I am really happy to see this. A lot of people, including me, choose this school because of the LGBTQIA+ friendliness. .... It’s a very safe school and a very supportive school.
BSU has placed third in the United States in a ranking of the most LGBTQIA+-friendly colleges and universities in the nation.
It is the highest ranking among New England schools in the new analysis from BestColleges.com. The report identifies institutions that excel in providing academic, financial and social resources for LGBTQIA+ students.
“I am really happy to see this,” said Nate Carey, ’27, a theater major from Burlington. “A lot of people, including me, choose this school because of the LGBTQIA+ friendliness. .... It’s a very safe school and a very supportive school.”
BestColleges.com, which based its analysis partly on federal data, called BSU a “best value” institution and praised the many opportunities for “students to understand and explore LGBTQ+ identity and culture.” It also highlighted Pride Center activities such as Big Queer Welcome, the Pride365 mentorship program and Queer Prom.
“It brings a lot of positive feelings,” Carolyn Taggart, director of the Pride Center, said of the ranking. “It really highlights the good work that’s being done campuswide.”
New this school year, Pride365 connects first-year students with upperclass peer mentors who help ease the transition to BSU. Participants also take a one-credit class.
“It’s not lost on me or our students that we’re very fortunate as we see the political climate in other parts of the country where (similar) centers are not allowed to operate or not allowed to operate in the way that we do – very loud and proud,” Taggart said.
At BSU, 14 percent of students openly identify as LGBTQIA+. And approximately 94 percent of LGBTQIA+ full-time students who started in fall 2023 returned for the spring semester, a retention rate that is up by 11 percentage points in five years.
The university offers support in all areas of campus life. Those initiatives include gender-inclusive bathrooms and housing, trans-inclusive student health insurance, and easy processes to update names and share pronouns.
Even seemingly small things like using accurate pronouns make a huge difference, Nate said.
“Bridgewater wasn’t initially on my radar when I was in high school,” said Nate, who first came across BSU while researching LGBTQIA+-friendly colleges. “I came here and instantly fell in love with the campus. Especially when I saw all the housing supports and gender-neutral bathrooms and the Pride Center, all of it definitely played a part in my decision.”
Now Nate is fully immersed in campus life. He performed in the theatrical production Spamalot and is taking the stage this fall in a production of Marie Antoinette.
Nate also works as a peer liaison at the Pride Center, where he plans community-building events for students. He appreciates opportunities to explore LGBTQIA+ issues from a social justice lens.
For Taggart, BSU’s strong ranking underscores the caring, welcoming environment that she helps cultivate.
“It’s a definite privilege of mine that I get to do this work,” they said. “I wish when I was a college student that there were these opportunities for me.”
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