Baylor Misconduct Policy Drops Explicit Ban on ‘Homosexual Acts’

Baylor University has dropped an explicit prohibition of “homosexual acts” from its student-misconduct policy, the Waco Tribune-Herald reports. Previously, the phrase was included in a list of behaviors that amounted to “misuses of God’s gift,” including sexual assault, incest, and fornication. The revised policy gives no examples.

“These changes were made because we didn’t believe the language reflected the university’s caring community,” a Baylor spokeswoman, Lori Fogleman, told the newspaper in an email. “The university has a responsibility to articulate clearly and consistently Baylor’s commitment to its values as a Christian university.”

Ms. Fogleman would not say whether same-sex couples would now be permitted at Baylor, but pointed to a reference in the policy to a broader Baptist document that defines marriage as between one man and one woman.

Baylor’s Student Senate called for stripping “homosexual acts” from the policy almost two years ago, but Ms. Fogleman said the change was not made in response to that vote.