There's No Place Like Home

Written by: Cami Miceli and Cole Elliott | Illustrated by: Angela Zheng and Christopher Ikonomou | Layout by: Cami Miceli

Finding a place to live while attending college can be stressful for anyone, but LGBTQ+ students face unique challenges. Living in dorms often involves randomized roommates, who may not be accepting of queer identities, while students living off campus tend to search for roommates by specifying a binary gender. (Think of Facebook posts emphasizing that someone is looking for “one female” or “two males” to share an apartment.) Fortunately, despite these obstacles, UCLA has many resources available for LGBTQ+ students looking for housing, from gender-inclusivity on the Hill to an LGBTQ+ Living Learning Community.

The majority of students living on the Hill are not part of gender-inclusive housing. In fact, the default is to pair students with roommates based on their similar living styles and gender. However, students may opt into gender-inclusive housing by expressing interest while filling out the online application, making gender an irrelevant part of the pairing process. This can be especially useful for students (specifically trans and non-binary folks) who do not feel comfortable rooming with people who share their gender on official files. In previous years, students were only allowed to be in gender-inclusive housing on one specific floor, dedicated to the LGBTQ+ community. Now, students are able to access gender-inclusive housing no matter where they live in the dorms.

LGBTQ+ students may also worry about using communal restrooms if they choose to live in the dorms. The typical dormitory has two communal restrooms, one for women and one for men. This can be a stressful arrangement for those who don’t feel comfortable using either gendered restrooms. Luckily, there are several gender-neutral bathrooms located on the Hill. Some buildings, like De Neve, have them in their lobbies, while others integrate them into the residential floors. Not all require passcodes, but some need specific keycode access. This means that students must go out of their way and get explicit permission to use these restrooms.

Before 2020, students had to speak with their Resident Director (RD) in order to gain access to a single gender-neutral bathroom on their floor or in their building. Now, students are still required to reach out to their RD, but when they get access, it is to all gender-neutral bathrooms on the Hill. This is a step forward because it allows students to use their preferred bathroom no matter where they are on the Hill. However, it is still not ideal, because it requires sharing deeply personal information with an unfamiliar person. On top of that, a separate key card is needed to get into the bathrooms; it’s not possible to just use a bruincard like it is for the floor’s communal binary restrooms.

“The card feels so othering,” said Judah Castillo, a first-year pre-psychology student, who is not in gender-neutral housing this year but who hopes to take advantage of it in the future. “It’s like an extra stamp that’s not necessary for binary bathrooms. In a way, it feels like you have to ‘prove’ you’re non-binary and ‘out’ yourself by asking for the card.”

There are several possible solutions to this problem. Some people would suggest that everyone have access to gender-neutral bathrooms. However, others would argue that due to the limited number of gender-neutral restrooms on the Hill, access should be limited to the trans and non-binary students that need them. In a better world, getting access would be a quick and simple process that could be performed over the front desk or online via the Housing Application, where students don’t feel as self-conscious asking for the help they need. Hopefully, this process will improve in the future.

Also on the Housing Application is the option to select one of ten Living Learning Communities (LLCs), a great option for LGBTQ+ students living on the Hill. An LLC is a section of the dormitories dedicated to a specific identity or interest. For example, UCLA offers an Afrikan Diaspora LLC, a Global Health LLC, a Transfer Experience LLC, and a Gender, Sexuality, and Society LLC (commonly referred to as the GSS Floor). This last LLC is dedicated to folks in the LGBTQ+ community, and it emphasizes the importance of creating friendships and accepting other people’s identities.

Megan Kirschner, the current Resident Assistant (RA) of the GSS Floor, recalled why she was first drawn to the LLC. “Last year, I lived on a non-LGBTQ+ floor,” she explained. “I felt that, as floor events went on and I made friends, I was known as ‘that queer girl’ — not necessarily in a negative light, but it definitely felt like a singling out factor.”

Conversely, living on the GSS Floor practically guarantees that LGBTQ+ students will be surrounded by people who not only accept members of their community, but are often part of the LGBTQ+ community themselves.

Another great thing about this LLC is that its location allows for everyone on the floor to have a private bathroom, completely eliminating the anxiety about binary communal restrooms. Of course, this poses its own problems, as plaza rooms like those on the GSS Floor are among the priciest spots on the Hill.

“The [application] process was kind of stressful,” said Nicole, who has lived on the LLC for the past two years. “I applied for the GSS Floor in secret, so I had to think of a way to justify the expense. . . Applying for sophomore-year housing, I had to consider if this was something I could do again. But living here has been great! I’ve definitely learned a lot!”

For students like Nicole, the GSS Floor is a way to meet people and get more involved in queer life and queer culture (in some cases, students may even make lasting friendships and meet their significant others!). Many LGBTQ+ college students have little to no experience being openly queer at school, and so college serves as a test-run, where folks can try out different names and new ways of being.

“A lot of us are carrying trauma and biases from the small towns we’ve grown up in, and we’re so programmed not to hold hands in public,” said Megan. “But [at UCLA], it’s okay to be with your partner and not be afraid and to talk about your experience and wear queer pins and buttons on your backpack and not expect to be stared at or scowled at.” Of course, there are fears involved in entering LGBTQ+ spaces for the first time. Nicole, for instance, was nervous about saying the wrong thing and being rejected because she didn’t know enough about the LGBTQ+ community. But after spending a couple of years on the LLC, she can now tell other students with confidence that such fears are not worth stressing over.

“As long as you come in with an open mind and a willingness to learn, you’re going to be okay!” she assured. “We all come to any situation with varying amounts of knowledge, and this is a space that is designed for you to learn. If you make a mistake, it’s okay: Try not to beat yourself up too much over it. So as long as you make a genuine, concerted effort to change or learn about people, you’ll be fine.”

Overall, UCLA offers a host of resources for LGBTQ+ students, some of which extend into housing on the Hill. Yet not many students know that gender-inclusive housing in an option in the first place or that there are gender-neutral bathrooms scattered across the Hill. In order to help LGBTQ+ students feel comfortable and safe in the dorms, it is important to spread the word and better publicize these resources. As for the GSS Floor, there is already so much interest that not everyone who applies makes it in. However, anyone interested in the LLC is welcome to join floor events and group chats, which are two great ways to make friends and learn about queer happenings all over campus. If enough people express interest, then maybe UCLA will even expand the GSS in years to come, along with broader gender-inclusive housing options!