The days of strictly same-sex rooms in student housing are coming to an end at Willamette University.Starting this fall, Willamette will offer a new housing option called "gender neutral." It will allow men and women to room together on campus. The program is designed to meet the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered students — commonly called LGBT students — who might not be comfortable sharing a room with someone of the same gender, said Bob Hawkinson, Willamette's dean of campus life.
"The driver here is to create an environment for all of our students that supports their academic work," he said. "It's a matter of fairness and allowing all of our students to have a good, strong home base, an environment where they can be comfortable in their everyday lives."...
Students outside the LGBT community can participate in the program. Parents will not be notified if their child chooses to room with someone of the opposite gender, Hawkinson said...
