel welcomed and safe on campus, along with staff. They have a few all-gender restrooms on campus, resources in the Career and Academic Planning office, a Gender Inclusive Housing Pilot Program, the allowance of legal name and gender changes, along with JMU EEO Policy #1302 (ensures JMU offers equal opportunities to everyone no matter their identities, including their gender, sexual orientation, or genetic information), and JMU Discrimination and Harassment Policy #1324 (enforces the illegality of discrimination or harassment of people based upon sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, and other factors).
The greater Harrisonburg community also has a variety of resources available not just to JMU students, but to any LGBTQ+ person in the area. Shenandoah Valley Equality helps to build an inclusive community in the entirety of the Shenandoah Valley. Friendly City Safe Space is located in downtown Harrisonburg and allows LGBTQ+ people to freely express themselves in a safe environment. Hope House is an organization that offers housing for LGBTQ+ youth ages 18-24 who are homeless and in need of support.
It is safe to say there is an abundance of resources available to LGBTQ+ students at JMU who are in need of any type of support and community.
What has the representation on campus been like recently?
COVID-19 has put a halt to many activities and organizations for two years now, and pride at JMU is no different. In the Fall of 2021, they had flags on the quad to show solidarity with the LGBTQ+ students, staff, and faculty, but the university has otherwise not hosted an official Dukes Pride since 2017. However, 2017 was before COVID-19. At this time it is unknown why SOGIE has not hosted a Dukes Pride week, but there are supposed plans to start the tradition back up in the Fall of 2022.
Dukes Pride has been a week-long event hosted by SOGIE and supported by the other organizations on campus that brings Pride Week (that typically happens in June) to the JMU campus while students are all here. The events include both informational sessions and fun activities for students to learn and relax at.
SOGIE has hosted individual events for LGBTQ+ students since COVID-19 began, regularly bringing dogs to campus for people to pet and hosting Queers & Coffee - a space for students to discuss LGBTQ+ topics. Madison Equality and Shades of Pride have also hosted events for their members and more educational events for anyone interested.
What is the experience of LGBTQ+ students?
The resources at JMU are ample, however, they are under-advertised. Most of these resources are only being promoted by their own social media pages and websites, so if someone needs these resources, they have to actively search for them on their own. While this works for some students, others may not know what to search for or may feel uncomfortable going into clearly marked LGBTQ+ spaces. These students still navigate regular life on campus, interacting with peers, faculty, and staff regularly, and can easily pick up on the beliefs of those people. There are certain areas of university life that do not intentionally account for LGBTQ+ students and can therefore make those students feel intimidated or unincluded.
The queer experience in Panhellenic Greek life
As an LGBTQ+ member of a Panhellenic sorority, it is evident how heteronormativity impacts Greek life. The assumption that everyone involved in Greek life is straight is outdated and incorrect. However, a lot of the language and activities still cater to heterosexual relationships. My chapter has made it a mission of ours to inform our sisters of social issues, including LGBTQ+ issues ranging from the topic of pronouns to microaggressions. However, this effort came from our own sisters, not a push from JMU Panhellenic or the office of Fraternity and Sorority Life (FSL). I didn’t fear for my safety when coming out to my sorority, however, it was still intimidating to do so as the concept of LGBTQ+ women being involved in sorority life is a rather new topic. Only through myself and other fellow LGBTQ+ sisters making a point to be open about our experiences has the climate within our chapter changed. Outside of my sisters, the topic is only ever discussed with other LGBTQ+ students, rarely with other members of Greek life. This still makes being an LGBTQ+ member of a Panhellenic sorority feel taboo, or out of the norm, when the reality is there are a lot of LGBTQ+ members of Panhellenic sororities. Sororities are meant to promote community wellness and sisterhood, and that cannot be done when certain groups of women feel judged, isolated, or outright scared of other members involved in Greek life.
The queer experience in the University Health Center
The University Health Center aims to offer accessible healthcare to students for many aspects of health, including an entire clinic dedicated to women’s health. A queer student on campus who has chosen to remain anonymous attempted to utilize these resources in order to access routine STD testing. However, her experience with the intake nurse was not a positive experience in the slightest. She shared with me that the nurse lacked any understanding of LGBTQ+ sex and the anatomy of transgender people to the point where the student had to describe her sexual activity in explicit detail to the nurse. The experience was humiliating for the student and made her never want to go back to the Health Center for any kind of care, especially not for care related to her sexual health.
Unfortunately, this is not a unique experience. LGBTQ+ patients struggle to access healthcare more than their cisgender and heterosexual counterparts. This has created a longstanding distrust between LGBTQ+ patients and medical professionals that makes them less willing to access necessary medical care. Without regular proper sensitivity training and screening of potential new hires, the JMU health center will continue to perpetuate this issue.
The student also expressed to me that the only reason she was able to continue her time at JMU was because of the support she has found through the LGBTQ+ organizations on campus. However, she shared my sentiment that these organizations were never well advertised and she had to seek them out herself. The support these organizations offer students allows for them to be surrounded by people who have shared experiences with them and offers a community in which they can be their full authentic selves.
The queer experience in the academic setting
The JMU Climate Study released a mere few weeks ago showed that transgender students were much less comfortable on campus than their cisgender counterparts and that LGBTQ+ students were much less comfortable on campus than their heterosexual counterparts. This includes in the classroom setting, as an LGBTQ+ student in a STEM major agrees. As an LGBTQ+ student in a male-dominated field, oftentimes she can experience the heteronormative patriarchy in the classroom. Although she believes her professors have been incredibly intelligent and prepared to teach each of her classes, she has experienced heteronormativity in their day-to-day conversations. The student has experienced a lack of inclusivity addressing a range of topics and believes that these professors could benefit from training such as Safe Zone. Conversations lacking an intersectional lens have made this student, along with other LGBTQ+ students in her classes, feel as though being LGBTQ+ is something that isn’t talked about unless you are in an LGBTQ+ space. The student and the other LGBTQ+ students have started a group within their major for anyone who identifies as a part of a marginalized group because they are looking for support from one another as they navigate an academic field, and eventually a professional field, that has been overwhelmingly filled with white, cisgender, straight, Christian men. This student, similarly to the previous student, expressed that Madison Equality has offered her an authentic community that has created a sense of comfort for her on a campus that otherwise perpetuates heteronormativity. She expressed she feels as though being an LGBTQ+ student at JMU feels as if you are in a “secret society,” meaning when an LGBTQ+ student is not around fellow LGBTQ+ people, it is much more intimidating to bring up.
What can JMU do moving forward?
Tim Miller, Vice President of Student Affairs, attended the 2022 Lavender Graduation, and during his speech recognized that there is more work for JMU to do in supporting the LGBTQ+ students here and that he is looking forward to making more progress for us. Based upon the shared experiences of students here at JMU, it looks like the university’s next steps should prioritize including LGBTQ+ education and activities in non-LGBTQ+ specific settings. This can happen in a variety of ways, such as:
A collaboration between SOGIE and the office of Fraternity and Sorority Life and JMU Panhellenic. With the numerous women involved in panhellenic sororities, an event (or multiple) that educates the members of Greek life about LGBTQ+ issues would not only help continue to connect members of Greek life with the greater community, but will also help them connect with fellow members of Greek life. Normalizing the idea that there are LGBTQ+ people in Greek life will make these communities safer for those students while helping Greek life members prepare for entering a diverse and complex world post-graduation.
Extensive and continuous sensitivity training for all faculty and staff members. All professors will be interacting with LGBTQ+ students whether they choose to or whether they know it or not. Rather than expecting LGBTQ+ students to speak out, faculty and staff should already have the tools to work with LGBTQ+ students. This training should extend through every office, including the University Health Center and Counseling Center.
The continuation of funding for Madison Equality. Funding has been discussed every year, and every year there is consideration for cutting funding for Madison Equality. If possible, the University should consider offering funding to Shades of Pride as well.
Making an effort to support SOGIE in order for LGBTQ+ students to have sustained and reliable resources available to them. During the times in which new employees are coming into the SOGIE office, the university should be capable of maintaining programming for LGBTQ+ students until SOGIE can run independently once again.
Supporting ongoing faculty efforts to develop a LGBTQ+ Studies minor. This is currently being done through the Provost’s Curriculum Grant that will enable the creation of a curriculum that will be proposed later in the year.
JMU has done an incredible job in creating resources for LGBTQ+ students. In comparison to schools with a less accepting climate for LGBTQ+ students, students here are more supported. However, this can oftentimes be limited to the LGBTQ+ spaces and communities on campus. LGBTQ+ students navigate other spaces through daily routines in order to be involved in their academics and other aspects of their social and cultural lives. JMU has the capacity and the care to make its campus a more inclusive space for LGBTQ+ students.