<p>Brown, which is on his list, is very gay friendly. Lots of gay males there. Very open and accepting environment by all the students.</p>
<p>booklover123, I agree that Fordham LC is an exception among Catholic colleges but I thought it was well worth mentioning. In case your son really loves NY and a program at Fordham LC, or if he were really taken by Georgetown and one of their government programs, it wouldn’t make sense to cross those schools off the list just because they’re Catholic. In fact, looking at threads & posts on the Georgetown board on this site, there are several commenting on its gay-friendly atmosphere and being just as gay-friendly as non-religious schools
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/14508322-post9.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/14508322-post9.html</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/georgetown-university/1242256-people-georgetown-happy.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/georgetown-university/1242256-people-georgetown-happy.html</a></p>
<p>I see you have Vassar on the list; around 10 years ago my SIL and her son (from a LI suburb known for its conservative vibe) did a campus visit and crossed it off the list because they saw gay couples.</p>
<p>As for comments like “Most kids don’t care what someones orientation is”, unfortunately there are still enough to make trouble. I teach college students in a suburb near NYC and just last month had a student who wrote a paper about a gay friend who was so badly bullied in high school that he contemplated suicide.</p>
<p>Can’t speak for the other Catholic colleges, but Georgetown has this: [Home</a> - LGBTQ Resource Center](<a href=“http://lgbtq.georgetown.edu/]Home”>http://lgbtq.georgetown.edu/) I also felt it was a fine place for someone who was not Catholic to attend and was in fact founded from the very beginning to be a place where people of all faiths would be welcome.</p>
<p>Not LGBT myself, but I think it should be noted that LGBT does not necessarily equal politically liberal. There are politically conservative/moderate students who are also LGBT and may not be comfortable at a extremely politically liberal school in spite of open acceptance for the LGBT community there. Just something to consider, even if it doesn’t apply to the OP.</p>
<p>I know the OP is not looking for these but for others reading the thread: Seattle university is a Jesuit school and is extremely tolerant and in a part of town with lots of gay folks and businesses. And tech schools and businesses are no less inclusive than other places. Several tech companies have pioneered same sex benefits. MIT had a very active gay organization in the early 80s.</p>
<p>psych - Agree that all LGBT are not necessarily politically liberal. But for the record, DS is :)</p>
<p>Seattle, Portland, the Bay Area, and Austin, TX are all good choices of he’s willing to attend school in the West Coast or Texas. </p>
<p>Has he considered attending a university in Canada? Canada is known for being very supportive of lgbt individuals and has very strong laws emphasizing such. The hosts of one of the most popular talk shows in Canada are a married gay couple.</p>
<p>While many schools have strong GSAs and have a supportive campus and town atmosphere, the same can not be said of other schools where employees constantly worry that the administration will cut the newly offered domestic partner benefits, there is a critical shortage of LGBT safe zones in certain departments, and some university employees are openly homophobic. It really pays to research of all parts of the University and surrounding area, not just those that directly affect one as a student.</p>
<p>I’ll echo the advice to consider state level protections as students will typically spend a good amount of time off campus in their apartment or at their part time job, dinner, nightlife, etc.</p>
<p>sea_tide - He’s not really willing to go to the west coast or TX, but we never really considered Canada. I would think that is a possibility. And he does love watching hockey… 
I was also focusing mostly on the campus and its’ environs and not on the state level protections, which I do think should be something to consider. I thank you and others who have brought this up.</p>
<p>Reinterating what others have said…I know two guys from our town who are gay that had no problems at UNC-CH. </p>
<p>Wouldn’t worry about Atlanta if Emory is on his list. My sister and cousin, both gay, have lived happily in Atlanta for many years w/ their partners and have wide social circles there. Another cousin who is gay lives in NC. She and her partner wanted to be Moms so each of them had artificial insemination and now have three happy elem. age kids,a house and a dog.
All of these ladies went to college in either VA or NC.
So if your S is interested in other southern schools, he would prob. be just fine at most.</p>
<p>Yale probably has the highest percentage of LGBT students on the east coast, and is home of the most prominent (and best-funded) LGBT Studies program in the nation.</p>
<p>The existence of gay organizations or even resource centers may not be an indicator of how LGBT-friendly a school is. Many times, gay organizations came into existence as a response to homophobia.</p>
<p>However, the landscape has changed so much in the past decade - or even the past three years - that any impressions gathered from a decade ago, even my own, might be obsolete. You probably have to go “kick the tires”.</p>
<p>Atlanta, and Emory specifically, are very gay friendly. S1’s room mate is gay; my son is straight. His room mate was best man at my son’s wedding almost four years ago.</p>
<p>American University in DC also is very gay-friendly. The president of the student association this year was transgender, and no one had a problem with it. S3 (straight) was friends with her. S3 also was in a fraternity…several of his brothers were gay, and last year the president of his house way gay. Not a problem.</p>
<p>boysx3 - those are both schools on his current list, so good to hear! Thanks</p>