Trans-Friendly College and Universities by Amanda Dickinson Beirne
The need to provide inclusive and
equitable resources and services can seen as the next obstacle in providing
access and support to the transgender population by many student affairs
professionals. Students that identify as transgender
can often be the most underserved and the least understood on college campuses
due to insufficient research, misinformation about the population, and an
inability to sufficiently advocate for a perceived ‘small’ percentage of the
population (Beemyn, 2003).
Transgender students face
added challenges as it relates to health care, housing, and untrained staff in
addition to the everyday insecurities and stressors of being a college student.
From
the application process to registration, roommate matching, finding a restroom,
and accessing proper healthcare, transgender students are continuously faced
with mandatory gender identification (Perifomos, 2009).
I became
interested in transgender students after an acquaintance transitioned from
male-to-female a few years ago. Over
the course of the past year, I frequently wrote about the experiences of
transgender students in college for classes such as Foundations of Higher
Education, Student Affairs Work in College, and Politics of Difference. My awareness has shifted from the
overarching experience of transgender college students to examining the range
of trans-friendly policies, practices, and programs that colleges and
universities support. While the
term trans-friendly may not always signify equitable resources for transgender
college students, many campuses have become visible agents of change by
creating inclusive environments for students, staff, and faculty.
Last
month, Campus Pride published their first ever list of the Top 10 Trans-Friendly
Colleges. Campus Pride is the only
non-profit national organization that “exists to
develop, support and give ‘voice and action’ in building future LGBT and ally
leaders (Campus Pride, 2012). The Top 10 list is based on data from the
Campus Pride Index, which rates LGBT friendly higher education institutions
across the United States. While
the criteria for the index is still somewhat unclear, one thing is
certain. The Campus Pride Index
measures much more than whether or not a campus has a handful of gender-neutral
bathrooms.
Amongst
the colleges listed were mostly large, public four-year institutions on the
East and West coast including University of Pennsylvania, University of Oregon,
and the University of Vermont.
Some institutions in particular had notable amenities for the
transgender population. Ithaca
College boasts a free speech pathology clinic where transitioning staff,
students, and faculty can come to have their voices sound similarly to people
of their gender (Beemyn & Windmeyer, 2012). According to Beemyn & Windmeyer (2012), The University
of Vermont and Princeton host a “Trans 101” workshop for student affairs
officers while New York University holds an annual Transgender Awareness week. Pioneers for creating a welcoming
on-campus environment for transgender students were also featured in the Top 10
list. The University of
California-Riverside was the first public higher education institution to offer
gender inclusive housing in 2005 as well as the University of Massachusetts-Amherst,
which created the first LGBT and ally themed community in 1992 (Beemyn &
Windmeyer, 2012).
Upon
reflection I wonder, what does it even mean for a college to be trans-friendly? Does it mean that transgender students
are automatically linked with gay, lesbian, and bisexual students for services
and resources? We can learn from the institutions
listed in the Top 10 Trans-Friendly list and challenge our own perceptions of
the needs of transgender students moving forward through intentional
conversation with our faculty, classmates, and fellow colleagues.
My mind also turns
to the student affairs professionals who work at the institutions featured on
the Top 10 list. Will my fellow
PASA cohort members look for trans-friendly institutions as we begin the job
search process in a few short months? Are my classmates aware of the advocacy
and support, particularly in the residence halls for transgender students at
USC? While some of my classmates may be better versed on transgender
students during their time in college, I am curious to know: how trans-friendly
do you think your next department is and will it be a factor in finding your
institutional fit?
References
Beemyn, B. (2003). Serving
the Needs of Transgender College Students. Retrieved from
Beemyn, G. &
Windmeyer, S. (2012, August 15). The
Top 10 Trans-Friendly Colleges and
Universities. The
Huffington Post. Retrieved
from
universities?page=0,0
No author (2012). Campus Pride:
Donate. Retrieved from http://www.campuspride.org/donate.asp
Perifimos, C. (2009). The Changing Faces of Women’s Colleges:
Striking a Balance Between Transgender Rights and Women’s Colleges Right to
Exclude. Cardozo Journal of Law and Gender. Retrieved from http://www.cardozolawandgender.com/uploads/2/7/7/6/2776881/15-1_perifimos.pdf
I absolutely loved this blog post, as it challenges poses our cohort to think about whether we are going to be applying and excepting positions at institutions that do not take into consideration the needs of all students, whether it be the most commonly noted underrepresented populations, or the invisible populations, a category into which many transgender students fall. When I think of underrepresented populations on a college campus, I must admit that I first think of those from racial backgrounds that are not well represented in PWIs. However, although most institutions still have a lot of work to do, there are many educational resources in the postsecondary realm that work specifically to accommodate our needs. If one were to compare the resources provided to transgender populations, as Bierne points out, there is a glaring difference. I feel fortunate that this issue was brought to the attention of this blog, and that this post challenges my cohort to think about this issue when looking for institutions that match our values. Like the author of this post, I believe in equity for all, especially those of the invisible populations.
ReplyDeleteAmanda-
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your insights on a matter you are so passionate about. I certainly was not aware of the Top 10 Transgender Friendly College listing and it was fascinating to read through. I wonder if these schools intentionally set out to best support their transgender student population or if transgender students are more attracted to these institutions because of their offerings? And to what degree their geographical location plays a part to their transgender support? And for the schools that may not offer entire offices or have a clear campus culture of support, to what extent are they positioning themselves to actively yield support and advocacy for all students?
Love this post. I definitely find this important as a trans*-ally. When looking for institutional fit, my biggest criteria is looking at the campus attitude towards the LGBT Community, Women, and other minority groups. Diversity is extremely important, especially when looking at student development. If students' world views are not challenged in college, when will they ever get another opportunity?
ReplyDeleteAs with any rising issue, student affairs professionals need to inform and educate themselves, other administrators, faculty members, and students before any change is to ensue (i.e. increasing resources for a minority student population). Despite some universities being deemed as "LGBT friendly," the culture often omits transgender students and their needs. Although the presence of a "trans-friendly" culture will not greatly impact my decision in terms of institutional fit, I hope more than anything to be at a university that truly embraces all forms of identity, making a conscious effort to improve resources for all students of all types.
ReplyDelete-Paul R.
I'm very glad that you shared your impressions of the "Top 10 Trans-Friendly Colleges and Universities" article, provided us with some examples of the practices they implement, and posed some interesting questions for us to consider. As with many rankings, I think the list has the potential to really help students and professionals make informed decisions about where to study or work. However, much like Paul, my decision to choose a postsecondary institution to work for will be based less on whether it is specifically trans-friendly than in it being generally diversity-friendly. As someone who is very interested in working with underrepresented students, I often wonder if it would be best to choose a campus that is already "friendly" to the student population I seek to work with or one that is just starting to move in that direction. Of course, the latter would be much more of a challenge but it could also help increase the number of "friendly" institutions for individuals to consider rather than restricting them to a select few. --Adriana Garcia
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading this posting. It was great learning about the “Top 10 Trans-Friendly Colleges and Universities”. I think that as future student affairs professionals we can learn from these institutions, and even contribute to those colleges and universities that are not considered “friendly”. Imagine the impact one can have on communities of individuals who are often seen as invisible. I believe that it is imperative to inform ourselves with the types of services and programs, other institutions have that support the Transgender community, and to spread awareness.
ReplyDelete-Rosemary Rangel