While many Ohio University undergraduates met their roommates for the first time in the doorway of their residence hall rooms this past weekend, some residents of Smith House moved in with their siblings or significant others.
This year, OU became the third university in the state with a gender-neutral housing plan. Two mods in South Green’s Smith House now house 10 sets of opposite-sex roommates from various backgrounds, calling for special preparations from the Residential Housing staff.
“Every community has agreement issues,” said Amanda Hobson, residential coordinator for Smith House. “Not only will typical roommate problems happen here, but we may also have issues that will cross gender lines.”
One feature of the Smith House mods that might spark controversy is the unmarked communal bathrooms that male and female residents will have to share. In addition to some unusual discussion about bathroom etiquette, Smith House residents will need to discuss relationship matters as well as lesbian-, gay-, bisexual- and transgender-friendly language during their first in-hall meeting.
“If anything, I think this group of students will be closer than others because they made a conscious decision to join this community,” said Judy Piercy, associate director of Residential Housing.
A survey by Student Senate last year showed that 87 percent of the 1,176 participating OU students responded in favor of allowing a gender-neutral housing option, and 56 percent said they would consider sharing a room with someone of the opposite sex.
“I think the gender-neutral housing option makes this university more appealing to certain people and certain families,” said Kent Smith, OU’s vice president for Student Affairs. “Especially the LGBT community and siblings who want to live together.”
With the gender-neutral housing program underway, residential assistants in most residence halls will include conversations about bullying and respecting the LGBT community in their initial meet-and-greets. Residential Housing says it is now, more than ever, encouraging in-house staffers to recruit LGBT allies in the residence halls they oversee.
After the individuals settle into their new rooms, each will participate in a pre-test to indicate their well-being early in the quarter. Similar assessments will be held regularly throughout the year to determine whether the gender-neutral housing program is a success.
“Right now, we’re just waiting to see what the students living here want, and it’s OK if what they want isn’t special,” Hobson said. “They probably just want an inclusive community environment where they can be who they are.”
