SUNY Board of Trustees and Chancellor Malatras Statement Following U.S. Department of Education Title IX Action to Protect Transgender Students
June 17, 2021
"As we reflect on PRIDE month and what it means to millions of Americans and their allies and families, we know much work is still ahead to truly realize equality and freedom from discrimination, harassment, and violence for the LGBTQIA+ community. Amid a surge of attacks on the rights of transgender students, yesterday's announcement by the U.S. Department of Education confirming that Title IX protects our students from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity is an endorsement of the rights of transgender people to learn and thrive in school, free from discrimination and harassment. This announcement is cause for optimism as SUNY works to ensure that all members of the LGBTQIA+ community are welcome, respected, and feel a sense of belonging on all of its 64 campuses."
About the State University of New York
The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, and more than 95 percent of all New Yorkers live within 30 miles of any one of SUNY’s 64 colleges and universities. Across the system, SUNY has four academic health centers, five hospitals, four medical schools, two dental schools, a law school, the country’s oldest school of maritime, the state's only college of optometry, 12 Educational Opportunity Centers, over 30 ATTAIN digital literacy labs, and manages one US Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.7 million students across its portfolio of credit- and non-credit-bearing courses and programs, continuing education, and community outreach programs. SUNY oversees nearly a quarter of academic research in New York. Research expenditures system-wide are nearly $1.5 billion in fiscal year 2025, including significant contributions from students and faculty. There are more than three million SUNY alumni worldwide, and annually one in three New Yorkers who earn a college degree is a SUNY alum. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunities, visit suny.edu.
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