Running head: STUDENT SUBCULTURE INTERVIEW 1

LGB Students

The student subculture I selected to interview is students who identify as gay or

lesbian. I interviewed three students and attended an OUTspoken meeting at Western

Michigan University (WMU). The students I interviewed included a male engineering

graduate of University of Michigan, a male business major from WMU, and a female

English/education major from WMU. A few of the main themes that came up in our

discussions and my observations were the campus climate of their university, role models, and

the influence of family.

Campus Life
Ueno and Gentile (2015) surveyed GLB students about their perceptions of their

heterosexual peers’ behaviors. Participants described the most common behaviors that

bothered them, including use of “derogatory language and lack of interest in GLB-related

activities” (p. 409). This was relevant to the way the students I spoke to described their

campus climates. First, they all said they mostly feel safe on campus, but they have

experienced at least one instance of someone harassing them on campus, especially with

derogatory language. They also said that they often do not feel noticed on campus.

Specifically, the WMU students referred to the location of the LGBTQ+ office being far away

from central campus. They have tried to push for the office to be moved to the new student

center when it is built, but have been told that will not happen. They are very disappointed

because it seems like so many other offices and programs are given priority instead.

Role Models
When I asked the students about role models and mentors, all three generally felt there

was a lack of representation of their sexual identity when they thought of the faculty and staff

on campus. This lack of representation seems to be more noticeable, depending on the

student’s program of study. For example, the student majoring in English/education feels that
her sexual identity is more generally accepted because she is in the College of Education. She

happily talked about a professor she has who is open about her sexual identity and frequently
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mentions her wife in class. The other student joked that she “has it easy” compared to how it

is in the College of Business. He does not see any representation in his classes by faculty and

feels like sexual identity is mostly ignored.

The engineering major also found a lack of faculty and role models who identify as

gay on his campus. However, he excitedly described one of the most influential experiences

he had in college in which he attended a conference put on by their student organization, Out

for Undergrad. The conference brought in professionals who are publicly out in the workplace

and included engineering. Schmidt, Miles, and Welsh (2011) concluded “social support plays
a critical role in career indecision and college adjustment for LGBT undergraduates” (p.

304). Interacting with these professionals inspired the student because he felt pride that he

was gay and for the first time, he felt like he would be able to be “out” in his future work

place. I think these parts of our conversations reinforced to me how important it is to have

representation of various identities. Students want to see people who are like them, so they

can see themselves in the future.

Family
The students described the feeling of “sitting on a secret” and the constant worry of

coming out. Who to come out to; when to come out. College is viewed as an opportunity to

start fresh. Then, what happens when students go home for the summer and they may still be

“sitting on their secret”? At the OUTspoken meeting, the topic was about how to cope with

going home for the summer. Many students shared their stories of being out with specific

family members only and the struggles they face of having to hide a piece of their identity or

be rejected by family. Many also felt similarly about feeling the need to hide their sexual

identity at work or in other public places of their hometown.

Conclusion
While going to college produces many life changes and stresses for students, a study
by Kirsch, Conley, and Riley (2015) found that “LGB students demonstrated greater

psychological distress, greater cognitive-affective vulnerabilities and less social well-being in

STUDENT SUBCULTURE INTERVIEW 3

comparison to their heterosexual peers” (p. 163). In my conversations with students, most

things were not very surprising to me, like the way the students perceived their campus

climate as overall safe, yet they often feel ignored and overlooked. Our conversations also

confirmed that they feel there is a lack of representation of gay and lesbian identities in

faculty/staff on campuses, which we had discussed in class. However, when the students I

spoke to did have a professor or interacted with professionals who are publicly out, they were

highly impacted. I was excited listening to them explain the empowerment they felt seeing

professionals who were out publicly. They were inspired that they too could be successful
while expressing their sexual identity.

The other thing that struck me was the impact of family on these students. I think in

student affairs, when we consider GLB students, we place our focus on what they are doing in

the college setting. When we talk about how to best support them, we discuss barriers on

campus and in classrooms, but I think we often overlook other factors such as family and their

home town. At the OUTspoken meeting, many students expressed the difficulties they face in

going home for the summer or for the holidays and having to hide this aspect of their identity.

Members offered suggestions for how to find support and gave examples from their own

experience. Now I feel I have a better understanding of why the end of the semester might not

be something that all students look forward to. More generally, I think about how this is not

only going to be the case for students who identify as gay or lesbian. I will be more mindful

of this in my interactions with students, especially with summer coming up in a few weeks. I

cannot assume that all students are looking forward to summer or excited to go home. Instead,

I can ask them about their plans and not imply they should feel a certain emotion.
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References

Kirsch, A. C., Conley, C. S., & Riley, T. J. (2015). Comparing psychosocial adjustment across

the college transition in a matched heterosexual and lesbian, gay, and bisexual

sample. Journal of College Student Development, 56(2), 155-169.

Schmidt, C. K., Miles, J. R., & Welsh, A. C. (2011). Perceived Discrimination and Social

Support: The Influences on Career Development and College Adjustment of LGBT

College Students. Journal of Career Development, 38(4), 293–309.

Ueno, K., & Gentile, H. (2015). Construction of Status Equality in Friendships between Gay,
Lesbian, and Bisexual Students and Straight Students in College. Sociological

Perspectives, 58(3), 402–421.