In the first LGBTIQ+ Campus Index for Germany, Austria and Switzerland, Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society (HWG LU) achieved 59 percent of the total score. The average of all 62 participating institutions was 45 percent. This puts HWG LU in a top position in Rhineland-Palatinate.
Every year in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, around 200,000 high school graduates complete their school careers and rush off to study at colleges and universities. According to studies, 10 percent of them are LGBTIQ+. But how queer-friendly are the universities? For the first time in the German-speaking world, the LGBTIQ+ Campus Index from the creators of the LGBTIQ* networking app Proudr examines this.
The index rates universities and academies according to their commitment to LGBTIQ+. The Index is based on a comprehensive audit consisting of 45 questions in five categories. These range from discrimination protections, to counseling services, to commitment to LGBTIQ+. The index is a guide to LGBTIQ* inclusive campus cultures for high school graduates and students, and allows higher education institutions to gain insight into their commitment to being more inclusive on their campuses and compare themselves to other educational institutions.
Compared to the other educational institutions participating in Rhineland-Palatinate, the Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society came out on top with 59 percent of the total score. Even in direct comparison with the 21 other universities of applied sciences, which achieved an average of 42.9 percent, HWG LU's result is impressive. University President Prof. Dr. Peter Mudra was also pleased: "We are in an ongoing process of making our university as non-discriminatory as possible in accordance with our values. The PROUDR Campus Index has shown that we are on the right track."
Ludwigshafen University of Applied Sciences has been bundling the fields of action of equality, family-friendliness, accessibility with the university's own coordination office for equal opportunities and diversity since 2016. Prof. Dr. Elke Raum, Equal Opportunity Officer and Head of the Coordination Office: "We have been able to lay decisive foundations for the protection of LGBTQ+ against discrimination through groundbreaking developments, such as the Guideline for Protection against Discrimination and the Guideline for Gender Equitable Language, which is currently being revised."
Currently, the university management, together with the Equal Opportunity and Diversity Coordination Office and student representatives, is in an open reflection and development process to implement learnings from the auditing process.
Further information:
- on the results of the Proudr LGBTIQ+ Campus Index: https://app.proudr.de/page/proudr-lgbtiq-campus-index
- on diversity management at HWG LU: https://www.hwg-lu.de/service/chancengleichheit-und-vielfalt
- on Proudr: www.proudr.com
Expert contact:
Ludwigshafen University of Business and Society
Kristina Scheuermann
Equality Project Officer
Representative for Students with Severe Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses
Tel. 0621/5203-179
E-mail: kristina.scheuermann@ 8< SPAM protection, please remove >8 hwg-lu.de
www.hwg-lu.de/service/chancengleichheit-und-vielfalt
