Smith College announced it will admit transgender women to a school known as a bastion of female education. This is a reversal for Smith, which previously refused to admit transgender students.
“The board’s decision affirms Smith’s unwavering mission and identity as a women’s college, our commitment to representing the diversity of women’s lived experiences, and the college’s exceptional role in the advancement of women worldwide,” a statement posted to the school’s Web site read. “… In the years since Smith’s founding, concepts of female identity have evolved. Smith alumnae have been leaders in the movement to afford women greater freedoms of aspiration and self-expression. At the same time, educational settings in which women are central remain powerfully transformative.”
The announcement — which comes amid a national conversation about sexual identity fueled by transgender former Olympian Bruce Jenner’s high-profile interview with ABC’s Diane Sawyer — left some unanswered questions as it interjected Smith into the highly charged territory of gender identity. Even the language of debates about gender identity — which often uses terminology unfamiliar to many such as “cisgender,” “non-binary” and “genderqueer” — is a minefield.
The policy changes were met with measured praise by some in the transgender community.
“While it is a huge step forward for the trans community and academia, some students are still marginalized on the basis of gender identification,” said Eli Erlick, a 19-year-old second-year student at Claremont University who is the director of the nonprofit Trans Student Educational Resources. Smith “should really be accessible for trans women, trans men and people with non-binary identities.”
The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion and analysis. Read full, original post: Smith College to admit transgender women in historic policy change
