California State University, Long Beach (Cal State Long Beach) plans to implement a new policy expected to come into effect January 2016. It will allow transgender students to use the name they identify with on certain school documents regardless of their legal documents. 
The new policy allows for the students’ chosen name to show up on class rosters, IDs, faculty grade rosters and on students’ MyCSULB portals. Documents like official transcripts and diplomas will not include the chosen name.
Cal State Long Beach spokesman Mike Uhlenkamp told Press Telegram Education how the new policy will have a positive affect on the transgender student population at Cal State Long Beach.
“The idea is that it’s really to benefit the transgendered population. It’s allowing a student to be recognized by their preferred name in documents where they’re not legally required,” Uhlenkamp said.
Toni Molle, a spokeswoman for the Long Beach-based Chancellor’s Office, told Press Telegram Education how the policy could move to other campuses.
“It just needs to be approved at the campus level,” Molle said.
At the moment, Cal State Long Beach is the only California State University to have a policy of this matter, but we could start seeing other campuses adapt similar policies.
Cal State Long Beach’s new policy attracted the attention of Love Evolution, the gender and sexually diverse organization at California State University, Stanislaus (Stan State).
Love Evolution President Shelby Zahn (senior, Gender Studies) believes the new policy is a great step forward acceptance and equality for all students.
“I think that it’s wonderful,” Zahn said. “I am grateful that CSU Long Beach is letting students choose the names that they want to have displayed on their IDs and class rosters. It just makes more sense.”
Students will be able to request a name change once the policy comes into effect at Cal State Long Beach’s Enrollment Services.