Some Kent State University students and alumni are lamenting the loss of programs that they say supported them after the university announced this week it will close the Multicultural, Women鈥檚 and LGBTQ+ centers in response to a new state law.
The university said Monday the centers will be closed by June 27, when Senate Bill 1 is set to go into effect in Ohio. That law bars diversity, equity and inclusion programs in higher education across the state.
However, the spaces that housed those centers will remain open, the university has said, and will still provide general support to "all students," Eboni Pringle, senior vice president for student life, wrote in a Monday letter.
Kade Ebert, an alumni, lived in the LGBTQ+ Living Learning Community, a program that reserved space in a residence hall for LGBTQ+ students to live close to each other. The university said it will be ending that program.
Ebert said Kent State鈥檚 support for LGBTQ+ students like him was one of the reasons he chose to attend the university.
"It's a really big shame that Kent State decided to get rid of their resources to help people because that was one of the reasons that let me move away from home and come to college and come to Kent," Ebert said. "I think that it's insane that we're getting rid of these resources because you're going to get less students coming. It's going to affect the business aspect side of it."
Priscilla Yrad, a senior at Kent State, said the resource centers support a wide variety of students, herself included, and make them feel welcome on campus. She said the university should have taken a stand for students in the face of the state law.
"I'm disappointed in the university for sure. I identify with all three centers. I'm a a woman of color who is also queer. It affects me directly, but just because it affects someone directly shouldn't mean... if it doesn't affect you, you shouldn't care," she said. "I feel like everybody should care. It's because it's affecting the entire student body, no matter who you are."
Other universities, including The Ohio State University and Ohio University, have made similar moves to end identity-based centers on campus. Cleveland State University has not yet announced how it will approach the new law.
Aaron Porter, a sophomore who participates in the Black United Students group on campus, said the closure of the centers will make some students feel less welcome on campus.
"It makes it more of an obstacle to try and navigate through a predominantly white school, but as well as for my friends who are in the LGBT community, who are also going to have to navigate through a school that's not always welcoming," Porter said.
Kent State declined to respond to students' concerns directly when reached for comment Thursday, instead pointing to Pringle's statement from Monday.
"While change is difficult, our mission remains the same: to foster a campus where every student feels a sense of belonging, has space to learn about themselves and others, and can build the community they desire to live, learn and grow in," Pringle said. "We will continue to work with our students, staff, faculty and alumni to identify additional ways to support our students.鈥�"
