Gay or Straight? Check Yes or No

This year, Chicago's Elmhurst College became the first in the nation to add a question about sexual orientation on its 2012-13 admission application, WORLD News Service reports. The private college, affiliated with the United Church of Christ -- a denomination that endorsed same-sex marriage in 2005, asks students, "Would you consider yourself a member of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender community?" If students answer yes, they are eligible for a diversity scholarship totaling up to one-third the cost of tuition. Gary Rold, Elmhurst's dean of admissions, said, "I thought from the recruitment standpoint we might be more proactive [in attracting gay students]." But will heterosexual students facing loan burdens "be compelled to consider 'broader' sexual horizons?" asks Nathan Harden of National Review. He says it's absurd that a school "that knocks one-third off the sticker price of 'an education' because of sexual orientation [is] effectively doling out tens of thousands of dollars on the basis of students' bedroom behavior."