March 21, 2023
Wellesley College Isn’t an All-Women School
By Eleanor Buchanan
By rejecting a successful referendum calling for gender-inclusive language and admissions, the university continues to ignore its trans and nonbinary students.
On February 27, “Trans Students Belong At Wellesley” brought a non-binding referendum to the student senate at Wellesley College. The initiative was split into two proposals. The first called for the use of gender-neutral rather than gender-specific language, replacing “women” with “students,” for example. The second called for Wellesley College to adopt an admissions policy that is inclusive of all nonbinary and transgender students, moving away from the current policy of admitting students who “consistently identify as women.” The referendum aimed “to align the College’s messaging with the demographics and lived experiences of the student body.”
There is precedent for this policy. Mount Holyoke, another historically women’s college, has welcomed applications from transgender and nonbinary students since 2014. “Our inclusive admission policy is the 21st century expression of our founding mission to provide an intellectually adventurous education for individuals who have been marginalized on the basis of their gender, gender expression or gender identity,” said Marcella Runell the Dean of Students to ABC News.
In contrast, over the past four years, the Wellesley College administration has doubled down on transphobic rhetoric and language, including penalizing students for chalking the trans flag around campus and for publicly rebuking the term “historically women’s college.” Last year, the college removed a trans flag mural that was painted over a reference to author and vocal anti-trans activist J.K. Rowling, even while students and the Wellesley News editorial board called for it to remain. The referendum was a chance for the school, as an institution seeking to provide an educational experience for those of marginalized genders, to openly and proudly support its gender-diverse population.
