Dear Editor,
The ASPC Residence Halls Committee is the representative voice of the Pomona student body on all housing policy decisions and is charged with addressing concerns in the residence halls. Comprised of students at large and at least four members of RHS, it is chaired by the ASPC North and South Campus Representatives and advised by Housing Director Deanna Bos.
Recently, the ASPC Residence Halls Committee recommended to the Student Affairs Committee that students be permitted to select a roommate of any sex or gender after their first year at Pomona. The choice to have a roommate of a different sex or gender would be entirely voluntary, available only to students entering their second year or above, and not intended for romantically involved couples.
The Residence Halls Committee believes that the restriction currently in place does not acknowledge nor appreciate the diverse nature of Pomona’s student body. Providing students with the option to request a roommate of a different sex or gender would demonstrate that Pomona College respects transgender students, gay and bisexual students who would prefer rooming with members of the opposite sex, intersex students who do not wish to be identified by any sex, and students who feel that they would cooperate better with a roommate of the opposite sex.
Sincerely,
Stephanie Almeida PO ’11 and Jeff Levere PO ’12
Writing on behalf of the ASPC Residence Halls Committee