SAN FRANCISCO — Responding to concerns raised by gay and transgender students and employees, University of California President Janet Napolitano directed the system’s 10 campuses on Monday to create more gender neutral restrooms and to allow students to update their records with a preferred name that does not necessarily match their legal name.
The two actions respond to recommendations from a task force that started meeting before Napolitano assumed the president’s job a year ago Tuesday and which she has expanded into an ongoing advisory group to come up with suggestions for how the university can be more LGBT-inclusive.
“UC should be the gold standard where these issues are concerned.” Napolitano said in a statement.
Several UC campuses, as well as colleges and universities across the nation, already have moved in recent years to reconfigure their restrooms so transgender staff members and students can use them without fear of being identified or harassed. In many cases, schools also make maps available showing where the facilities are located.
Never Miss a Beat
Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights.
Article continues below
The name policy also builds on changes at several UC schools, including Berkeley, Davis, Irvine and Santa Cruz, that already permit students who have not legally changed their names to choose a “preferred” name that will be used for class rosters, student ID cards, campus directories and other situations where a legal name is not required, such as a course transcript or financial aid form.
Napolitano on Monday also asked the advisory council to convene a meeting on the research on LGBT topics being done by UC faculty and students and to make recommendations for improving staff diversity training.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
