Gender Neutral Housing Works, Yale Students Agree

Gender-neutral housing works just fine.

That's according to a new report [PDF] by the Yale College Council, which recommends that gender-neutral housing options be rolled out more widely on the campus.

“At Yale, our friends come from all different walks of life; some grew up in other states, some are of other races, some are studying a different major—most visibly, some are of another gender,” reads the report. “Gender-neutral housing recognizes that student friendships extend beyond individuals of the same gender.”

The report draws on a year and a half of interviews, surveys, and a pilot gender-neutral housing program carried out during the 2010-2011 academic year. In the pilot program, seniors were given the option of living in the same suite as individuals of the opposite sex.

Researchers found that undergraduate students were "overwhelmingly" in favor of expanding gender-neutral housing on campus. They also found students who had taken part in the pilot program to have universally positive feelings about the program.

Gender-neutral housing on a college campus can allow students the options of living on a mixed-gender floor or using mixed-gender bathrooms, or to live in a room with an individual of another gender. It can provide a solution for gay or transgender students who would feel uncomfortable living with an individual of the same gender, as well as offering more diverse housing options for the entire student body.

Among other barriers to LGBTQ students identified in the report, the authors point to the heteronormativity of gender-segregated housing as unfair.

“Gender-based housing suggests that men and women must not be allowed to live with one another because it may enable men and women in relationships to live together,” reads the report. “Implicit in this notion is that homosexuality is nonexistent. This does not reflect the diversity of sexual orientations within our Yale community and alienates those who do not identify as heterosexuals.”

The authors also point to gender-neutral housing as a step away from the idea that men and women should be treated differently, citing differences in workplace compensation to demonstrate the importance of deconstructing sexism in the dormitory.

The authors also addressed the sexual climate in gender neutral suites. According to students, mixed-gender housing created safer-feeling spaces for women, by letting them live with individuals they thoroughly trust, and facilitated communication about sexual norms.

In a supplementary note, Yale Assistant Dean of Student Affairs Malanie Boyd argues that making mixed-gender housing available to undergraduates is likely to curb sexual assault.

The report notes that Yale is the last Ivy League university to restrict gender-neutral housing to the senior class. Many notable colleges in the United States have instituted widespread gender neutral housing, including Caltech and Cornell.

Jon Christian is a staff writer with Campus Progress. Follow him on Twitter @Jon_Christian.

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