U of Iowa Students Push for Gay Dorm Floor

LGBT students at the University of Iowa are vying to get their own residence hall floor.

According to Quentin Hill, a freshman from Eagle Grove, the GLBT Allied Union Executive Board is working with University Housing and Dining to have a designated floor for the school year beginning in 2012.

To make the plan a reality, Hill says, they need about 50 students to sign up. And even though an attempt was made to offer the option on housing applications for the current year, only about 10 students signed up.

"I think it needs to be better advertised," he said. "We will keep trying."

While the none of Iowa's state universities currently offer exclusive residence halls or floors to LGBT students, The Gazettereports that the University of Iowa does have "more than a dozen residence hall floors designated as Living Learning Communities (LLC). The communities generally are focused around specific areas of study such as engineering or business."

A representative from the University's Housing and Dining Department said a floor designated for LGBT students would be classified as an LLC.

Hill disagrees that an LGBT floor would contribute to a rise in campus harassment, vandalism, or hate crimes, saying, "People seem to be open and affirming here, and accepting even though they might not agree with it."

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