The role of the MRC as a resource for faculty, staff, and students around educational workshops and trainings has significantly expanded in the last year, in particular educational efforts around transgender concerns. As a result of a charge from the President’s Task Force on Diversity and Multiculturalism, the MRC developed a two-hour workshop titled Trans 101 Training over the summer of 2004. The first part of the training is more theoretical, discussing how gender identity and expression intersects with and informs current conversations about identity formation. The hope is to break down simplistic binaries of there being just two sexes or two genders or two sexual orientations. The second half of the training takes the theory knowledge and applies it to the practical work of each college office or student group.
Over the course of past two academic years, more than 30 college offices and student groups totaling approximately 600 participants went through the training. Among the offices and students groups that participated last year are the Athletics Department professional staff (participated in a broader LGBT issues training that included work around transgender concerns), Baldwin Collective, Career Services, Center for Service and Learning, Bonner’s Scholars, College Relations, members of the Dean of Students Office, the board of the Edmonia Lewis Center, the MRC professional and student worker staff, Oberlin College Dialogue Center, students (RAs and SRAs) and professional staff (RDs) in the Residential Life, Safety and Security, the Peer Liaisons in Student Academic Services, Student Health Services, Student Union student and professional staffs, Third World House residents and Professor Pam Brooks’ African American Studies course.
In order to meet the demand a training group of 5 staff and 6 student facilitators was formed. We have already held a training session for approximately 7 new facilitators this year to replace facilitators who graduate this past spring increasing the overall pool of available facilitators. This year they will also be joined by 5-7 first and second year students who will help as “facilitators in training” insuring a pipeline for the future. The feedback on the trainings from last year has been overwhelmingly positive both in terms of participation and assessment. For example, the Residential Education student staff of 86 RAs and SRAs, the largest single group of participants, rated the training an 8.3/10.
In addition to continuing to offer Trans 101 Trainings, we are also currently focused on future plans including the adaptation of the Trans 101 Training for faculty and the development of a Trans 201 Training.
Trans 101 Resources:
 Common Trans Definitions
Trans Resources
Trans Allyship
Trans Accessibility Worksheet
Gender Neutral Pronouns |
