As a student at Carlow, I've taken many classes. As a transgender student at Carlow, I've also had a range of different experiences as a transgender student in the undergraduate classroom. It would be easy to say that there are those who are supportive of the trans and nonbinary and those who are not, but it’s more complicated than that. Even the best, most supportive professors who’ve done their best to create safe spaces have messed up and used the wrong name or pronouns for me.
When it comes to being a good LGBTQIA+ ally, everyone is always learning and growing. What’s important is that you be realistic with where you are in your allyship and how far you have to go. If you can recognize the places you need to improve on, you’re already far closer to being a strong ally for the LGBTQIA+ community.
I’ve gathered a list of strategies that faculty could use if they’re looking to better support trans and non-binary students in the Carlow Community. These strategies are from a combination of personal experience and from reading and scholarship I’ve done as part of my work as a student intern with Project SAFE.
Using the word preferred has become extremely common when talking about pronouns or introducing them into the classroom, but it is important to be aware of what you are saying when you ask someone to share their “preferred pronouns.” Preferred implies that the set of pronouns that a person uses is simply a preference, meaning there are other options that could be used. When you ask for someone’s pronouns, they are not meant to be a guideline.
‘Ladies and gentleman,’ ‘young men and women,’ titles like Miss, Mr., Mrs., etc. are phrases that can be othering to a trans/nonbinary student. At the same time, getting out of this language is difficult. Even as someone who is part of the community, I find that I can struggle with unlearning some of the language I’ve been taught.
The best thing to do is go through your lesson plans, syllabus, or anything else your students might have access to and check to see if any wording is similar to some of the examples listed above. Often, the one I notice the most in my classes is using “he/she” to refer to students. Using the singular, gender-neutral pronoun “they” will help many students feel safer and more included in your online classroom.
What I find most helpful is to meet myself where I am, and work from there. Give yourself some grace, but remember to correct yourself when you notice you’re using cisgendered, heteronormative language.
Case studies are commonly taught and used in a multitude of subjects, but often, the older they get, the less inclusive they seem to be.
Make an effort to find case studies and other materials for your course that are supportive of each of your students’ identities. If you’re teaching a class in Psychology or Sociology, try utilizing organizations like GLAAD or The Trevor Project, national organizations with widely known credibility. Both have specific statistics to utilize on LGBTQIA+ demographics and may be helpful in making your online classroom a safer, more comfortable place for multiple students.
If you feel material is noninclusive but still significant to your class, it doesn’t mean you can’t discuss its downfalls. Prefacing that the material has a limited outlook (i.e. a case study that focuses on white, cisgender men and women) before continuing discourse can make the discussion meaningful to everyone in the room, rather than only the group of people that fit into that mold. In this way, you no longer limit the students you can connect with through the materials you use to inform them.
If you mess up by using someone’s incorrect pronouns, know that it is not the end of the world. Again, as someone part of the trans/nonbinary community, it’s something I can struggle with, as well. We are all human, and therefore, mistakes are not only allowed, but expected. The issue is when we don’t put in the effort to learn from them.
When you do mess up someone’s pronouns (and chances are you will, because everyone does), the best course of action is simply to correct yourself in the moment. Your impulse may be to apologize, especially in an online setting, but often, that makes the person who was affected by your misuse of their pronouns have to accept the mistake you’ve made.
In an asynchronous setting, the best option from my perspective is to correct your mistake to yourself and continue on. Be sure to get the pronouns correct the next time you use them, potentially even reminding yourself each time you see their name online--“KJ just submitted his discussion post,” or something similar, to practice. Reaching out to let them know may feel like the right thing, but take a step back and try to think about what that student may prefer.
If you are in an online setting where you meet with your students virtually, you have a bit more wiggle room in terms of correcting yourself. The best solution when you are in a virtual classroom is to correct yourself then, in the moment, and move on. The idea of apologizing still applies; you want to be sure you are not forcing a student to accept an apology. Even then, apologizing in front of the class can make the student feel uncomfortable. However, simply correcting yourself in the moment and continuing with the lesson will not only make the student in question feel safer in your space, but also set an example for the other students in your virtual setting.
Get involved in what’s going on campus-wide. Attend LGBTQIA+ events as often as possible, especially those that celebrate intersectionality.
Advocate for more intersectional events on campus.
Get involved in your personal life.
Donate to local organizations like SisTers PGH, The Name Change Project, Allies for Health + Wellbeing, TransPride Pittsburgh, and multiple others. Get involved with those organizations, if you’re able.
Educate yourself. Utilize some of the resources above, as well as this article titled Teachers as LGBTQ Allies written by Staff Writers of Accredited Schools Online. Learn more about Title IX’s outside resources or Project SAFE, a group dedicated to ending gender-based violence on our campus.