845 Gender Identity/Personal Pronouns on University Records

RATIONALE: Oakland University (University) is committed to fostering an environment of inclusiveness and supporting the preferred form of self-identification of students, staff, faculty, and alumni.

POLICY: The University recognizes that a student, active or retired faculty or staff member, or alum’s sex assigned by a medical professional at the time of the student’s birth (“Sex at Birth”), or the sex by which they are legally recognized in governmental records (“Legal Sex”), does not necessarily align with their gender identity and/or the personal pronouns they use to express themselves. The university acknowledges that a student’s gender identity and/or personal pronouns should be used wherever appropriate and legally permitted in the course of university business and education. Gender identity data will be used for external and internal reporting and trend analysis purposes where appropriate.

Any student, active or retired faculty or staff member, or alum has the option to self-select their gender identity and/or personal pronouns within the University's information systems. These fields are entirely optional and are not required to be updated. Gender identity and/or personal pronouns will be shared with authorized university officials based on job duties and responsibilities, but are not considered directory information. Parents or guardians granted access through Sail, as well as peer students, cannot view this information via their individual system access. Gender identity fields are controlled by the user themselves, and should be updated or modified only by the user or other authorized university personnel. Like all university data, unauthorized modifications of these fields are prohibited.

SCOPE AND APPLICABILITY: This policy applies to all students (currently enrolled or alumni), faculty (active or retired), and staff (active or retired) to the degree feasible within Sail.

DEFINITIONS: 

Sex at Birth: the sex assigned by a medical professional at the time of a person’s birth.

Legal Sex: the sex that a person is declared to be according to government records.

Gender Identity: the gender, or mix of genders, that a person perceives themself being.

PROCEDURES: The person or department providing operational support for an information system and having responsibility for data maintenance and control methods will make gender identity and/or personal pronouns an optional choice within applicable university systems, accessible to the individual (student/staff/faculty) only. The following departments are responsible for routinely auditing the Banner system to ensure gender designation and personal pronouns comport with this Policy: Registrar (students), Human Resources (faculty and staff), and University Advancement (alumni).

RELATED POLICIES AND FORMS: