Contributing Writers

Macalester made news locally and nationally when newspapers, radio stations and television stations reported on the possibility of gender-blind housing at the college. The Mac Weekly reported on the possibility in the Nov. 14 issue. The following week, the Associated Press (AP), Star Tribune, Saint Paul Pioneer Press, New York Newsday, Detroit News, Minnesota Public Radio, WCCO-Radio, television stations KSTP Channel 5 and KARE Channel 11 and several other newspapers across the country gave the story coverage.

The media attention generated increased discussion of the proposal on campus as well as comments from alumni and the community.

Many of the articles quoted Vice President of Student Affairs and Dean of Students Laurie Hamre. She said she is “clueless” as to why the proposal has gotten so much attention from the media and said she feels that the articles did not accurately describe the situation.

“Our students have a lot of choices,” she said. “I tried to make it clear that we’re not going to make this a policy [in every dorm], but they didn’t pick up on that.”

She explained that some other schools that offer gender-blind housing require students to live on campus all four years. Since Macalester policy allows students to move off-campus after their sophomore year and since many students take advantage of this off campus option, she believes that a small pilot gender-blind housing program would meet the current demand for on-campus co-ed housing.

Since the stories were published, Hamre has received both positive and negative responses from Macalester alumni and members of the community. She said that most of those who were against gender-blind housing were not well informed of what the proposal actually entails. Some thought that the proposal was already in effect, while others thought that all students would live in gender-blind housing.

According to Hamre, the media attention has accelerated the process of reviewing the proposal. “This kicked it up to the senior staff level,” she said. “We probably would have spent more time discussing it with studdents.”

The Star Tribune and AP articles included the opinion of Minnesota Family Council President Tom Prichard. He was quoted saying that gender-blind housing would increase sexual promiscuity and spread STDs. He said it would also promote gender confusion.

KSTP ran a poll on its web site asking, “Should students of the opposite sex be permitted to share dorm rooms?” Of 567 total voters, 65 percent said no and 34 percent said yes.

The Star Tribune ran a similar poll. As of Wednesday, of the 2,624 respondents, 54 percent disagreed with the idea of male and female students sharing the same dorm room. Thirty-seven percent agreed with the idea, while two percent chose the “don’t know” option and eight percent chose “don’t care.”

The Star Tribune has an online forum in which readers can discuss the gender-blind issue. The main topic of debate on the forum is whether gender-blind housing is acceptable for heterosexual couples to live together. The proposal is spearheaded by gay, lesbian, bisexual, transsexual and queer (GLBTQ) students and is focused on that student group.

“I was shocked when I read this article. What are we trying to teach these students about the responsibility of being adults?” Jeff Streeper of Eagan, Minn., said in the online forum. “Are we sending the message that it is okay to live with whomever they want outside of the responsibility of marriage? Every study that I have read about cohabitation before marriage has disclosed negative results, not positive healthy relationships.”

“I think it is a terrible idea,” Pamela Selness of Minneapolis wrote. “Less focus on schoolwork and more on the opposite sex and having sex.”

Aaron Dickinson wrote that he agreed with the proposal. “When you turn 18 you ARE an adult,” he wrote. “Treat students like adults and you will be surprised how often they act responsibly. Moreover, by increasing the flexibility of campus student housing, you are likely to keep more students on campus, where they are more likely to succeed.”

Macalester student Danielle Hagen ’05 tried to clarify the issue for those in the forum by writing her own comments. “I believe that the Star Tribune article on the proposed gender-blind housing presents the project in a misleading way,” she wrote. “The program is NOT designed for heterosexual couples who want to “shack up” together. The program is designed primarily for GLBTQ students who would feel more comfortable rooming with opposite sex partners.”

Students take gender-blind housing into their own hands

Hoping to serve as unofficial testers of gender-blind housing, Patrick Robbins ’07 and Sara Buck ’07 recently lived together for a week while Buck’s roommate was out of town.

Robbins and Buck wanted to publicly show that gender-blind housing would work. The two said they hope to write to Residential Life about their experiences.

“Walking in on Patrick naked would be just as awkward as walking in on my current roommate naked,” Buck said.

“[Introducing gender-blind housing] should be such a small deal,” Robbins said. “We were trying to show that [living in a co-ed situation] would be a basic week at Mac, and that’s what it turned out to be.”

Robbins moved into Buck’s room for an entire week without returning to his own room. “It was a normal week on campus,” besides the fact he was living elsewhere, Robbins said. He reported no problems with his temporary living arrangement.

Buck said she is equally satisfied with the unofficial gender-blind housing trial.

Buck said that she believes that if gender-blind housing were to become policy, gender-blind living options should be available to all students, including first-years. Buck suggested that Residential Life have first-years who wish to live in a gender-blind environment check a box and answer several supplemental questions designed to help place students in a more comfortable arrangement.

Buck said that she believes that gender-blind housing should be the norm for returning students. She said that all rooms should have gender-blind living as an option, with the exception of some floors for those who are uncomfortable with the gender-blind concept.

“Anyone who would opt for [gender-blind housing] would go into it with the same maturity as a same-sex living situation,” Robbins said. “I would like to ask Residential Life to recognize that maturity.”

Forum to be held tonight

Tonight at 6:30 p.m., Queer Union (QU) members Courtney Dicmas ’06 and Danielle Nelson ’05 will be available to answer questions and facilitate an informal discussion on gender blind housing.

According to Dicmas, only about 17 seconds of the approximately three minute KSTP Channel 4 story discussed GLBTQ issues. Dicmas said that KSTP dedicated the rest of the time to showing interviews with students, mostly first-years who were unaware that the demand gender-blind housing was even an issue on campus.

As such, Dicmas said she feels that KSTP misrepresented what she believes to be the real impetus for gender-blind housing: gay, lesbian, bisexual, transsexual and queer needs.

After seeing the KSTP report, Dicmas said she felt it was time for more students to be informed and become involved, so she and Nelson developed the idea of the forum.

“We want to get some ideas shaken up and open up a discussion about transgender issues,” Dicmas said. “There is an incredible need for translation between those with an academic awareness of the issues and those without.”

“This is an opportunity for students not involved with the queer community to engage in a more meaningful discussion,” Nelson said. “Not everyone knows what [gender-blind housing] is, and it’s important for people to know that it’s not just about premarital sex.”

Nelson encouraged students, faculty and staff to attend the forum. She said that gender-blind housing is an issue affecting the entire community, so everyone should be involved.