Author: Megan Thiele Strong

Megan Thiele Strong, Ph.D., is a sociology professor at San José State University and a 2023-24 public voices fellow at the The OpEd Project.

Universities Must Do Better for the Trans Community

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For the past decade, Americans have been fed a steady diet of transphobic hysteria, with 2024 being the 5th consecutive record-breaking year for anti-trans legislation. The election of Donald J. Trump was predicated on a fight against trans rights.

As professors at San José State University, we have seen the results of this type of targeted campaign. Recent and past events on our campus by transphobic individuals and extremist groups emphasizing bigotry and hate, turn university spaces into anti-intellectual theater and harm trans students. In so doing, they position our campuses too closely to intolerance. 

Protect More Than Women’s Bodies on Campus

Research shows that among college students, women report more mental health issues than men. The work to protect women’s bodies is so important and still needed—but it is also important that we take steps to proactively protect the mental health of our female students. 

The year I went up for tenure, I had a series of unexpected and traumatic experiences. I know I am not the only faculty to experience a mental health breakdown at a high-stress and highly important time in my academic career. In fact, mental health problems in academia are under-discussed and relatively common.