Gender Transgressors on Campus: The Educational Experiences of Transgender-Identified University Students

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Abstract

This phenomenological study investigated the experiences of college students who transgress the traditional boundaries of gender – to find out the ways being transgender-identified impacts their educational experiences; their sense of safety, belonging, and community; and their academic success. Understanding the everyday experiences of transgender students on campus can help administrators and faculty in institutions of higher education create inclusive classrooms and campus policies. Nine self-identified transgender students who attend universities in Midwest participated in this research. The study revealed the relationship between their transgender identity and experiences with gender-specific facilities and services, the classroom, and the structural components of the university. In addition to constraint, participants’ gender identity fostered qualities such as strength, resilience, curiosity, and empathy.

Author

• Les Tyler Johnson, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee