The new Trans Advocacy Committee (TAC) composed of students, faculty and administrators that formed on campus in September is in the process of  gathering information and preparing to present proposals for improved trans-inclusive policies to the dean of students and college president at the end of this year.

The committee is comprised of nearly 15 members who serve on one of four sub-committees: Education and Outreach; Housing and Bathrooms; Health, Wellness and Insurance; and Inclusive Labeling on official documents and campus records. Each sub-committee has four to five members and includes at least one student, one faculty and one staff member.

“This group was assembled to validate the experiences of students, faculty and staff that identify as transgender, non-conforming or non-binary. We want to make a more inclusive Dickinson that values all parts of our community,” said TAC Chair Erica Gordon, the interim director of LGBTQ services.

TAC sub-committees are currently identifying changes that can be made within their focus areas and will then draft trans-inclusive policies. The committees will meet monthly and intend to have one “comprehensive document” laid out for the end of the year, Gordon said.

Gordon is eager to see changes made on campus.

“Some [policies] we think should be fairly easy to amend or update,” such as making the gender-neutral housing process more trans-inclusive for incoming students. Gordon said that others would be more difficult. For example, updating faculty health care may have a slower process of change because it is “more complicated and has outside stakeholders.”

Ariana Watson ’18, a member of the Housing and Bathroom sub-committee, said that her goal for this year is to have gender-neutral bathrooms available in all Dickinson’s public buildings.

“It’s ridiculous that there’s a building where [transgender students] go into three times a day to eat, and they can’t use the bathroom,” said Watson. Nonetheless, she recognizes the difficulty of making gender-neutral bathrooms safe spaces for all students.

“[Creating gender neutral bathrooms] sounds easy, but it’s actually very complicated,” said Watson. “Some people object who are survivors of sexual assault, or for religious reasons. And those people still have a right to choice and comfort.” Watson says that the group is trying to be “inclusive and acknowledging [of many populations] in [our] decisions.”

According to Katherine Schweighofer, professor of Women and Gender Studies and American Studies and a member of the Bathrooms and Housing subcommittee, the changes that the TAC aims to implement could make Dickinson more inclusive for people of all identities.

“The design [of the bathrooms] doesn’t work for a lot of people… there is a national conversation about how to make spaces more open to everyone, [including people with disabilities and parents with children,]” said Schweighofer. The progression towards LGBTQ equality is “something that stretches across many different groups and intersections.”

TAC members are pleased to see a working group dedicated to the needs of Trans populations, in particular the decision to allow students to serve on the committee.

“I appreciate that students are involved. It’s not just a top-down change,” said Georgia Christman ’17, a member of the Education and Outreach subcommittee. “The group takes into account what the student experience is…. [but] we have a long way to go.”

“It’s good to see that on an administration level people are trying to get things done,” Watson said.  “We are holding the college accountable, and we are holding the students accountable.”

Anyone who would like to submit suggestions to the TAC can complete an anonymous Google Document form available on the Announcements page of Dickinson’s website, or email [email protected].