- Responsible Department: Business Affairs – Human Resources
- Approving Body: President/Cabinet
- Effective Date: 01-JUL-2024
- Review/Revision Date: 12-SEP-2024
PURPOSE:
Western New Mexico University (WNMU) reconfirms our commitment to affirmative action and equal employment and education for all employees (adjuncts, faculty, and staff), students, student workers, contractors, members of the community, and university affiliates. With this commitment, WNMU provides the option to choose the name, pronouns, and gender identity by which all wish to be known on campus.
POLICY:
Everyone should respect the gender identity and expression of all others. Everyone should refer to each person by their chosen name and pronoun. We encourage all to use gender-neutral language to avoid assumptions about employees and students.
- Option 1: Students and employees can also be permitted to change their official identity documentation, such as ID badge, email account, etc., upon obtaining a legal name change. Less formal identity documentation, such as business cards or name plates, may be changed without legal documentation.
- Option 2: Students and employees can also be permitted to change their unofficial identity documentation, such as ID badge and email account but their official information will remain unchanged until a legal name change.
Definitions
Gender identity
A person’s internal sense of being male, female, or something else such as agender, binary, gender fluid, gender nonconforming, genderqueer, or nonbinary. Since gender identity is internal, one’s gender identity is not necessarily visible to others. All people have a gender identity.
Confidentiality
Information about an employee’s gender identity (including but not limited to the sex assigned at birth) may constitute confidential medical information under privacy laws such as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Everyone has the right to discuss their gender identity or expression openly, or to keep that information private.
Student and Employee Records
For tax, fiscal, and legal purposes, an individual’s name of record cannot be legally changed by an employee without certain actions through the courts and other authorities. Upon presenting the necessary documentation required for legal name change, these records will be updated.