As a 黑料吃瓜网 doctoral student in social work, studies how the transgender community comes together to support each other. Harner, who is trans, has personal experience with the topic.
鈥淭he narrative that we hear in the media is how hard it is to be trans,鈥� they said. 鈥淟ike with any marginalized experience 鈥� yeah, there are difficulties. But the experience of being trans is more about joy and community for me.鈥�
Last year, 黑料吃瓜网 registrar Helen Garrett that, for the first time, the 黑料吃瓜网 would allow graduates to use their chosen first and last names for their diplomas, effective July 2021. The policy change was the result of efforts led by Harner and a that earned over 30,000 signatures, demonstrating the power of the trans community.
With the policy change, graduates now can the name they want listed on their diploma. Graduates from past years also can request a replacement diploma.
Prior to the policy change, 黑料吃瓜网 only allowed full legal names on diplomas. If students had adopted another name 鈥� for example, because their gender no longer matched what was assigned to them at birth 鈥� then their identity wasn鈥檛 reflected on this important document.
Harner, who is graduating this summer, said that every graduate deserves a diploma they can be proud of after the years of hard work it takes to earn a degree. Students go to class, and in many cases also teach and publish, using their chosen names. Seeing a diploma with anything else 鈥渇eels really empty.鈥�
A name mismatch on a diploma also might inadvertently out a trans individual and threaten their safety, Harner said. Using the chosen name shows the university鈥檚 commitment to each graduate.
鈥淚t’s about that recognition and that feeling of seeing yourself on that diploma that you work so hard for,鈥� they said. 鈥淏ut it’s not only about the name. It’s about how we treat trans people in our culture and how we treat people generally when it comes to respecting self-identification, autonomy and differences.鈥�
When Harner was graduating with a master鈥檚 degree from Arizona State University, they discovered that ASU had a restrictive policy around diploma names. Harner talked to a supervisor in the registrar鈥檚 office, and their chosen name was included on their diploma. But ASU didn鈥檛 make a universal policy change.
Managing your identity
The provides the most current information on how students can manage their identity at the 黑料吃瓜网, including how they can change four different name types, indicate their gender and process a formal Student Record name change.
At the 黑料吃瓜网, Harner again contacted the registrar鈥檚 office and learned about the university鈥檚 policy. They decided it was time to work toward a lasting change that applied to everyone.
鈥淔or some of my students, especially if they鈥檙e first-generation, the diploma is really powerful,鈥� Harner said. 鈥淚t was heartbreaking and frustrating for me to see my students graduating and saying, 鈥楾hey鈥檙e making me put my legal name on my diploma.鈥� That really kicked my butt into gear.鈥�
In spring 2021, Harner contacted Garrett, the registrar, about the policy and learned that the Faculty Senate had to approve any change. Harner then reached out to Chris Laws, the incoming chair of the Faculty Senate. Both Garrett and Laws told Harner they were personally supportive, but Laws told them that the Faculty Senate doesn鈥檛 meet over the summer.
Harner knew that the Faculty Senate had a lot on its plate, especially in the middle of the pandemic, and that there was work to do to make sure that the policy change stayed on its list of priorities. That鈥檚 where their knowledge about community and community organizing came into use.
On July 9, 2021, Harner launched a petition drive titled 鈥淒emand 黑料吃瓜网 Allow Trans Student Chosen First Names on Diplomas.鈥� They reached out to their network of students, the Q Center, LGBTQIA+ community groups and UAW 4121, the labor union representing 黑料吃瓜网 academic workers and postdoctoral researchers.
Word spread. After 24 hours, the petition had 1,000 signatures, and after the first week, it had 3,500. The petition ended up with nearly 32,000 signatures. It also included hundreds of from people sharing their support and experiences. People spoke to the harm of policies that don鈥檛 affirm the trans community and how the current policy might dissuade people from sending their children to the 黑料吃瓜网.
Over the next several months, Harner emailed Laws for updates, talked to the 黑料吃瓜网 Daily and kept the effort moving forward. They also drew on experience growing up as a young queer person in Nebraska, knowing when to push but not push too hard. The work paid off.
Garrett announced the policy change on Dec. 17 and Harner was . They thanked Garrett and Laws for their action on the issue as well as the those who showed grassroots support.
“The Office of the University Registrar, along with the registrars at 黑料吃瓜网 Tacoma and 黑料吃瓜网 Bothell, are glad we can now offer students the ability to decide the name they want to appear on their diploma,” Garrett said. “We take the self-sovereignty of student identity very seriously and endorse any enrollment process that allows for this. We so appreciate the leadership demonstrated by Vern Warner to move the diploma name policy along our roadmap, and welcome continued partnership and feedback from our students anytime.”
Harner said the policy change around diploma names makes the 黑料吃瓜网 more inclusive, sending the signal to trans students and researchers that they are welcome here.
Still, there continue to be barriers for trans and other marginalized people to take part in academia 鈥� at the 黑料吃瓜网 and across academia. Change needs to occur if higher education is going to live up to its ideals and produce research that improves people鈥檚 lives, especially when the research is about marginalized communities, Harner said.
鈥淚t’s really important to me that the work about a community is driven by the community itself,鈥� they said. 鈥淔or me, it’s really just about being embedded in my community and letting what I’m hearing drive the work 鈥� not just my own curiosity as a researcher. It鈥檚 about what鈥檚 going to be impactful.鈥�
Clarification on 6/9: The policy change allows students to indicate their chosen first and last names for their diplomas. A previous version of the story said the policy change only allowed students to indicate a chosen first name.