By Roopa Raman
Daily Bruin Contributor
Same-sex domestic partners won a victory this month when they
became eligible to live in university housing that was once
restricted to heterosexual partners only.
Chancellor Albert Carnesale approved policy amendments on Feb. 7
““ after years of lobbying by the Graduate Students
Association and lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender members of
the UCLA community.
In the past, some students decided not to attend UCLA after
being rejected from family student housing, said GSA President
Charles Harless, who pursued the issue following efforts by former
GSA President Martin Griffin.
“We’re losing some graduate students because of this
issue, which is a very easy thing that can be fixed,” he
said.
All University of California campuses now allow domestic
partners to occupy family housing, which was previously exclusive
to heterosexual couples and single parents.
“There is more of a perception that the university
wasn’t welcoming before, but they are now,” Harless
said.
Carnesale’s announcement followed a statement issued Jan.
29 by UC President Richard Atkinson to all UC chancellors,
clarifying system-wide guidelines for eligibility in family student
housing.
The guidelines established that housing would be accessible to
students with dependent children and to students who have a
mutually-dependent relationship with a spouse or family member.
Campuses can choose to give priority status to students who have
legally dependent children living with them.
Atkinson also gave the chancellors individual powers to
determine categories of eligibility based on the campus enrollment
management goals and local market condition.
Ronni Sanlo, director of the UCLA LGBT Resource Office, along
with the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee for LGBT issues,
drafted a revised copy of the housing policy that was inclusive of
LGBT students last summer.
Included in the proposal were three tiers identifying the
priority at which domestic partners should be eligible for family
housing: single parents with children; couples with children; then
married couples or partners with a domestic partnership
certificate.
The proposed policies were submitted to the division of Student
& Campus Life, and a majority of the deans and directors
accepted them. The policies became official after Atkinson
reassigned authority to the chancellors to approve housing
policies.
It was discriminatory for housing to not admit domestic partners
before, Sanlo said.
“UCLA must be safe and welcoming for any student that
comes to UCLA,” she added.