The research question for this study is whether LGBTQA resource centers on college campuses affect student success. To fully understand the research problem this study seeks to explore; a comprehensive understanding of terms is necessary.
Definitions
LGBTQA
In the broadest of terms, the acronym LGBTQA is used to describe any person who is not heterosexual and/or cisgender. LGBTQA stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and asexual (GLAAD, 2017). The LGBTQA acronym includes a wide array of genders identities and sexual orientations.
Sexual Orientation
Sexual orientation refers to the people an individual is attracted to. In the acronym LGBTQA, the “L,” “G,” “B,” and “A” all refer to sexual orientations (GLAAD, 2017). “L” refers
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For the purposes of this study, the focus is on resource centers – an established support many colleges and universities have. A resource center is defined as a dedicated space on a college campus that provides services to the LGBTQA population. These services often include focused programming about LGBTQA issues, trainings for the campus community, as well as a safe space for LGBTQA students and allies of the community to gather and engage with one another. For a resource center to be considered as such in this study, it must function with the goal of supporting LGBTQA students and/or encouraging student success.
Student Success
Student success does not have one uniform definition that is unanimously agreed upon. For the purposes of this study, student success will be measured by retention of students from one semester to the next (Thomas, 2002). Whether a student is retained may not be enough on its own to indicate success, so for the purposes of this study, their grade point average will also be taken into consideration. For a student to be considered successful in this study, they must maintain or increase their grade point average from one semester to another.
LGBTQA
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This stress affects many facets of life including academic engagement and overall educational outcomes (Zajacova, Lynch, & Espenshade, 2005). LGBTQA students are considered a minority population and as such, are likely experiencing minority stress in addition to the typical stressors of college. Because school based support has been shown to positively influence educational outcomes among middle school and high school LGTQA youth (Kosciw, Palmer, Kull, & Greytak, 2013), this study theorizes that the presence of an LGBTQA resource center in college will have a similar