Embedded Files
FroCo Groups
All FroCos are asked to do pronouns with their first-year groups. Even if you are asked your pronouns, you can introduce yourself however you feel most comfortable and with whatever pronouns you feel safest using, and can always choose to let people know later if you want.
It’s your FroCo’s job to make you feel welcome and supported. That said, it is entirely up to you if and when you come out to your FroCo/anybody else at Yale. FroCos are a great resource, but they may not share identities and experiences that are important to you. This is where Peer Liaisons (PLs) come in!
Peer Liaisons
Peer Liaisons (PLs), are a select group of trained, caring upper-class student leaders affiliated with the residential colleges and one of these eight centers/offices: Afro-American Cultural Center, Asian American Cultural Center, Chaplain’s Office, La Casa Cultural: Latinx Cultural Center, Native American Cultural Center, Office of International Students & Scholars, Yale LGBTQ Center, Student Accessibility Services.
A note: most of the cultural centers assign PLees (that could be you!) by residential college. However, this is not the case for the Office of LGBTQ Resources: you can request any of the peer liaisons based on shared identities or interests, or the Office can match you with someone based on the bio you provide!
Here is the link to the request form for a peer liaison.
Gender Peer Mentor Program
The Trans@Yale Gender Peer Mentorship Program is for current Yale students from both Yale College and the Graduate and Professional Schools who have questions regarding gender, gender identity, transition, and anything related to those subjects. The mentors consist of volunteer trans Yalies. This is open to students of all identities, trans or otherwise.
Fill out the mentor-matching survey to be paired with a mentor!
If you are interested in becoming a mentor, please contact us through our contact page.
"The GroupMe"
There are two GroupMes: a general GroupMe for trans/nonbinary students at Yale and one specialized for trans/nonbinary/two-spirit students of color. You can be added to these chats by any trans person who is also in the chat. Don't know a trans person? Come to Beyond the Binary and ask to be added!
Housing and Suites
[2023: THIS SECTION IS IN PROGRESS BECAUSE THE HOUSING PROCESS HAS CHANGED]
As of the 2018-2019 school year, first-years should have the option of requesting all-gender housing on the housing forms sent out over the summer. The Yale LGBTQ Center works to ensure that all requests for all-gender housing are respected. Contacting Director Samuel Byrd (samuel.byrd@yale.edu) over the summer is recommended to ensure that you get the housing that you need.
Coming out (or not) to your suite: There is no formal mechanism for telling your suite you are trans, but here are a few ideas. It’s also fine to wait to come out to them or not do it at all; what’s most important is your own comfort and safety.
Most suites communicate before school starts. If you want to get it out of the way early, you will probably have a chance during your online introductions to say your name and pronouns. Some of your suitemates might know what that means, and some might not. The advantage of telling your suite this way is that they will have time to get used to the idea and even research transness before they meet you; you may also prefer to actually meet your suitemates and gauge the situation before saying anything.
There is a lot of getting-to-know-you time at the beginning of school. Possibly, your suite will sit down to talk about everyone’s needs and preferences (and if they don’t, you could call a meeting). If you want to come out in person, this might be a good time to tell them.
If you feel comfortable with your FroCo, you could ask them to help you by either telling your suite, helping you tell them, or facilitating an environment in which you are able to (for example, sitting down with your suite and going around to do name and pronouns).
If there is one person in your suite you think understands gender better than the others, you could ask for their help in coming out to the rest of your suite/answering their questions. It can really help to have an ally who will do some of the work for you and will help your suite learn how to respect you (via pronouns, etc).
Again, there is no right way to come out to your suite. It’s also not something that you need to do if you don’t want to.
The PLs are also very willing to help you through this process if you're not comfortable talking to your FroCo for whatever reason.
Camp Yale
You can sign up to go on First-Year Outdoor Orientation Trips (FOOT), Harvest, Cultural Connections, Harvest, FOCUS, or Orientation for International Students. These programs all involve subgroups to which you will be randomly assigned, so to some degree your experience will depend on your individual group and group leaders. However, here are a few thoughts from people who participated in each of these programs.
Cultural Connections: Cultural Connections is a pre-orientation program that facilitates conversations on the issues of people of color at Yale and in America more broadly, and helps students become more familiar with cultural resources and support systems for POC on campus. Because the focus on racial injustice attracts a certain crowd, many of the counselors and staffers will be familiar with transgender issues, and activities are seldom gendered. However, in discussions, transgender students may sometimes notice a lack of intersectionality in regard to trans topics. Overall, CC is a wonderful opportunity for POC to build support systems and become familiar with resources, and for white students to learn more about race issues, become more conscious, and for everyone to make friends in a comfortable environment.
FOOT: FOOT participants go on a hiking (or service-oriented) trip as a way to get to know a small group of students before school starts. Pronouns and gender inclusivity are an essential part of FOOT training, so FOOT leaders should know and use these when running introductions. There are many LGBTQ+ FOOT leaders (we love earthy-crunchy gays) and actually a fun lineage of trans FOOT leaders. FOOT trips usually do hometowns, in which each person essentially tells their life story, which is another opportunity to tell your group any information you want them to know. FOOT is a great program for bonding with other first-years. If you are interested, there has historically been a women (trans-inclusive) and non-binary trip available.
Harvest: Harvest is similar to FOOT, but the trips involve working on a farm. Anecdotally, Harvest is queer overall as a program. Like all pre-orientation programs, leaders should be well-versed in pronouns and gender inclusivity.
FOCUS: FOCUS on New Haven is a Camp Yale Program for first-years and a re-orientation program for sophomores, transfers, and Eli Whitney Students interested in learning about community engagement, social justice, and activism. Participants spend their first week at Yale volunteering at local non-profits, meeting local change-makers, and participating in discussions about how systems of oppression play out in the context of the relationship between Yale and New Haven. Generally, the environment is incredibly accepting as students learn about the ways their positionality as Yale students contributes to the surrounding neighborhood.
OIS: OIS is designed to help international students make the adjustment to Yale and to living in America. Historically during OIS, students live in “single-sex” groupings.
Note: Many of these groups do an activity known as "hometowns" where, at the end of the day, someone or a few people in your group will share the story of their "hometown." This can include your upbringing, experience in high school, and, generally, your background. It's important to note that you are in control of what you choose to disclose or not disclose. Many people might share details about their lives that are incredibly personal, but you are not obligated to match that vulnerability if you do not feel comfortable doing so.
Dressing Up
In the early days of school, there are a few times when you will need to dress formally for events. These include First-Year Assembly and First-Year Dinner. Later on, dances like First-Year Formal will also require dressing up. It is also common for your suite/FroCo group/friends to take photos before these events. You can wear whatever you want, but do note that clothing options tend to be pretty heavily gendered, mostly because formal clothing is so gendered. It is very rare to have someone vocalize a concern with what you are wearing, particularly in the context of gender expression. If you didn’t bring clothing to college that you feel comfortable wearing in these contexts, you’re always welcome to borrow: ask your suite if you can do that, visit the Qloset, and/or reach out to Trans@Yale.
First-Year Formal/College Dance
These are dances where many people will get set up by their suitemates to go on a blind date. The first thing to know is that you do not have to go on a date, and if you do it does not have to be blind. Many people go with friends, some people find their own dates, and some people tell their suite exactly who they want to go with. If you do have your suitemates set you up, they will hopefully ask you what gender(s) you are interested in for your date. What you tell them is totally up to you and your comfort level. If you are not sure your suitemates will find someone you want to go with or are worried about miscommunications regarding your gender (or anything else), you can definitely ask a friend to find you your date and just tell your suite, or have a friend advise your suite. Your suitemates probably won’t mind having their help, since the dance is pretty stressful to organize anyway.
Page updated
Report abuse