HOW DID WE CHOOSE THE BEST OF THE BEST?
Campus Pride chose the forty campuses this year based on their overall ratings on the Campus Pride Index and specific LGBTQ-inclusive benchmark measures. In order to be in the “Best of the Best” listing, an institution had to score the highest percentages in the LGBTQ-friendly benchmarks for policies, programs and practices.
The Campus Pride Index, currently 395+ campuses, is the premier national benchmarking tool which self-assesses LGBTQ-friendly policies, programs and practices. The tool is free of charge to the public and can be found online at CampusPrideIndex.org. Campus Pride also launched five years ago, the Campus Pride Sports Index which measures LGBTQ progress in athletics and recreation online. The tool is slowly growing with college sports participants and can be found online at CampusPrideSportsIndex.org
WHY THIS LISTING IS VALUABLE TO LGBTQ YOUTH & FAMILIES?
For the last decade, Campus Pride continues to be the most trusted, reliable educational resource for students and families to find the best campuses for LGBTQ inclusion and safety. The organization works alongside students, faculty, staff and administrators at 1400+ campuses annually to help support and improve the quality of campus life for LGBTQ people.
“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 40 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 is proud at the growing number of campuses that are ‘coming out’ and wanting to be the ‘Best of the Best’ each year.”
WHERE CAN I FIND THESE & OTHER LGBTQ-FRIENDLY COLLEGES?
Many of these BEST OF THE BEST campuses and others on the Campus Pride Index will be featured during Campus Pride’s LGBTQ-friendly college fair program and via online “Campus Spotlight” interviews this Fall. Learn more online at CampusPride.org/CollegeFair
Any questions or more information, please contact Campus Pride by phone at 704-277-6710 or by email info@campuspride.org
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The BEST OF THE BEST Top 40 list is listed by region (not in any particular order). Please click on the name of the campus to learn more specifics about their LGBTQ-inclusive policies, programs and practices.
MID-ATLANTIC REGION
Ithaca College
Ithaca, NY

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey-New Brunswick
New Brunswick, NJ

University of Maryland, College Park
College Park, MD

Lehigh University
Bethlehem, PA

Montclair State University
Montclair, NJ

The Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA

University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA

Princeton University
Princeton, NJ

MIDWEST REGION
Kansas State University
Manhattan, KS

Southern Illinois University Carbondale
Carbondale, IL

Indiana University, Bloomington
Bloomington, IN

University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire
Eau Claire, WI

University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee
Milwaukee, WI

University of Wisconsin – Green Bay
Green Bay, WI

The Ohio State University
Columbus, OH

Kenyon College
Gambier, OH

Kent State University
Kent, OH

Augsburg University (formerly Augsburg College)
Minneapolis, MN

Macalester College
Saint Paul, MN

Purdue University
West Lafayette, IN

University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI

NEW ENGLAND REGION
Tufts University
Medford, MA

University of Massachusetts Amherst
Amherst, MA

University of Vermont
Burlington, VT

MIT
Cambridge, MA

SOUTHEAST REGION
Guilford College
Greensboro, NC

Northern Kentucky University
Highland Heights, KY

Elon University
Elon, NC

University of Kentucky
Lexington, KY

University of Louisville
Louisville, KY

SOUTHWEST REGION
University of Texas at Dallas
Richardson, TX

Texas Tech University
Lubbock, TX

WEST REGION
University of Washington
Seattle, WA

University of Oregon
Eugene, OR

Portland State University
Portland, OR

University of Colorado at Boulder
Boulder, CO

Southern Oregon University
Ashland, OR

San Diego State University
San Diego, CA

Washington State University
Pullman, WA

Harvey Mudd College
Claremont, CA
