Transgender Children and Youth

TURNING 18 TYPICALLY MARKS THE ENTRY INTO ADULTHOOD. It’s the time when many young people move out into the world on their own more fully. Whether they are moving into the world of work full time or headed to college, young adulthood is the time when youth are expected to transition out of the safety of parents, home, and the high school structure and move toward increased independence with the ability to support themselves. They are expected to move into adult roles and responsibilities and establish a commitment to a work identity. This can involve learning a trade, finding work, and/or pursuing higher education.

While many young people have held jobs during adolescence by choice or necessity, even for them, there is something different about turning 18. It signals a new stage in all our lives—that moment when the world around us declares us “legal” in many states. With this, the expectations of those around us begin to change, and our own expectations of ourselves change in response.

When I worked at a residential treatment program for 12- to 24-year-olds, a colleague had a plaque in her office that read, “Young adults, leave home now while you still know everything.” Some young adults enter the world this way, confident of their ability to make it, maybe even cocky at times. Other young adults are more anxious and fearful of being independent.

The expectation to become independent can make it difficult for new adults to share their fears with their family. The world and their peers tell them they shouldn’t need their family anymore; they’re an adult now; they should be able to handle what comes up on their own now. And they, too, want to prove they can do things on their own. They’re supposed to be launching—moving away from their families, developing their own social circles, and beginning their own separate adult lives. Their self-esteem depends on meeting these ambitious and often ambiguous expectations.

Erik Erikson (1950) identified the core developmental task of young adulthood as Intimacy vs. Isolation. This speaks to the importance of exploring and developing relationships during this time period. While adolescence is a time of identity exploration, young adulthood is when we begin to settle into a core identity that comfortably reflects our understanding of ourselves. With this maturing sense of self we become able to develop adult relationships with those around us. It’s a stage in our lives when we are challenged to share ourselves more intimately with others. Beyond developing adult friendships and collegial relationships, this is a time when we explore more longer-term commitments with individuals outside our family. This includes the potential of choosing a life partner. Ideally, we choose and learn to maintain intimate relationships that reflect a sense of commitment, safety, and care.

From Erikson’s (1950) perspective, failure to successfully navigate these developmental tasks of young adulthood becomes evident when young adults avoid intimacy and are fearful of commitment and relationships. When these patterns emerge, the young person is at risk of isolation, loneliness, and, over time, depression.

Some college students and working young adults make friends quickly. They get involved in socializing with coworkers or join student activities and campus groups quickly. They are excited about being on their own—being able to make their own choices about when, or whether, to come in at night, with no one around to nag them to do their chores. Meeting new people, sometimes from around the globe—new friends whose life experiences are often radically different from their own—is stimulating for these youth. They revel in the newness of creating a life for themselves and finding a sense of belonging in a place and space that is totally their own, untouched by the people and places that have shaped so much of their lives until now.

Other young adults find it more difficult to build new friendships and feel isolated during that first semester, or even first year, away from home. They may find it too overwhelming to form relationships with coworkers outside the structure of the workplace. Their social anxiety and struggles may cause them to turn inward and become depressed, or to reach for drugs or alcohol to facilitate socializing. Many of these young people want to be able to talk with family about feeling lonely, but like every other young adult, they also want their parents to think they’re doing great on their own.

Transgender young adults encounter all of the aforementioned young adult developmental challenges and tasks—with the added assignment of navigating these as a transgender young adult. “Should I be out on campus? Should I be stealth? Is there such a thing as part out and part stealth? What if I can’t make friends? What if nobody wants to date me? What if I’m stealth and we’re all out drinking and I end up making out with someone and they discover I’m trans then? Will I be safe? Will being outed ruin everything? Will I lose all my friends?” All of the questions from the vignettes about dating, sexuality, and intimacy come into play when trans youth head off to college.

Many college students don’t tell their parents much about their day-to-day lives. Some parents complain they can’t get their kids to call them even once a month. There are particular ways that this is compounded for transgender youth. Because their parents are cisgender, trans young people are not always sure their parents will “get” or understand the challenges they are facing, as the following vignette illustrates.

Dayton spent his summers in high school working as a junior counselor at a sleep-away camp. He socially transitioned during his freshman year in college and reached out that spring to let the camp directors know about his new affirmed name and pronouns. Many camps have not encountered trans campers or counselors, and consequently have not yet developed trans-affirmative and inclusive policies. In Dayton’s situation, the director told him they could not put him in the cabin with the other male junior counselors and school age campers. They felt it wouldn’t be appropriate for him to sleep or shower there. Instead, they would put him in a cabin with older male camp personnel. The directors also didn’t want him to use the men’s room in the main bathrooms in the center of camp. They would designate a separate bathroom for him to use.

Dayton was very upset by the director’s conversation and decisions, and rightfully so. The conversation was permeated with microaggressions. The message from the camp directors was, “You are not a man like other men; therefore, you cannot room, shower, or shave with other boys and men.” Their conversation clearly told Dayton, “You are not really a man, because if we really saw you as a man, this conversation would never happen.”

Dayton attempted to talk with his father about the conversation with the camp director. His father, who was totally supportive of Dayton’s transition, responded that he could see how this might be hard, but that Dayton needed to try and see this from the camp director’s point of view. They had other campers to consider. “And besides, you can’t expect everyone to get this overnight. You’ve got to be patient with people and give them time.” Dayton’s father totally missed the microaggressions. As upset as Dayton was about the camp director’s decision, he was even more devastated by his father’s inability to understand what it had felt like to him and to grasp the underlying message that Dayton was not really a man.

The fact that most young adults want their parents to think they’re doing great sometimes means trans college students do not discuss microaggressions they may be dealing with or fears they struggle with. They might not tell their families about the verbal harassment they have encountered on campus. One first-year trans woman called her parents weekly and told them how great everything was going at college. She never told them how, at one of the country’s most progressive colleges, she had to walk through the entire first year being misgendered on a daily basis.

Transgender college students can be at risk of isolation. This can be especially true on smaller campuses where there are no transgender (or even LGBTQ) student groups or in rural areas where they are few trans-affirmative off-campus resources. When trans young adults have decided to be stealth on campus or at work, they may also struggle with feeling isolated. These decisions will be discussed in more detail later in this chapter.

Given some of the above dynamics, transgender high school students may have much anxiety about how to navigate being trans on campus. Many of their parents may also be anxious. Beyond the usual parental anxieties of a child being away from home for the first time, most parents experience additional concerns specific to their child’s trans identity, such as whether they will be accepted and whether they will be safe.

Colleges are increasingly developing programs and resources specifically for transgender students. Some have active trans student groups. Some have gender-neutral or even trans housing options. It is important for young people and parents to research the colleges the young person is interested in and explore how Queer- or trans-affirmative the school is. Much of this research can be done online. Is there a Queer student center? What trans or LGBTQ student activity groups exist? Are there Queer or gender-neutral dorms? What are the policies about trans students in dorms of their affirmed gender? If trans women can room in the women’s dorms, who has to know about her trans history? Does her roommate need to know?

Other important trans-related questions include whether or not the campus health center prescribes or monitors hormone therapy, or if they have nearby medical providers who are willing to do this. Are there trans-identified or trans-affirmative and knowledgeable counselors at the college counseling center?

Even when a student intends to be stealth on campus, most trans youth and their families choose to come out with an admissions counselor in order to be able to freely ask about trans resources on campus. Prospective students should feel free to ask for a campus tour that includes the LGBTQ student center. They should also ask to meet with current trans students and talk about their experiences on campus and in classes. Given the increasing number of gender-fluid and trans students, most admissions offices are prepared for these questions and concerns. If they are not, this tells a prospective student something about the gaps in their ability to ensure transgender students are respected and embraced at this university. Additional questions trans students may want to ask as they consider different colleges are included in the following text box.

How Trans-Friendly Is This Campus?

(Adapted from Trans Youth Equality Foundation)

•Percentage of out LGBTQ students?

•Percentage of out transgender students?

•Percentage of out LGBTQ faculty?

•Percentage of out LGBTQ administrators?

•Existence of LGBTQ studies or courses?

•Is the first-year orientation program inclusive of LGBTQ issues?

•Are nondiscrimination policies inclusive of LGBTQ people?

•Do nondiscrimination policies include gender identity and expression?

•How are records changed for transgender students to reflect their correct pronouns and name?

•Is there an LGBTQ or Pride student center at this school?

•What kind of activities exist for meeting other transgender/LGBTQ students?

•Is there access to inclusive, knowledgeable counseling services for transgender students?

•Are there any trans-identified counselors? Support groups for trans students?

•Are the health center staff and physicians trained in transgender sensitivity and healthcare?

•Are wellness programs or sex education programs inclusive of transgender people?

•Are there any records of LGBTQ students being harassed? What are the policies for how the college handles complaints about harassment?

•What are the housing policies for transgender students? Can trans students room with other students of their affirmed gender? If so, who must be notified about the student’s trans history?

•Are there gender-queer or gender-neutral housing options?

•Are there gender-neutral bathrooms on campus?

•What state legislative protections exist in this location for transgender people?

•What social and community opportunities exist in surrounding towns for LGBTQ people?

Additional resources for trans youth in the college application process are included at the end of this chapter.

Some transgender individuals transition and go on to live their lives in their affirmed gender, choosing not to disclose their transgender history. This practice is called stealth. Some transgender young people want to be stealth when they attend college. Some may have been stealth in high school, and college is just an extension of this norm (this would generally be true if the youth changed schools after transitioning).

However, for many transgender adolescents, college marks the first moment when they have the opportunity to meet new friends without everyone knowing they are transgender. These youth usually transitioned in middle or high school. If they remained in the same school district, their history of transitioning was always known by most of their peers. Even if their transition went well and they had many friends and were embraced as just another high school student, in their minds, at least, they were likely always the transgender girl or transgender boy.

Beginning college without disclosing your transgender history can be a healing, liberating, and empowering experience for many trans youth. For trans youth who can pass as their affirmed gender, it is often the first moment of moving through the world as a young man or young woman without the adjective “transgender” attached. It can be the first moment of feeling what it might have been like to be assigned your affirmed gender at birth, to have no one questioning your gender identity, to have no worries about whether the reason that girl dropped you was because you are transgender or wondering if this is why you weren’t hired for that job at the mall.

However, there are some challenges to being stealth in college, as the following vignette illustrates.

Derek spent his first two years living in the male dorms on campus. During this time, he became good friends with three other (cisgender) guys. They hung out all the time—worked out together, partied together, hung out with their girlfriends together. Because Derek was stealth, they did not know about his trans history.

The spring of their sophomore year, the guys decided they all wanted to get an apartment off campus the next year. When Derek brought this up with me, he was torn between wanting to get the apartment with the guys because of how good it felt to be one of them and being terrified that the other guys would find out he was trans if they all lived together. On campus, Derek had his own room, but in the apartment the guys would be sharing rooms. Derek didn’t want to make a big deal about needing his own room, but he worried about guys walking around in their boxers or briefs or heading back to their rooms naked after a shower.

What he worried about most was that he would stand out as the weird guy who was too self-conscious to let the other guys see his body, and especially his body below the waist—in other words, whether his dick was different. Standing out like this meant the other guys would get curious. They’d want to know why Derek was so uptight. He worried they might take it upon themselves to “loosen him up” and discover that his genitals didn’t match his gender identity.

When he imagined what might happen next, it was not violence he worried about. What troubled him was that these guys he had become friends with would no longer see him as one of them. From that moment on, they would see him differently; he would be the “trans guy,” not just a “guy.”

In contrast, some transgender youth begin college knowing they want to be out; they want to be openly involved in Queer or trans groups on campus. Some trans youth become advocates and leaders on campus. One transgender man I worked with challenged the policies of a national male fraternity, successfully getting them to recognize and accept trans men as members. One transgender woman challenged the admissions policies at a women’s college. A stealth trans male student was elected president of the student body in his senior year without anyone knowing about his transgender history. The day after his election, he came out as a trans man in the campus newspaper and challenged everyone’s assumptions.

Each of these young adults found their voices and their power on campus. They demonstrated tremendous courage in their willingness to be out as advocates. Their involvement and activism strengthened their self-esteem and self-confidence. Yet, it is crucial to remember that this openness and visibility can have a price attached to it for transgender people. Just as the young adults at the helm of the current Black Lives Matter movement are lightning rods for our society’s prejudice and racism, out trans youth on campus must navigate frequent microaggressions and sometimes outright harassment and discrimination. This remains true even at the most progressive and trans-affirmative colleges.

Sophia took a gap year between high school and college and began her social transition the spring before starting college. She was tall and lanky, and when she headed to college that August, she still had some physical characteristics that might suggest male gender to others.

She had been accepted into a very liberal and progressive college. She began school with all of her identity documents saying “Sophia.” This was the name on the roster in all of her classes. This is how she introduced herself to new classmates and roommates. Yet Sophia was misgendered the entire fall semester. Even when she met someone new and introduced herself as “Sophia,” the other students often used male pronouns to refer to her. This experience was not something she had expected in a school with a reputation for being trans-affirming. We spent several sessions when she was back in New York City shoring up her resilience for navigating these microaggressions.

Sophia also encountered anxiety about going into the small town adjacent to the college campus. She found herself feeling afraid of being “read” as trans in town, and with this, fear of potential harassment or violence. Again, this was not something she had anticipated. Sophia had felt relatively safe in the urban environment of New York City (a dynamic reflective of her racial privilege as a white trans woman, as this would not likely be the experience of most trans women of color in NYC—or anywhere).

The following vignette continues to explore the nuances of decisions about being out or stealth on campus.

Jason came to see me during late fall of his junior year at college. He had socially transitioned and begun testosterone the previous summer. He had also changed schools during the summer so he could begin his junior year fresh—where there would not be anyone who knew him prior to his transition. As he told me in his first appointment, Jason wanted people to see him as a regular guy and felt they wouldn’t if they knew his history. The only person on campus who knew about his trans history was his girlfriend, with whom he roomed. He was incredibly happy about this move. It felt as if he had been waiting all his life to just be a guy.

Jason came to see me because he wanted to discuss stressors between him and his girlfriend. He felt as if she was too possessive sometimes and wanted him to spend all his time with her. He wanted to be able to hang out with his guy friends more often. She was also on his case because she felt he didn’t open up much emotionally. She told him she never knew what he was feeling. Jason said, “I just find it hard to talk about my feelings.”

As the fall semester progressed, Jason talked about the friendships he was making at his internship on campus. He was really connecting with some of the other guys. He mentioned once that he sometimes wished he didn’t have to keep his trans status secret, but he was convinced that his peers wouldn’t see him the same way if he came out to them about being trans.

During the spring semester, Jason’s friendships with the guys in his internship became stronger. They spent a lot of time together studying, running, working out, and watching movies. One night when they got pizza together, the other guys were bragging about their sports accomplishments in high school. They were all laughing and having a good time together. In contrast, Jason talked to me about feeling left out, and asked, “What am I supposed to say to them? All my trophies are from girls’ swimming and diving.” Over the next month, Jason seemed increasingly stressed about juggling the tension of being “stealth” and began to pull back from his friends.

1.How would you help Jason explore his decisions about being stealth versus coming out? What are the possible risks or benefits of either choice?

2.Is Jason’s fear that others will see him differently if they knew he is trans “valid?” How would you help Jason explore/navigate/live with this fear?

3.What decision do you think is best in terms of Jason’s mental and emotional well-being? Do you think being out is healthier than being stealth? What if his choice is different from yours?

Older LGBT-staged identity development models generally posit being “out” as essential to emotional health and well-being (Cass, 1979, 1990; Coleman, 1982; Troiden, 1988, 1989). Being “out” is equated with being proud of one’s gender identity and sexual preferences. To be closeted (or stealth) is viewed as being ashamed of one’s identity. Historically, these models have contributed to negative notions about being stealth.

However, it is essential that mental health professionals not impose their beliefs about being out as opposed to being stealth. The decision to be out or stealth is not clear-cut for many transgender individuals. There are nuances to these decisions that many cisgender families and therapists fail to grasp. Many trans people, children and adolescents included, simply want to be (seen as) their affirmed gender, as both Derek and Jason did; they simply want to be a young woman or a young man. They do not always want to be seen as a transgender boy or a transgender girl—because this typically suggests that they are something other than “just a girl” or a “real” boy. For transgender youth, the price of being out often means that others see them as different and concomitantly as less than real.

In contrast to the assumptions within earlier LGBT identity development models, Devor’s (1997) discussion of the final stages of trans male identity development (Integration and Pride) concluded that most trans men were well integrated into society as men with their trans histories largely invisible. They did come out to those who needed to know about their history. Most of these men neither conscientiously hid nor disclosed their transgender backgrounds. Instead, disclosure was differential and strategic. They came out as trans when it was important or necessary in some way. When this information about their history was not relevant, it remained private.

Jason and I spent four to five weeks exploring his concerns about coming out to his buddies. We weighed the value of being seen as a regular guy, and we weighed the cost of his having to hold a part of himself out of these relationships. As we discussed the latter, Jason was clear that part of the cost for him was feeling isolated. I validated his fear that his friends might see him differently, acknowledging that yes, this could happen, and that it does happen often. I indicated that there was no right or wrong answer; this was something every trans person has to struggle with and sort out for themselves.

We discussed the option of his becoming more involved in the LGBTQ student group; perhaps this would open the door to some relationships where Jason could feel more comfortable being out. I pushed gently once or twice as to whether Jason could be 100% sure his friends would see him differently if he disclosed. I asked him to think about the different guys in his major that he felt close to and whether there was any guy in particular he wished he could come out to, or a guy he thought might still see him as a guy after disclosure.

Jason identified one friend he thought might be OK knowing about his history. We began to imagine what it might be like for Jason to come out to him. Two weeks later, Jason came in and shared that he had come out to this friend and that their conversation had been positive. We acknowledged what a difficult choice this was and the risk it involved for Jason. In the following weeks, Jason reported feeling relief about having someone else on campus who knew his life story and with whom he did not need to “edit” his thoughts and conversation to make sure they did not suspect his trans history.

It is critical for providers to listen and explore what is important to each particular trans young person as they navigate decisions about being out or stealth. It is also important for practitioners to create this space for them to explore their own thoughts and feelings without weighing in with their own opinion. The goal is to empower the young person’s ability to sort through these decisions for themselves, knowing there is no right or wrong answer and that every choice has risks. What is important is for them to have support as they decide who they want to be in a given context—without pressure to assent to what the provider assumes is “best” for them.

Some trans young adults find ways to manage the stressors of remaining stealth. One resource can be developing connections with trans friends online. This offers the opportunity to talk more about day-to-day microaggressions and stressors with peers who understand without the risks of being outed on campus or at work.

Transgender youth may experience numerous stressors as they move into the work world. Some of these stressors involve whether or not the young person has been able to legally change their name and gender marker on their identification documents. It can be extremely stressful for a young person to apply for employment when their identity documents do not match their affirmed gender presentation. It can also be difficult to put themselves “out there” in early transition when they may still be viewed as their birth-assigned sex.

In these situations, trans youth may have many questions about applying and interviewing. “Should I tell them I’m transgender during the interview process? Or should I just wait and see whether they offer me the job?” Many trans youth have fears about discrimination in hiring. They may worry that they will not be hired simply because of their trans identity or their nonconforming gender expression.

These fears are often legitimate. As presented in the Introduction, a recent national study indicated unemployment rates for transgender people were three times higher than those of the general population, with trans people of color unemployed two – three times more often. Sixteen percent (16%) of respondents who had ever been employed reported losing at least one job because of their gender identity or expression. Twenty-seven percent of those who held or applied for a job the prior year reported being fired, denied a promotion, or not hired for a job they applied for because of their gender identity or expression (James et al., 2016).

Transgender women, and women of color in particular, are at highest risk of employment discrimination. One way that discrimination plays out is that many employers will not hire someone who presents as a woman but also has physical characteristics that may be read as male. This is especially true of jobs that require interaction with the public, but it is often true even for behind-the-scenes positions. These dynamics add to the anxiety trans young adults feel as they head into an employment interview—a situation that is inherently anxiety-producing for almost all of us.

Trans young adults who are employed and have not yet come out about being transgender worry about being fired if they do come out as trans. This anxiety often persists even when their job seems fairly secure. One young adult trans woman I worked with had many pieces of evidence that her employers valued her contribution. Her supervisor and boss had clearly articulated her value to their organization. She had been promoted twice in two years, and her annual reviews were extremely positive. Yet, none of this diminished her anxiety about being fired if she came out as trans. She was terrified of the possibility of losing her job and delayed coming out for almost a year.

Another young adult trans woman who had not yet come out worked in a predominantly male work environment. While it generally seemed fairly progressive, there were occasional inappropriate jokes by coworkers along race and gender lines. This woman, too, worried about her coworkers’ response as well as the possibility of being terminated.

What compounds the fear and anxiety about losing employment is that terminations are not generally framed as being about gender identity or expression. Being let go from a job may be presented as necessary downsizing; the rationale may be the need to reorganize departments and positions. It is generally difficult to prove that termination was discriminatory.

While there is recourse in some areas when trans people are unjustly terminated on the basis of gender identity or expression, this does not solve everything. They do not automatically get their job back. Even if they file a lawsuit against their former employer, they are still unemployed in that moment. They still have rent and bills to pay. They still have to get out there and look for a new job. And now, they also have legal fees.

Within the context of the workplace environment, some transgender young adults are challenged by persistent experiences of feeling awkward and uncomfortable. Sometime this may be because of ways that coworkers interact with them, such as by ridiculing them. Other times, it is experiences of being outed by others, as the following vignette illustrates.

George was a barista at a local coffee shop. He had been presenting as male, and had generally been perceived as male, for several months when he obtained this job. He was incredibly excited to get it because he needed it to help pay for his college costs.

He had to come out to his supervisor when he was hired because he had not been able to get all of his documentation changed over yet, including his legal name change. He went by his male name with coworkers, and none of them questioned his male gender identity. However, the roster printed out each morning listing the employees that were coming in to work that day always had George’s birth-assigned name on it because it was still his legal name. His boss said he couldn’t figure out a way to get it to print George’s affirmed name.

So, periodically, George would have to deal with a coworker looking over the roster and asking, “Who’s this? I don’t know anybody named Gloria. We don’t have a Gloria working here.” And then George would have to out himself as trans in response.

I have worked with numerous transgender young adults who “failed to launch” in the sense that they stayed home with their families and did not take any actions toward establishing an adult life for themselves. Many of these young adults were not working. Some had attended college and returned home. Others had not gone to college or obtained employment.

The way many of these young people were “stuck” developmentally often reflected unresolved gender dysphoria. They were typically just coming out as trans sometime after high school. They were between 18 and 24 years old. For the most part, they had spent all of their adolescence living in a false self. As a result, they had not accomplished many basic adolescent developmental tasks, and consequently were unable to begin assuming young adult tasks.

Some had come out earlier as transgender, but their own internalized trans-prejudice kept them from beginning to transition. They often felt they did not have the right to transition. They had been told it was wrong to feel the way they did, that it would be “selfish” to transition, that wanting to be a different gender meant they were mentally ill, and that no one would ever love them, be friends with them, or hire them if they transitioned.

Others were living with and dependent on unsupportive families. As we worked together, it became clear that they were simply unable to move into their adult lives in their birth-assigned sex. They could not conceive of going to college or getting a job as they were in that moment—still inhabiting their birth-assigned sex. They were trapped—unable to afford a medical transition on their own, unable to imagine college or employment as they were, and dependent on families who were unwilling to support these steps. It was this dilemma that held them back developmentally. As we worked through these challenges—and this typically involved considerable work with their families—most of these young people were able to transition and move forward with their adult lives.

This chapter has briefly discussed some of the tasks and challenges facing transgender young adults as they move from adolescence into their adult lives. As noted, trans young adults must navigate all the usual young adult developmental tasks. However, these are sometimes complicated by the added dimension of being trans.

•“Explore: Campus and Young Adult” – http://www.hrc.org/explore/topic/campus-young-adult

•“GenEQ: Guide to Entering the Workforce” – http://www.hrc.org/resources/geneq-guide-to-entering-the-workforce?_ga=1.199576935.810963094.1424645452

Campus Pride is a “national nonprofit . . . organization for student leaders and campus groups working to create a safer college environment for LGBT students. The organization is a volunteer-driven network ‘for’ and ‘by’ student leaders. The primary objective of Campus Pride is to develop necessary resources, programs and services to support LGBTQ and ally students on college campuses across the United States.” https://www.campuspride.org/

TONI Project (Transgender On-Campus Nondiscrimination Information) “is a first-of-its-kind space for students to share college and university policies important to transgender people. Use this site to learn about campus housing policies, health plans, and curricula, or add and edit information about the school you currently attend.” http://www.transstudents.org

“The Top Ten Trans-Friendly Colleges and Universities” (The Advocate) – http://www.advocate.com/politics/transgender/2012/08/15/top-10-trans-friendly-colleges-and-universities

“College Campuses Are More Trans-Inclusive Than Ever, but Still Have a Long Way to Go” (by Joseph Erbentraut, Huffington Post) – http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/05/18/trans-friendly-colleges_n_7287702.html

•“Transgender Students in College” – http://www.lambdalegal.org/know-your-rights/college/transgender/transgenderaud1

•“FAQ About Transgender Students at Colleges and Universities” – http://www.lambdalegal.org/know-your-rights/transgender/in-college-faq