January 22, 2026 | By Nick Pfost
A special topics seminar, “LGBTQ+ in Higher Education,” is quietly becoming one of U-M's most timely and impactful graduate offerings. Going beyond the basics, it is equipping aspiring higher education leaders with skills, insights, and community to make real and lasting change.
The Marsal Family School of Education course is led by Jesse Beal—Spectrum Center’s director and a national leader in LGBTQIA2S+ resource work—and blends cutting-edge scholarship and foundational history with direct insight from practitioners navigating shifting policy landscapes.
Beal explains, “As a scholar-practitioner, bridging the gap between [the two] is central to how I designed this work. I wanted to ensure that the readings were as current as possible and that folks heard from a variety of practitioners across disciplines, roles, and identities.”
Community, challenge, and co-creation
The course began by asking students to co-create community agreements, and share their needs, expectations, and concerns. “This made it possible for folks to try out new ideas, be vulnerable and share their ideas and stories, and engage reflexively with our readings and lectures," Beal says.
Weekly discussions drew on timely readings and recent research, focusing both on persistent challenges—mental health, bias incidents, policy debates—and on the resilience and joy within queer and trans communities. “We can hold multiple competing truths,” Beal says. “We can recognize the challenges QT people in higher education face and also celebrate our communities and our resilience, joy, and magic.”
Kinesiology graduate student Katey Salogar shared a pivotal moment from a late-fall class discussion on Audre Lorde’s “the master’s tools.”
“I had been feeling rather pessimistic about the ability of practitioners to effect change within their institutions, but this [conversation] allowed me to consider that the unintended skills we learn along the way may be more impactful than I thought… It reframed my approach.” Salogar, who is pursuing a master’s in sports management, left the course with greater hope and new strategies to increase inclusion well beyond the classroom.
Real connections from theory to action
A major strength of the course is its emphasis on actionable skills. Students this fall facilitated conversations, compared frameworks, and learned from practitioners in student life, wellness, and national advocacy. It grounded the theory in lived experiences, giving students a clearer understanding of practical realities, barriers, and opportunities from different roles and institutional perspectives—and the real, creative strategies to address them. One session on gender-inclusive housing, for example, translated policy work into the practical steps taken here at the University of Michigan. Alongside those, the flipped classroom model meant everyone was responsible for wrestling with the core ideas and considering implications for real campus work.
A centerpiece assignment, the Theory to Praxis Project, asked students to research a pressing campus issue and design an actionable, evidence-based intervention. From policies on names and pronouns to outreach for queer and trans students of color, students learned how ambitious ideas become real initiatives.
“They did amazing work dreaming up big interventions that would transform campus," Beal says. Critically, they gained a deeper understanding of the landscapes and challenges of policy and culture change.
For Marsal graduate Collyn Smith, the course also reinforced that meaningful change isn’t limited to sweeping policies; everyday actions and novel solutions matter. “Having a systems-level understanding of how we are where we are, as a profession and industry, is deeply helpful for me in my work... While I alone can’t make the entire world of higher education a better place for queer and trans students, I know and have seen the power of small, grassroots work make these experiences more positive.”
Guest sessions on advocacy, policy change, and practitioner wellness gave students a candid look at institutional realities, including setbacks like center closures and ongoing state-level backlash across the U.S.
The emotional impact was also real: “As students who are about to embark on their careers, creating a sustainable career can feel basically impossible in our political context,” Beal admitted. But the semester closed with readings by adrienne maree brown and la paperson, focusing on critical hope and freedom-dreaming—reminding students that while change is difficult, it’s still possible when we can inspire our collective imagination.
A class modeling inclusion
Beyond practical skills, one of the course's greatest impacts was its inclusive and collaborative culture. “This class became a community very early on—a place of care and support,” Beal observes, noting the strong attendance and high engagement.
Students reported feeling seen and challenged, gaining practical tools and knowledge to bring into their future work as graduate advisors, campus leaders, and advocates. Attendance was nearly perfect, and, as Beal notes, “Many said this was the first class [they’d taken] where LGBTQIA2S+ topics were meaningfully centered. The class space is something they needed, and perhaps never expected to find at U-M.”
This sense of inclusion resonated deeply for students across professional backgrounds, including those whose roles are outside traditional LGBTQ campus centers.
“Organizations must invest into advancing progress instead of always expecting one unit, organization, or office to drive that progress,” Smith said. “This particular part of class stands as a testament to me as a professional that I can have this impact and drive change even outside of dedicated spaces like gender and sexuality resource centers.”
Why it matters and why graduate students should enroll
“LGBTQ+ in Higher Education" is a model for the type of expert-led collaboration needed to create more inclusive spaces in higher education. Graduate students gained not only current academic perspective but also skills—critical analysis, advocacy, intervention design—that are increasingly essential for campus professionals and anyone working to build inclusive communities.
"I want to work within sports organizations to help make them better places for queer people... I have hope that I'll be able to make a difference," Salogar says.
Asked what song best captured the spirit of the semester, the class didn’t hesitate: “Pink Pony Club.” As Beal recalls, “The song is a queer anthem and it is about finding a place where you can bring your whole self and find a chosen family. It is about escaping a place that didn’t affirm us and seeking liberation, embracing authentic identity, and finding a place where you feel at home. The students shared that this was what this class did for them.”
About one in three U-M students are LGBTQIA2S+. Beal encourages current and future practitioners to reflect on how queer and trans histories, research, and realities might be woven into formal and co-curricular spaces. “It starts with not assuming that all students are cisgender and heterosexual, but goes deeper, asking how each program or office can center queer and trans people.”
For those considering campus leadership, advising, student life, or advocacy roles, “LGBTQ+ in Higher Education” (EDUC 771-001) offers an invaluable opportunity to connect scholarship, practitioner skills, and personal growth—helping build a campus community rooted in justice and inclusion.
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