Linfield community considers gender neutral housing
February 22, 2016
An open forum was held on Friday, Feb. 19, in Ice Auditorium to discuss gender-neutral housing on campus.
Students and faculty met to get input on the proposed idea and see what students would like
to have if the new housing gets approved.
Multiple student groups have been working on making gender-neutral housing available at Linfield for several years.
It would be intended for people who don’t identify as either male or female.
It would be a comfortable and inclusive environment for these individuals where they can be themselves.
The overall goal of this meeting was to make students feel more comfortable on campus.
The members of the President’s Diversity Advisory Committee think that the time is right to
have a campus-wide conversation about gender-neutral housing.
They want to give students an opportunity to share needs, experiences, and expectations. Everyone that showed up to the meeting was there in support and was eager to give their opinion on the matter.
Junior Aletta Maier says, “I am definitely supportive of gender neutrality housing. I’ll do whatever I can to have it come to our community.”
Since the beginning of fall semester groups have been dis- cussing the idea more than ever. Students have been talking to the Health and Wellness Center in addition to other colleges to find out the best ways of implementing the new housing effectively. These plans will help when moving forward.
Students hope to have gender-neutral housing on campus by next fall.