Goals and concerns of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community were identified last night in a town hall meeting that focused on plans for the coming year.

About 40 people gathered in Alumni Hall to hear the Commission on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Equity explain what it has accomplished in the past year and where it hopes to go.

The commission, which is an advisory group to Penn State President Graham Spanier, has four major goals. It seeks to improve the climate and welfare of the LGBT community, extend current resources, create new resources, and build partnerships with students, faculty and the administration.

The commission wants to improve the inclusion of LGBT issues in education.

It plans to survey Penn State faculty to identify courses with significant LGBT content, then publicize this list.

"This is an exciting idea," said R. Neill Johnson, chairman of the commission. "Because we're an educational institution, we certainly should have some opportunities for students to study this."

The commission also wants to help create an LGBT studies minor.

"There are many fine scholars here who are doing wonderful research that is frankly not being recognized," Johnson said.

Offering a minor would be one way to recognize LGBT issues in academia.

Another goal of the commission is to gain a better understanding of the LGBT community at Penn State.

More than 800 students were surveyed last week about the climate for LGBT people at Penn State, and the results should be available in about two weeks.

The commission wants to gain a better understanding of LGBT issues at commonwealth campuses.

"That's where the climate for LGBT people seems to be particularly bad," Johnson said.

A number of audience members discussed ways to connect with the entire Penn State community, including better publication of LGBT events and resources.

Tarah Ausburn, Lambda Student Alliance liaison to the commission, suggested reaching out to new students, perhaps through first-year seminars, to explain LGBT resources.

"When you're a first-year student, it's hard to find resources," she said. "As long as we show the resources that are there, there will be fewer people who remain closeted."

Audience members expressed a desire for a more visible, larger LGBT resource center with a full-time staff where students would feel comfortable attending meetings and finding information. Johnson said this particular goal of the commission is in the early planning stages.

The commission will consider the comments from the event before meeting with Spanier on Oct. 18 to discuss its goals for the upcoming year.

"It's an opportunity for us to have a dialogue with him," said Jacquett Wade, student concerns committee chair for the commission. "He takes our concerns seriously. He listens."