How supportive is the Carleton environment, socially?
All Carleton students, regardless of sexuality, draw support from their social groups and many students say that their friendships are some of the most valuable parts of their experience at Carleton. In terms of LGBT-specific social groups, Shade Paul said that “There is . . . a social group that identifies and is cohesive based on their sexuality, but there are lots of other people with alternative sexualities and genders that aren’t necessarily a part of that social group but have done other networking or are a part of other communities and go there for support if they need.” At Carleton you are allowed to explore who and what you are, and the atmosphere of Carleton as a residential college helps build these social networks. As Mac Henry ’04 sums it up, “there’s a strong sense of …having a lot in common with all the other people here. We all, in some sense, chose to be here.” With this common bond, Carleton students consider a diversity of opinion and experience as a valuable asset
