An Evolving Ticked-Box Policy: Reassessing a Chosen Name Policy for Transgender and Gender Nonconforming Students (Poster 25)

• In Event: AERA Poster Session Saturday 3:20 p.m.
  In Poster Session: Navigating Identity, Inclusion, and Belonging: Student Perspectives on Equity, Policy, and Intercultural Experiences in Higher Education

Abstract

A 2020 qualitative study explored the lived experiences of transgender and gender non-conforming (TGNC) college students using a newly implemented chosen name policy at a public Midwestern university. Drawing from participants' narratives, this study offered recommendations to enhance the safety and inclusivity of the policy. Over a four-year period, the university instituted many of the recommendations proposed by the students. In 2024, a follow-up study examined how policy updates affected the subsequent cohort of TGNC students. This research applied Spade's (2015) theory of Critical Trans Politics to explore how 'trickle-up social justice' dismantles oppressive systems for transgender and gender non-conforming college students. The study found that when we empower TGNC students to help assess policies, those policies become more protective.

Author

• Mitch Lieberth, Cleveland State University