<p>Someone mentioned avoiding schools with a strict dress code. Hotchkiss has a strict dress code. But it also offers a course “A Gay and Lesbian History of the United States.” And the spring show last year was Dog Sees God. In short, when it comes to LGBT issues, Hotchkiss is very open and welcoming.</p>
<p>@UKGirl23 , most boarding schools in the states are suburban/rural. Very few city schools, and then they’re smaller cities. For the LGBT population as a whole, yes, they do often congregate to the cities especially if they were raised in conservative states.</p>
<p>I think a Friends School is also an option. Look into the George School too. </p>
<p>Absolutely check out George School–LBGT friendly. D2 tells me they asked for preferred pronouns during dorm orientation.</p>
<p>St. Mark’s School has a Gay-Straight Alliance. There’s no reason to avoid schools which have a “saint” in the name. More research is needed. </p>
<p>I recommend you reach out to the schools. Call the admissions office, and ask to be connected with a student representative of the school’s Gay-Straight Alliance. It’s better to do that than to ask random strangers on the internet. Students will be more forthcoming in an email or a phone call; you can ask questions about the things which are important to you.</p>
<p>I agree that the fact that a school has a GSA doesn’t necessarily mean it’s LGBTQ friendly, but the absence of one in 2014 might indicate a school culture where being openly gay is not a comfortable experience.</p>
<p>Or the school doesn’t have an up-to-date website. Some schools may have a GSA, but the news hasn’t hit the website. A number of schools don’t publish their student newspaper on their website.</p>
<p>It’s a good idea to ask schools, “do you have any openly gay students in your student body?” and “is it possible to speak with him (or her.)” </p>
<p>Peddie is known for its diversity and willingness to accept people of all backgrounds. I have friends who are in their GSA program and freely announce their support of people of any sexuality.</p>
<p>There are probably no gay guys at Woodberry haha, its an extremely conservative school. Try looking somewhere above the Mason-Dixon Line</p>
<p>@sue22 if you are speaking of Culver you are off base. It is over a hundred years old and probably all of the private schools were “founded on christian principles”</p>
<p>Definitely an open gay crowd at Culver. The boy’s wear uniforms but it is not a traditional military school in that sense. it is much more relaxed.</p>
<p>If anyone is still interested in this topic- I’m an openly gay junior at Northfield Mount Hermon, which is known for being one of the most diverse and liberal out of the Eight Schools Association. We have a pretty sizable population of openly gay students, along with an out lesbian Dean of Students and a large number of out gay faculty. In contrast, I have a gay friend at Taft who is the only out guy in the entire school, and I don’t believe there are any out faculty members. I think the fact that NMH was initially founded to provide free education to the underprivileged and uneducated in the late 1800s, rather than as a school for rich white students, such as many of our peer schools were, speaks a lot about the type of environment to expect. I absolutely recommend checking out NMH if you are looking for an experience that will expose you to a lot of new perspectives, and I’ve been very happy with the LGBTQ community here.</p>