With an active LGBTQ+ student, faculty, and staff community and a fully inclusive nondiscrimination policy, Rensselaer asks all students, “Why Not Change The World?”
Resources
There are a variety of resources available for the LGBTQ+ community. Visit the links below to learn more. If you would like to make suggestions for information to be added, please contact the LGBTQ+ Task Force. We also encourage you to join us on our Discord Channel.
While there are no classes that deal exclusively with LGBTQ+ issues, there are many classes that may include a discussion of LGBTQ+ topics.
Classes that are frequently offered within the School of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences:
- Human Sexuality
- Social Psychology
- Human Factors
- Gender, Science, and Technology (STS)
- Bio-punk (ARTS)
- Queer Ecologies (ARTS)
Bias Assessment and Response Team (BART)
The Bias Assessment and Response Team (BART) is a nimble, far-reaching, comprehensive committee with the necessary specialties, talent, and knowledge to respond to the emergent needs of the Rensselaer student community as it relates to incidents of bias, hate, or other marginalizing acts.
Reporting for Staff & Faculty
To report incidents of bias, discrimination, or harassment against faculty and/or staff, please use the Discrimination and Harassment Complaint Form or contact Human Resources via email at hrmail@rpi.edu
http://studenthealth.rpi.edu/ or (518) 276-6287
RPI’s Division of Human Resources (518) 276-6302
RPI’s Employee Assistance Program (518) 465-3813 or 1-800-777-6531
The Employee Assistance Program makes professional counseling assistance available for any personal problems that may affect the quality of your life and adversely impact your job performance. Capital EAP provides free and confidential assessment, short-term counseling, and information/referral services to RPI employees and their families (spouse and dependents).
For information on gender-inclusive housing at Rensselaer, visit the Student Living and Learning website.
For your convenience, numerous gender-inclusive restrooms are available throughout campus.
The LGBTQ Mentoring Network is a program designed for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ) campus community at Rensselaer. This program pairs "mentors" ("out" LGBTQ staff, faculty, and local alumni) and "mentees" (LGBTQ undergraduate and/or graduate students) in formal mentoring relationships.
Mentors can provide support via a variety of different means: professional advice & emotional support; helping you come to terms with your sexual orientation, romantic orientation, and/or gender identity; help you to develop a positive self-esteem; coaching you on living as a successful LGBTQ+ person; serving as a friendly LGBTQ+ face on campus to meet with for coffee or lunch, a walk, or just to talk; serving as a resource regarding LGBTQ+-friendly events, resources, and programs.
Mentee membership in the program can remain confidential, and privacy of all mentees is paramount to the program. To learn more about becoming a mentor or mentee, contact the program coordinator, Tara R. Schuster at: schust@rpi.edu
Rensselaer provides a variety of resources for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning (LGBTQ) campus community. The “LGBTQ Task Force” is a volunteer group of staff, faculty, and students from Rensselaer who work towards creating a more inclusive and welcoming campus community for LGBTQ campus community members and their guests, alumni, and visitors. Members of the LGBTQ Task Force work across four subcommittee areas to help create a more inclusive and welcoming campus community: Policy, Curriculum, Events, and External Relations.
Part of the mission of the LGBTQ Task Force is to ensure that all LGBTQ campus community members at Rensselaer have the right and expectation of safety in their personal identity and the expression of that identity, whatever it may be, within the bounds of both the law and mutual respect for the differences of other members of the Institute.
Examples of past (and on-going) LGBTQ+ Task Force projects include: re-designation of single occupancy restrooms on campus as gender-neutral restrooms; completion of a campus climate index assessment that utilized best practices to determine campus strengths and areas for improvement; utilizing information garnered from said assessment to advise next steps and initiatives; development of an annual Lavender Graduation for LGBTQ graduates; and a biennial campus-wide event series.
All activities of the LGBTQ Task Force are made possible via generous donations made by campus departments and donors of the LGBTQ Task Force’s “weR Gold” crowdsource funding website page: https://impact.rpi.edu/project/13667 Consider making a donation today!
For questions regarding the LGBTQ Task Force, resources, or support, please contact the LGBTQ+ Task Force.
LGBTQ+ Task Force Members
Claire Gonyo, Co-Chair (She/Her)
Class Dean, Office for Student Success
Lee Ligon, Co-chair (She/Her)
Associate Professor and Associate Dean, Biological Sciences
Peter Fox, Member (He/Him)
Professor and Tetherless World Constellation Chair
Shannon Johnson, Member (She/Her/Them)
Web Manager, EMPAC
Kris Nolan Parker, Member (They/Them)
Associate Dean, Residential Commons
E.P. Press, Member (They/Them)
Lecturer, Arts Department
Guy Schaffer, Member (He/Him)
Lecturer, Science and Technology Studies Department
Tara R. Schuster, Member (She/Her)
Coordinator of Health Promotion, Student Health Services
Emily Stevens, Member (She/Her)
Assistant Director, Graduate Admissions
Homo Radio is a LGBTQ news/talk radio show hosted by Dr. Ray Werking & Sean McLaughlin every week on WRPI, Sundays 10am-2pm, on 91.5 FM
LOCAL LGBTQ RESOURCE CENTERS
Pride Center of the Capital Region (518) 462-6138
The Pride Center of the Capital Region (Capital Pride Center) is dedicated to serving the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community in the Capital District. Based in Albany, the Pride Center has been meeting the diverse needs of LGBT people in a seven county region since 1970. Our programs, both at the Center (332 Hudson Ave. in Albany) as well as held throughout the region, meet the health and human service needs of the LGBT community as well as educate and advocate for those needs in the broader Capital District. As the oldest continuously-operating gay and lesbian community center in the country, the Pride Center has worked to build a welcoming and empowering community for all people.
In Our Own Voices (518) 432-4188
The mission of In Our Own Voices is to work for and ensure the physical, mental, spiritual, political, cultural and economic survival and growth of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people of color communities.
LOCAL LGBTQ-FRIENDLY HEALTHCARE SERVICES
Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood (Troy) (518) 274-5640
Whitney M Young Health Center (Albany) (518) 465-4771
LOCAL HIV & STI TESTING SITES
Alliance for Positive Health (518) 434-4686
Pride Center of the Capital Region (518) 462-6138
Rensselaer County Health Department (518) 270-2655
Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood (Troy) (518) 274-5640
Whitney M Young Health Center (Albany) (518) 465-4771 ext. 4648
Specialized Care Center for Adolescents & Young Adults at Albany Med (518) 262-9789
LOCAL HIV/AIDS SUPPORT SERVICES
Alliance for Positive Health (518) 434-4686
Catholic Charities AIDS Services
Damien Center of Albany (518) 449-7119
Whitney M Young Health Center (Albany) (518) 465-4771 ext. 4931
Specialized Care Center for Adolescents & Young Adults at Albany Med (518) 262-9789
LOCAL LGBTQ-FRIENDLY PLACES OF WORSHIP
Baptist
Emmanuel Baptist Church of Albany - http://www.emmanuelalbany.org or (518) 465-5161
Buddhist
Shambhala Center of Albany - https://albany.shambhala.org/ or (518) 632-1921
Catholic
Christ the Light American Catholic Church - http://members.tripod.com/~Rev_Msgr_Tim/
Holy Trinity National Catholic Church - http://www.nccofa.org/holytrin.html or (518) 434-8861
The First Church in Albany - http://www.firstchurchinalbany.org or (518) 463-4449
Episcopal
St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church - http://www.standrewsalbany.org or (518) 489-4747
Lutheran
First Lutheran Church - http://www.firstlutheranalbany.org/ or (518) 463-1326
Prince of Peace Lutheran Church - http://www.poplutheranchurch.org/ or (518) 371-2226
Methodist
Christ Church United Methodist - http://www.christchurchtroy.org/ or (518) 272-8392
First United Methodist Church Schenectady - http://fumcschenectady.org/ or (518) 374-4403
Saratoga Springs United Methodist Church - http://saratogaspringsumc.org/ or (518) 584-3720
Presbyterian
First Presbyterian Church of Albany - http://www.firstpresalbany.org/ or (518) 449-7332
First United Presbyterian Church of Troy - http://www.unitedprestroy.org or (518) 272-2771
Reformed Church in America
Bethany Reformed Church - https://www.bethanyrc.org/ or (518) 482-7998
Synagogues
B’nai Sholom Reform Congregation - http://www.bnaisholom.albany.ny.us/ or (518) 482-5283
Congregation Berith Sholom - https://berithsholom.org/ or (518) 272-8872
Congregation Gates of Heaven - http://www.cgoh.org or (518) 374-8173
Congregation Ohav Shalom - http://www.ohavshalom.com/ or (518) 489-4706
Temple Sinai of Saratoga Springs - http://www.saratogasinai.org/ or (518) 584-8730
Unitarian
First Unitarian Universalist Society of Albany - http://albanyuu.org/ or (518) 463-7135
Unitarian Universalist Society of Schenectady - https://uuschenectady.org/ or (518) 374-4446
Unity
Unity Church in Albany - http://unityalbany.org/ or (518) 453-3603
The Rensselaer Pride Alliance (RPA) is a non-partisan student-run organization at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. RPA’s purpose is to provide support and advocacy for all gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, and allied individuals within the Rensselaer community. RPA tries to increase positive awareness of the LGBTQQA community by hosting speakers, movies, and participating in festivals such as Coming-Out Week and AIDS Awareness Week. RPA tries whenever possible to provide educational information on issues concerning the LGBTQQA community as a means to help stop homophobia and transphobia. Learn more about RPA.
This club’s main purpose is to enrich the academic, professional, and educational opportunities of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Asexual, and other students who fall under the LGBTQIA+ umbrella, and their allies. With professional mentoring, and K-12 and community outreach projects to work with, Rensselaer students will have a support network and experience that will prepare them for their professional and career goals. Get in touch via email: Lavender Ambassadors.
With 100+ members of the Rensselaer community (students, former students, and alumni), this “for students, by students” group is open only to trans, nonbinary, and gender-questioning folks in order to have a safe space to create community and support each other through school. To connect with TRANS via their private Discord service, contact Jackson Harmon (an openly transgender and queer student, as well as co-founder of the group).
ON-CAMPUS RESOURCES:
Gender-Inclusive Housing
Gender-neutral/inclusive housing is available to both freshmen and upperclassmen living in Rensselaer residence halls. For more information, please contact the Office of Student Living and Learning.
Single-Occupancy Restrooms (Rensselaer Main Campus)
This list was complied by volunteers and is current as of August 1, 2019. Please help us keep this list current and contact the LBGTQ+ Task Force with any updates to this list.
| BUILDING | FLOOR/LEVEL | SIGNAGE | HANDICAP ACCESSIBLE |
| ACADEMY HALL | 2nd Floor | Gender-Neutral Restroom | No |
| ACADEMY HALL | 2nd Floor | Gender-Neutral Restroom | Yes |
| ACADEMY HALL | 2nd Floor | Women | Yes |
| ACADEMY HALL | 3rd Floor | Gender-Neutral Restroom | Yes |
| ACADEMY HALL | 3rd Floor | Gender-Neutral Restroom | Yes |
| ACADEMY HALL | 4th Floor | Women | Yes |
| ACADEMY HALL | 4th Floor | Gender-Neutral Restroom | Yes |
| ACADEMY HALL | 4th Floor | Gender-Neutral Restroom | No |
| ADMISSIONS BLDG | 2nd Floor | Women | No |
| AMOS EATON HALL | 1st Floor | Gender-Neutral Restroom | Yes |
| AMOS EATON HALL | 1st Floor | Women | Yes |
| EXPERIMENTAL MEDIA AND PERFORMING ARTS CENTER | Information Desk Level | Gender-Neutral Restroom | Yes |
| EXPERIMENTAL MEDIA AND PERFORMING ARTS CENTER | Cafe Level | Gender-Neutral Restroom | Yes |
| LOW CENTER FOR INDUSTRIAL INNOVATION | 4th Floor | Women | No |
| LOW CENTER FOR INDUSTRIAL INNOVATION | 4th Floor | Men | No |
| MATERIALS RESEARCH CENTER | 1st Floor | Gender-Neutral Restroom | Yes |
| MATERIALS RESEARCH CENTER | 2nd Floor | Gender-Neutral Restroom | Yes |
| MATERIALS RESEARCH CENTER | 3rd Floor | Gender-Neutral Restroom | Yes |
| MUELLER CENTER | 1st Floor | Men | Yes |
| MUELLER CENTER | 1st Floor | Men | Yes |
| MUELLER CENTER | 1st Floor | Women | Yes |
| MUELLER CENTER | 1st Floor | Women | Yes |
| PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICES | Main Floor | Visitor Restroom | No |
| PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICES | Main Floor | Visitor Restroom | No |
| RENSSELAER UNION (Mothers) | 1st Floor | Gender-Neutral Restroom | Yes |
| RENSSELAER UNION (Patroon Room) | 2nd Floor | Gender-Neutral Restroom | Yes |
| RICKETTS BUILDING | 2nd Floor | Women | No |
| RICKETTS BUILDING | 4th Floor | Restroom | No |
| TROY BUILDING | 2nd Floor | Gender-Neutral Restroom | Yes |
| WEST HALL | Ground Floor | Restroom | No |
This training is required of many undergraduate student leadership groups on campus. In addition, trainings are offered during the fall, spring, and summer semesters to staff, faculty, and graduate students (registration required; keep an eye out for announcements via your department head and MorningMail). This training acquaints attendees with issues related to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and/or questioning populations (LGBTQ). Trainings include discussion, activities & a panel of LGBTQ-identified campus community members sharing their “coming out” stories. Trainings support the Institute’s diversity and inclusion initiatives. For more information or to schedule a training for your student club or organization, contact the Safe Zone Training program coordinator, Tara R. Schuster at: schust@rpi.edu
Rensselaer Student Health Center (Suite 3200 Academy Hall)
http://studenthealth.rpi.edu/ or (518) 276-6287
All services provided by the Rensselaer Student Health Center are confidential. The Student Health Center offers free HIV & STI testing to Rensselaer students every Wednesday and Friday afternoon by appointment. Free male latex condoms and lubricants are available upon request or in the waiting room. All staff are Safe Zone trained.
Rensselaer Counseling Center (Suite 4100 Academy Hall)
http://studenthealth.rpi.edu/ or (518) 276-6479
All services provided by the Rensselaer Counseling Center are confidential. To discuss LGBTQ issues with a professional counselor, contact the Counseling Center by phone and set up an appointment. All staff are Safe Zone trained.
Rensselaer Office of Health Promotion (Suite 3636 Academy Hall)
http://studenthealth.rpi.edu/ or (518) 276-6287
All services provided by the Rensselaer Office of Health Promotion are confidential. To discuss LGBTQ issues with a health educator or to inquire about the LGBTQ Mentoring Network or campus Safe Zone Training, email: healthed@rpi.edu All staff are Safe Zone trained.