Hollins University in Virginia Updates Its Policy on Transgender Students

In 2007 Hollins University, a liberal arts educational institution for women in Roanoke, Virginia, created a university policy relating to undergraduate students who chose to transition from female to male. This policy provided guidance on who could apply to and graduate from Hollins’ undergraduate programs. Under the guidelines, men who had not made a full surgical transition to become women were not eligible for admission. Women who took hormones or had surgical procedures to transition to become male were required to leave Hollins at the end of the semester.

This policy was reviewed and revised by the board in 2013 and again in 2016, Last spring, students and other members of the Hollins community urged the board of trustees to initiate another review of the Transgender Policy. Recently, the board of trustees adopted a new policy.

The new policy states that “in recognition of our changing world and evolving understanding of gender identity, Hollins will consider for admission those applicants who consistently live and identify as women, regardless of the gender assigned to them at birth.” The new policy also states that Hollins University students who transition to become male will be permitted to remain at the university to complete their degrees.

Under the new policy, individuals who identify as non-binary, a gender identity that is not strictly male or female, are not eligible for admission.

The university stated that “Hollins’ mission remains unchanged — to provide an exceptional undergraduate liberal arts education for women. The board’s decision reaffirms our mission in light of society’s evolving understanding of gender identity.”