Lawrentians Celebrate Opening of The Ross Room

Students packed a light-filled, newly renovated room on the third floor of Bunn Library on Feb. 21 for the opening of the new Ross Room. Supported by Ross Claiborne ‘44, The Ross Room provides a welcoming space for members and allies of Lawrenceville’s LGBTQ+ community. 

Head of School Steve Murray and Language Department Chair Brian Jacobs, who serves as advisor to the student-led Gender-Sexuality Alliance (GSA), invited Ross to share about his experience at Lawrenceville in the 1940s, and why he felt compelled to support the creation of The Ross Room today.

Claiborne, who joined the celebration virtually, talked about how he met his best friends while living in Griswold House at Lawrenceville.

“My Fourth and Fifth Form years were the happiest I’ve ever been,” he said. “Lawrenceville changed my life in many ways.”

“Lawrenceville made all the difference,” Claiborne shared with the group. “I learned to study. There was a level of excellence in the teachers, and the Harkness system of small classrooms.”

Claiborne noted he also made lifelong friendships.

“It was a marvelous experience during an exceptionally turbulent time,” he said.

After leaving Lawrenceville, Claiborne joined the U.S. Army, and later attended all-male Yale University.

“I knew I was different,” he said, “but it wasn’t until after college that I acknowledged I was gay.”

Claiborne went on to a successful career in publishing, so it’s appropriate that the new Ross Room is housed in Bunn Library, in a third floor room that’s been renovated and redesigned as a combination lounge, event spaces, and resource hub. He envisions The Ross Room as a space where students can gather without judgement – to socialize, to study, to simply be themselves.

“I hope it will make a difference for those students who need a place where they can take time out from the general community and be with others who share their experience,” said Claiborne.

Murray noted that while the space offers students a degree of privacy, it is located “smack dab in the center of campus - saying ‘you belong."

“Thank you for your vision, your support and resources to create a sense of belonging,” Murray said. “I wish we could convey the sense of connectedness and closeness this room is already generating.”

"The students' response to the space has been overwhelmingly positive, and I'm so glad that they were able to talk to Ross directly and hear about his experiences at Lawrenceville and beyond,” Jacobs said. “In creating this event, it was important for me that Ross be more than just a name on a plaque."

In addition to the renovated space, Claiborne’s gift also establishes a permanent endowment to support a faculty advisor, as well as resource materials, counseling, and presentations to benefit Lawrenceville’s LGBTQ+ community and inform interested students and faculty on LGBTQ+ issues and concerns.

“A heartfelt thank you to Ross Claiborne ‘44 for his incredible generosity in creating The Ross Room, a dedicated space for our LGBTQ+ community at Lawrenceville,” said Riley McKibben ‘25, president of Lawrenceville’s student Gender-Sexuality Alliance. “Your support will have a lasting impact on our students, fostering a future filled with inclusivity, empowerment, and pride!”

“I couldn’t be more pleased and grateful that this legacy will go on for a long, long time,” Claiborne said.

For more information, contact Lisa M. Gillard H'17, director of public relations, at lgillard@lawrenceville.org.