Mission and Vision

Who We Are:

The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ+) Student Services is a functional area within Multicultural Programs under the unit of Multicultural Services.

Mission Statement:

LGBTQ+ Student Services seeks to create a welcoming, affirming, and socially just campus environment for students marginalized because of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. LGBTQ+ Student Services strives to engage the Missouri State University and broader Springfield communities in authentic, critical, and necessary conversations to seek the liberation of all individuals and break cultural norms that consistently oppressive LGBTQ+ persons. Through an intentionally intersectional and global lens, LGBTQ+ Student Services endeavors to show the wide range of LGBTQ+ experiences to foster greater compassion, empathy, and community dialogue to create a stronger, sustainable commitment to social exploration, change, and justice.

Vision Statement:

LGBTQ+ Student Services envisions a campus community that actively and openly affirms, celebrates, and encourages the free expression of everyone’s sexual and romantic orientations and/or gender identity and expression. By challenging community members to actively explore their own identities and experiences with gender identity and sexual orientation, LGBTQ+ Student Services supports our students and campus partners to critically examine the social construction of the body, desire, and love in ways that empower us to find shared humanity and strength within ourselves and each other. Our advocacy actively seeks to address the intersections of systems of oppression, as the liberation of LGBTQ+ people and the end to homophobia and transphobia require the end of racism, sexism, ableism, and all other forms of institutional and interpersonal violence.