Campus Pride recognized Penn State as one of the top 25 schools in the United States in the 2017 LGBTQ-Friendly Campus Climate Index. This is not the school’s first time earning this recognition.

In determining the leading LGBTQ schools in the nation, Campus Pride evaluates policies, programs, and practices of inclusivity on campuses across the country, Penn State received five out of five stars for campus climate by Campus Pride. Campus Pride is a national nonprofit organization for student leaders and groups engaging to revamp, progress and promote LGBTQ conditions at colleges and universities.

“Receiving this recognition for Penn State and our LGBTQ+ community is exciting and showcases the hard work of students, faculty and staff working together to make the Penn State experience an ever more inclusive one,” Brian Patchcoski, director of Penn State’s LGBTQA Student Resource Center, said in a press release.

The index, now in its ninth year of evaluations, consists of 50+ self-assessment questions, that correspond to eight various LGBTQ-friendly factors. These factors include policy inclusion, support and institutional commitment, academic life, student life, housing, campus safety, counseling and health, and recruitment and retention efforts.

Following this evaluation, each school then receives a score out of five stars, describing their efforts to embrace LGBTQ friendliness. Penn State received a five-star evaluation for its commitment to LGBTQ issues.

“As the number of institutions growing this work on their campuses has grown, so has the need for us to think broader and more strategically to move our own work forward,” Patchcoski said “Our students share so much of themselves as they work with us and challenge us to make Penn State stronger.”

To make the cut of the top 30, institutions had to score the highest percentages in the benchmarks. Penn State has proudly been honored with this recognition, out of the 235 eligible colleges and universities with searchable profiles online.