A coeducational school since 1837 and the site of an Underground Railroad station, Guilford College has a history of setting precedents. “As the third oldest co-educational school in the nation, we should carry on Guilford’s legacy of inclusion by rejecting heterosexist policies and offering gender-blind rooming options,” said junior David Norton.

Norton is a co-founder of the non-profit organization National Student Genderblind Campaign (NSGC), which pushes for an end to heterosexism on college campuses via more accommodating rooming.

“Heterosexism is the system of rules, practices, policies, and institutions that prioritize or privilege heterosexuals,” said director of Women’s Studies, Kathryn Schmidt.

According to the NSGC, this system is embodied in same-sex room assignments in college dorms. They “marginalize gay; lesbian; bisexual; and students of various sexual orientations, who feel comfortable, or more comfortable, rooming with someone of the same sex.”

To end these practices, the NSGC is pushing for the option of opposite-sex roommates.

“(Current housing options) force students . into uncomfortable or even dangerous situations,” said the NSGC.

The NSGC was born out of the disappointment of being unable to room with a best friend because of gender. Both Jeffrey Chang, a student at Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts, and Guilford’s Norton were surprised and unhappy when they were unable to room with female friends. This rejection made both of them aware of the heteronormativity on college campuses.

Norton and Chang partnered in early 2006 and established the NSGC in the following months. Their organization has since taken off, with the creation of their Web site as well as mass media coverage on Fox News and The Christian Science Monitor.

Many institutions are opposed to the measure for fear of couples rooming together, squabbling, breaking up, and creating a room change mess for Residence Life. Others feared increased incidents of domestic abuse.

“Through our research of those institutions that allow gender-blind options, overwhelmingly each school has reported very, very few problems,” said Norton in response to institutions’ worries.

Norton believes that with so many schools beginning to allow gender-blind housing options, Guilford has fallen behind.

“The current Guilford housing policy, without gender-blind options, is clearly heterosexist,” said Norton. “The injustice is right there in front of us, and along with millions of other students, we all experience it in our daily lives.”

This issue has been highly debated on campus in past semesters. Last year, Norton and fellow student, Anya Benson, established a campus-wide discourse and produced a 600-signature petition in support of gender-blind rooming. While Community Senate agreed to offer public support of the issue, the Board of Trustees remained adamantly opposed.

Although the Trustees did not support gender-blind initiatives, measures are being taken to test the option.

“It would start small with an on-campus theme house like Pope or Cobb,” said President Kent Chabotar. “Then, if it goes well, it would expand.”

Next year, upperclassmen in theme houses will have the option of gender-blind rooming. Aaron Fetrow, the dean of campus life, says that the petitioning for a gender-neutral themed house would be the same as any other house.

“We’d love to see a proposal,” said Fetrow.

The NSGC’s Web site features detailed instructions regarding the implementation of gender-neutral rooming policies. Genderblind.org involves the step “identifying core values” of the institution.

According to the Student Handbook, Guilford prides itself on core values of “community, diversity, equality, excellence, integrity, justice, and stewardship.”

President Chabotar thinks that NSGC’s plan meshes well with Guilford values.

“It works with equality. It works with community. It works with our idea of diversity, where we don’t discriminate based on race, religion, ethnicity, and sexuality.”

Norton, however, asks if we can live up to our core values.

“We must practice our core values of diversity, equality, and justice by taking a stand, as an institution, for gender-blind rooming options,” he said.