Kansas City-area universities add gender-inclusive housing

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The University of Missouri-Kansas City and the University of Kansas have joined a growing list of colleges that are setting aside housing for students who don't identify with a specific gender.

The two universities each have assigned housing for more than 20 students who might be transgender, transitioning from their birth gender or who don't fit into the traditional idea of male or female roles. More than 200 universities across the country have made similar arrangements, The Kansas City Star reported.

Supporters say the changes make those students comfortable with dorm life.

John Roberts, a former Missouri-Kansas City resident assistant, belonged to Delta Lambda Phi, a fraternity founded by gay men that also embraces bisexual and transgender men. He said he saw harassment and intolerance for transgender students while working at Johnson Hall at Missouri-Kansas City.

"I (saw) some things that were treated a little more lax than they should have been." Roberts said. "I feel like that housing could have been more integrated, strove for a little more."

Even some conservative groups, which have pushed bills to govern which bathroom transgender people can use, say setting aside special transgender suites shields students who don't want transgender roommates.

Eric Teetsel, president of the Family Policy Alliance of Kansas, said creating what is called "gender-inclusive" housing is better than opening all dorms to students with various gender identities.

"Assigning all rooms on the basis of gender identity would be a violation of the privacy rights of students," Teetsel said. "No one is arguing that people who identify with an opposite gender of their biological sex are predatory. But when applied to the public at large, somebody could take advantage of this."

However, Phillip Cosby, a lobbyist and director of American Family Association of Kansas & Missouri, said the trend is driven by what he calls "gender confusion," and he wonders why state universities make special accommodations.

"The whole subject of transgender is gender confusion," Cosby said. "It's not a scientific reality, not a biological reality, but it's an emotional feeling."

The University Missouri-Kansas City will expand housing in all four residence areas, while the University of Kansas plans to open an entire wing of Lewis Hall to gender-inclusive housing in the fall. Both offer suites as an option, where two rooms are joined by a middle bathroom.

Katie Garey, associate director for Residential Life at Missouri-Kansas City, said she wants student input to help continue development of gender-inclusive housing in the future. She said every student who is interested in the living options will have a place to live this fall. The school currently has no wait list.

Kansas has a small wait list for the wing in Lewis Hall but no immediate plans to expand the gender-inclusive housing, director of housing Diana Robertson said.

Both university administrations reported no backlash during the lengthy process of opening gender-inclusive housing.

Smaller universities such as Pittsburg State University and Emporia State University handle requests for gender-inclusive housing on a case-by-case basis, administrators said.

The University of Missouri campus in Columbia will continue to offer gender-neutral housing options on one floor each of three residence halls, according to spokesman Christian Basi. No further changes are planned because of budget problems, he said.

Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com