Student Union
Trans Students Feel Greater Stress at College, Study Finds
Recent studies suggest that one group of students struggles with mental health issues more than others: transgender students.
While research shows big increases in reported depression, anxiety or other mental health issues among college students in recent years, one study examined problems transgender students face. The findings were published in September's American Journal of Preventative Medicine.
Researchers looked at an internet-based Healthy Minds Study that polled 65,000 students at 71 U.S. colleges and universities between 2015 and 2017. Of those students, about 1,200 reported having "an alternate gender identity, meaning they do not identify with the gender that matches their birth sex."
Researchers found that almost 80% of those students reported at least one mental health issue. That compared with 45% of cisgender students — those identifying as their birth sex — who reported having a mental health issue.
Multiple issues
Sarah Ketchen Lipson, an assistant professor at the Boston University School of Public Health and lead author of the study, said transgender students were more likely to face every mental health issue raised in the study, especially thoughts of suicide and attempting suicide.
Transgender people identify with a sexuality that is different than their birth gender. Most identify with the opposite sex, but there are other orientations, as well. Many change their name and appearance, and some seek medical treatment to align with their new identity.
In 2016, about 1.4 million (0.6%) Americans identified themselves as transgender, according to the Williams Institute at the University of California-Los Angeles School of Law.
Some mental health problems, such as those stemming from family abandonment and homelessness, affect students long before they enter college, Lipson said. Many U.S. colleges and universities have shown support for gay and lesbian students, she said, but barriers remain to transgender students feeling fully accepted. These issues may not be as clear to cisgender people, she said.
Many schools require students to use their birth name or gender pronoun on school records, and changing this information can be difficult. At many schools, restrooms are segregated by gender. And while schools may have policies to prevent discrimination against gay or lesbian students, their policies often fail to identify transgender individuals.
Lipson said all these seemingly minor issues can intensify existing mental health problems.
'Not even visible'
The report's findings did not surprise Shane Windmeyer, executive director of Campus Pride, one of the largest organizations supporting lesbian, gay and transgender college students in the United States.
Windmeyer said that while most colleges and universities employ trained specialists to support different minority groups, that is not the case for trans students.
"Trans folks are not even visible on many college campuses," he said. "They are not seen as a population to serve, still, on many campuses."
Windmeyer said dealing with mental health issues can make college and university life harder for young people. Worse, most schools do not give students the choice to report their chosen sexual identity on official documents. So administrators have no way of knowing how well or how poorly they are serving transgender students, he said.
Windmeyer said schools must be open to understand their needs in order to serve them better, including a willingness to make changes.
Lipson echoed that comment in the Boston University publication The Brink: "There has never been a more important time for colleges and universities to take action to protect and support trans, genderqueer and nonbinary students on campus."
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Trump administration opens antisemitism inquiries at 5 colleges, including Columbia and Berkeley
The Trump administration is opening new investigations into allegations of antisemitism at five U.S. universities including Columbia and the University of California, Berkeley, the Education Department announced Monday.
It's part of President Donald Trump's promise to take a tougher stance against campus antisemitism and deal out harsher penalties than the Biden administration, which settled a flurry of cases with universities in its final weeks. It comes the same day the Justice Department announced a new task force to root out antisemitism on college campuses.
In an order signed last week, Trump called for aggressive action to fight anti-Jewish bias on campuses, including the deportation of foreign students who have participated in pro-Palestinian protests.
Along with Columbia and Berkeley, the department is now investigating the University of Minnesota, Northwestern University and Portland State University. The cases were opened using the department's power to launch its own civil rights reviews, unlike the majority of investigations, which stem from complaints.
Messages seeking comment were left with all five universities.
A statement from the Education Department criticized colleges for tolerating antisemitism after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and a wave of pro-Palestinian protests that followed. It also criticized the Biden administration for negotiating "toothless" resolutions that failed to hold schools accountable.
"Today, the Department is putting universities, colleges, and K-12 schools on notice: this administration will not tolerate continued institutional indifference to the wellbeing of Jewish students on American campuses," said Craig Trainor, the agency's acting assistant secretary for civil rights.
The department didn't provide details about the inquiries or how it decided which schools are being targeted. Presidents of Columbia and Northwestern were among those called to testify on Capitol Hill last year as Republicans sought accountability for allegations of antisemitism. The hearings contributed to the resignation of multiple university presidents, including Columbia's Minouche Shafik.
An October report from House Republicans accused Columbia of failing to punish pro-Palestinian students who took over a campus building, and it called Northwestern's negotiations with student protesters a "stunning capitulation."
House Republicans applauded the new investigations. Representative Tim Walberg, chair of the Education and Workforce Committee, said he was "glad that we finally have an administration who is taking action to protect Jewish students."
Trump's order also calls for a full review of antisemitism complaints filed with the Education Department since Oct. 7, 2023, including pending and resolved cases from the Biden administration. It encourages the Justice Department to take action to enforce civil rights laws.
Last week's order drew backlash from civil rights groups who said it violated First Amendment rights that protect political speech.
The new task force announced Monday includes the Justice and Education departments along with Health and Human Services.
"The Department takes seriously our responsibility to eradicate this hatred wherever it is found," said Leo Terrell, assistant attorney general for civil rights. "The Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism is the first step in giving life to President Trump's renewed commitment to ending anti-Semitism in our schools."
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