The University of California will add optional questions "concerning sexual orientation and gender identity" to their undergraduate admission applications, Inside Higher Ed reported.
Prospective students will have the option to voluntarily self-identify their sexual orientation and gender identity on their application, school officials announced Thursday. This is part of the UC system's efforts to ensure their campuses are welcoming and inclusive for LGBTQ students, faculty and staff.
The answer to these questions will help administrators of each UC System campus better understand and meet the needs of their students and to more accurately "allocate resources and develop programs based on the campus' needs," The Daily Californian reported.
"UC is working hard to ensure our campuses model inclusiveness and understanding," UC President Janet Napolitano said in a statement. "I'm proud of the work we've done so far, but it doesn't stop there -- we must continue to look at where we can improve so everyone at UC feels respected and supported."
According to Inside Higher Ed, the UC System will also build new buildings and add renovate current facilities to include gender-neutral one, including restrooms and changing rooms, starting July 1.
David Green, a transgender student at the University of California, Berkeley, told The Daily Californian that not having gender-neutral bathrooms in campus buildings is a "huge, huge burden."
"Everyone is pressed for time," Green, who is a member of the student group Queer Issues in Public Policy, said. "And I don't have spare time to find the gender-neutral bathrooms half of a mile away."
In addition to building gender-neutral facilities, the school is initiating a two-year project designed to coordinate and promote interdisciplinary study of genders and sexualities across the UC system.
The measures grew out of the 2014 recommendations from the UC Task Force and Implementation Team on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Climate and Inclusion.
