College in Transition: Transgender Inclusion Policies at Gender-Selective Colleges

• In Event: Marriott Roundtable Session 19
  In Roundtable Session: LGBTQ Students and Higher Education Politics and Policy

Abstract

Postsecondary institutions have increasingly incorporated inclusive language, policies, and facilities to address transgender student health, grades, safety, and academic achievement. While such efforts have been heralded, little research has studied students’ experiences on campuses with such policies. This study presents findings from an ethnography of transgender inclusive admissions policies at two women’s colleges—Athena and Minerva. Results from this analysis contribute to three research concerns: 1) educational outcomes beyond the gender binary; 2) transgender student experiences; and 3) transgender inclusion policies. As such, this study calls to think about diversity as product of postsecondary institutions; not simply in terms of the identities that are listed in nondiscrimination policies, but in the ways in which these polices are implemented.

Author

• Megan Nanney, East Carolina University