Gender Inclusive Housing
Residence Life’s priority is for every student to feel welcome and included in their living environment. Our policies aim to reflect the evolving ways we are intentionally supporting students of all gender identities and increasing inclusivity on campus. Students who opt-in to the gender inclusive housing model can select a roommate based upon compatibility, without the constraints of only having access to select roommates of the same assigned sex.
What is Gender Inclusive Housing?
Gender inclusive housing is when two or more students share a bedroom / or common living area regardless of their gender identity, gender expression, or gender assigned at birth.
This option may be appealing to:
- Students in the process of discovering their gender identity.
- Students who do not wish to identify themselves by gender.
- Allies of LGBTQIA+, gender and sexual diverse communities.
- Students who feel more comfortable with a roommate of a different gender.
Gender inclusive housing is not intended for:
- Couples or students who are in a romantic relationship with each other.
- Students who are not committed to gender equity and inclusion or are very new or uncertain of their commitment to these values.
While gender inclusive housing is open to any student, only students that agree to fully support the commitments of inclusivity and civility will be assigned to a gender-inclusive room. As stated above, it is not intended for couples to live together. Research and reports from other universities which have implemented a gender inclusive housing model maintain that most all students who choose to live in gender inclusive housing do so with friends, not with romantic partners or those they are dating. Students found using this housing model inappropriately, or conducting themselves in a way that is not conducive to a safe, inclusive, and supportive living environment, will be removed from the gender inclusive housing area and subject to disciplinary action.
When possible, Residence Life will assign a Residence Hall Officer (RHO) who has specifically opted into gender inclusive housing to oversee this community. If an RHO hasn’t specifically opted into this program, someone who understands and respects the principles of this community will be assigned to this position.
Interested in being a part of this community?
During the housing selection process, through the StarRez housing application, you will have the opportunity to request this option in the next academic year. In your application, please select “Gender Inclusive Housing Option” when asked if you would like to apply to live in an inclusive housing environment.
For more specific details on how the StarRez application works for incoming and returning students, please see below.
Incoming students are traditionally placed by assigned sex as recorded by the student in their application materials, in conjunction with separate questions that seek to understand sleep, study, and room usage preferences.
Incoming first-year students looking to be housed in a gender inclusive housing environment, not dictated by their assigned sex, need to select the “Gender Inclusive Housing” option in their StarRez housing application. With that selection, the Residence Life Office will reach out to the student to understand more about the type of housing they are looking for and will do their best to meet the needs of that student.
Residence Life cannot guarantee any specific rooms or buildings when this option is selected as it is our priority to place students with a roommate and / or suitemates that match their needs / interests.
Based on the current residence hall floorplans, along with the demographics of the Cal Maritime student population, Residence Life has tentatively designated Lower Residence Hall (specific stack TBD), to house the gender inclusive housing model. This location may change each year based on the amount of participation in this process and available housing space. Should changes be made, Residence Life will notify the residents involved and work to accommodate them in other locations, if possible.
Currently, Residence Life cannot designate a specific area for gender inclusive housing in the StarRez system, so it must be completed manually. Due to this, students interested in this community must select the “Gender Inclusive Housing” option in StarRez and submit their application without selecting a building or room. Once all housing applications have been submitted, Residence Life will reach out to the applicants who opted into this community to administratively assign them a space together.
If students want to participate in gender inclusive housing with specific roommates, all students / roommates must select the gender inclusive housing option in the StarRez housing application.
Requesting a gender inclusive room is part of the housing application process and administered through the Residence Life Office. If you have specific questions regarding this policy, or individual needs, please contact our main office at housing@csum.edu.