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Climate Survey 2020

Connect, Share Knowledge, and Succeed Within the LGBTQ+ and Ally Legal Community.

South Texas College of Law Houston

April 29, 2020

Question 1 provided each school with a field to confirm or update their nondiscrimination statement.
 
2. Does your law school intentionally seek out LGBTQ+ prospective students?
No
3. Does your law school's welcome packet for admitted students include mention of identity group support for LGBTQ+ students, as well as for students of color or other minorities?
Yes
4. Does your school offer students the option to self-identify (also known as "Self-ID") as LGBTQ+ in admissions applications or post-enrollment forms?
Yes
a. If 'yes,' please describe your student Self-ID process:

Students are free to self-identify on their applications.

b. If 'yes,' how many students are currently enrolled at your law school in total?:
964
c. If 'yes,' how many self-identified LGBTQ+ students are currently enrolled at your law school, in total?:
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure students' privacy.
Lesbian
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure students' privacy.
Gay
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure students' privacy.
Bisexual/ pansexual
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure students' privacy.
Transgender / nonbinary
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure students' privacy.
Queer or gender/sexual orientation minority
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure students' privacy.
5. Does your law school offer transgender and nonbinary students who have not legally changed their names the ability to have their name-in-use reflected on their admission applications or post enrollment forms?:
Yes
6. Does your law school provide any annual scholarships specifically for LGBTQ+ students?
Only general diversity scholarships
7. Does your law school actively seek to employ diverse staff/faculty/administrators, including openly LGBTQ+ individuals?:
Yes
a. If 'yes,' please detail how and where diversity recruitment efforts are directed:

Diversity has been a hallmark of the STCL Houston mission for nearly 100 years. Recruiting a widely diverse student body, faculty, and staff will remain a priority for the law school.

8. Does your law school conduct a "Self-ID" program which allows staff/faculty/administrators to voluntarily and (if they desire) confidentially identify their gender identity and sexual orientation?:
Yes
a. If you answered 'yes' or 'unsure,' please describe your school's process for collecting this data

STCL Houston staff, faculty, administrators, and students are free to self-disclose this information, should they choose to do so. The law school does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure the privacy of these individuals.

9. How many faculty (not staff/administrators) are employed by your law school in total?
103
10. How many self-identified LGBTQ+ faculty are employed by your law school in total?
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure the privacy of faculty.
Lesbian
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure the privacy of faculty.
Gay
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure the privacy of faculty.
Bisexual/Pansexual
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure the privacy of faculty.
Transgender /Nonbinary
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure the privacy of faculty.
Queer or gender/sexual orientation minority
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure the privacy of faculty.
11. How many self-identified LGBTQ+ faculty of color does your law school currently employ in total?
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure the privacy of faculty.
12. How many staff/administrators (not faculty) are employed by your law school?
118
13. How many self-identified LGBTQ+ staff/administrators are employed by your law school in total?
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure the privacy of staff and administrators.
Lesbian
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure the privacy of staff and administrators.
Gay
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure the privacy of staff and administrators.
Bisexual/Pansexual
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure the privacy of staff and administrators.
Transgender/Nonbinary
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure the privacy of staff and administrators.
Queer or gender / sexual orientation minority
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure the privacy of staff and administrators.
14. How many self-identified LGBTQ+ staff/administrators of color does your law school currently employ in total?
STCL Houston does not gather or track this information in an effort to ensure the privacy of staff and administrators.
15. Does your law school provide employee benefits such as health insurance, family medical leave, parental leave, and nontraditional family planning like assisted reproduction and/or adoptive benefits?
Yes
a. If 'yes,' are those employee benefits available on equal terms to employees in same-sex marital/domestic partnership relationships as they are to employees in different-sex marital/domestic partnership relationships?
Yes
b. If you answered 'yes' to #15, are those employee benefit plans inclusive of the specific needs of LGBTQ+ employees (i.e., are assisted reproductive benefits offered without the need for extended traditional attempts at pregnancy, are care techniques such as mammograms, prostate exams, hysterectomies, etc. available to employees of all genders, are parental leave policies equal for people of all genders, etc.)?
Yes
c. If you answered 'yes' to #15a AND/OR if you answered 'yes' or 'unsure' to #15b, please summarize or reproduce your policy here:

The STCL Houston health insurance plans provide eligible, regular, full-time employees and their qualifying dependents access to medical, dental, and vision care insurance benefits.

16. Does your law school offer transition-related health benefits including hormone therapy, gender counseling, gender-affirming surgeries, etc. to transgender employees and/or employees who are undergoing gender transition?
Yes
a. If 'yes' or ‘unsure,’ please summarize or reproduce your policy here:

Yes, if deemed medically necessary.

17. Does your law school offer a student benefit plan including health insurance with nontraditional family planning like assisted reproduction and/or adoptive benefits, and/or any additional benefits such as access to campus facilities?
No
a. If 'yes,' are those student benefits available on equal terms to students in same-sex marital/domestic partnership relationships as they are to students in different-sex marital/domestic partnership relationships?
No
b. If you answered 'yes' to #17, are those student benefit plans inclusive of the specific needs of LGBTQ+ students (i.e., are assisted reproductive benefits offered without the need for extended traditional attempts at pregnancy, are care techniques such as mammograms, prostate exams, hysterectomies, etc. available to students of all genders, etc.)?
No
c. If you answered 'yes' to #17a AND/OR if you answered 'yes' or 'unsure' to #17b, please summarize or reproduce your policy here

Because STCL Houston does not offer healthcare insurance directly to students, it cannot answer this question.

18. Does your school offer the same transition-related healthcare benefits to students and their partners/spouses who are transgender or undergoing gender transition?
No
19. Do all students at your law school have access to on-campus health, counseling and therapy services either through the law school or the larger University?
Yes
a. If 'yes,' are your school's on-campus health care providers trained to ensure they can provide culturally and clinically competent care to LGBTQ+ patients, particularly transgender and non-binary patients?
Yes
b. If you answered 'yes' or 'unsure' to #19a, please provide the basis for your answer (i.e., counseling center language, etc.):

Confidential Counseling by Licensed Professional Counselors:

South Texas College of Law Houston is pleased to offer the services of Licensed Professional Counselors to help students cope with the adjustments and stressors inherent in attending law school. Final exams, financial problems, relationships, and career decisions are just a few examples of life’s everyday stressors that could serve to inhibit academic performance. The College is committed to providing our students with an additional avenue to address personal difficulties or concerns, thus increasing the likelihood of accomplishing educational goals.

The College has contracted with independent licensed counselors to provide confidential counseling services to any current South Texas College of Law Houston student. For more information, please visit: http://www.stcl.edu/student-academic-affairs/counseling-health/personal-counseling/.

20. Does your law school provide single-stall restrooms available to people of all genders in each law school building?
Yes
a. If 'yes,' please describe how the single-stall restroom(s) is/are identified (i.e., what does the signage say, is it identified on building maps and online resources), the number of single-stall restrooms available in each law school building, and whether these are accessible for people with disabilities in each building or floor

All STCL Houston bathroom facilities have individual stalls and are accessible to individuals with disabilities.

21. Does your law school have a restroom policy applicable to gender-segregated (i.e., "Women's Restroom" and "Men's Restroom") facilities which ensures that transgender students/staff/administrators/faculty have access to facilities that match their gender identity?
No
22. Does your law school have one or more annual LGBTQ+ specific course offerings (e.g., LGBTQ+ Law and Policy, Sexual Orientation and the Law, Gender and the Law (focused on trans-inclusive materials), etc.)?
Yes
a. If 'yes,' please list course names:

Sexual Orientation and the Law

23. Does your law school have an active LGBTQ+ law student group that is supported by the administration?
Yes
24. Does your law school provide funding, including travel support, for LGBTQ+ students to participate in LGBTQ+-focused learning and/or career services opportunities?
Yes
a. If 'yes,' please provide details and examples of when and how those opportunities have been utilized in the past three years:

STCL Houston provides funding, including travel support, for its student LGBTQ+ organization — AMICUS — as well as for students in the top 25 percent of their class — to use as they deem appropriate.

25. Does your law school have a hate/bias incident policy that faculty, staff/administrators, and students are required to follow?
Yes
a. If 'yes' to #25, does that process specifically identify sexual orientation AND/OR gender identity/expression as protected categories?
Yes, both
b. If 'yes' to #25, does the policy set out a clear hate bias/incident reporting process for faculty, staff/administrators, and students to utilize if necessary?
Yes
26. Does your law school provide mandatory anti-sexual harassment training that explicitly covers same-sex harassment and harassment of transgender/nonbinary people, for all staff/faculty/administrators, at least every three years?
No
27. Does your law school provide diversity and inclusion training that incorporates robust LGBTQ+ curriculum as well as anti-racism curriculum, at least every three years? NOTE: Please check all that apply.
Yes, optional for all faculty/staff/administrators
Yes, optional for all students
28. Please describe all additional ways, not identified through your earlier responses, in which your law school works to be safe, inclusive, and welcoming for its LGBTQ+ students, faculty, and administrators:

One of the most distinctive hallmarks of South Texas College of Law Houston is our safe, inclusive culture. For nearly 100 years, we have welcomed and educated “a diverse body of students” — an essential tenet of the South Texas Law mission.

Indeed, our law school welcomes all individuals — including students, faculty, potential employers, and visitors — regardless of “race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, age, or disability.” This is a key part of our well-documented anti-discrimination policy to which the South Texas Law family adheres. This adherence will not waver.