Gender Neutral Bathrooms

When asked to sift through my four years at this school and suggest one change for Dartmouth, I typically answer, “Make bathrooms gender neutral.” While I would love to see fraternities go gender neutral, there is a weight of (ahem) tradition. Though it’s easily within the power of many campus fraternities to go gender neutral, taking into account national affiliation as well as alumni contributions to Dartmouth’s endowment, it’s unlikely that enough houses would go gender neutral to significantly change gender dynamics on campus.

However, I doubt any alums get as misty-eyed about their freshman bowel movements. Bathrooms are less politically contested than fraternities, and gender neutralizing them is within the power of students and the administration. Given the benefits we’ll reap from neutralized space, the suggestion seems logical—but I’ve heard from many students that gender-neutral bathrooms give them the heebie-jeebies.

Read the full story