Famed Catholic university reportedly approves 'Gender and Sexuality' dormitory

Georgetown University has approved a "Gender and Sexuality" dormitory for students intent on "exploring" the topics as part of a "Living Learning Community," Campus Reform reported.

The iconic Catholic college in Washington, D.C. — headed by the Jesuit order of the church, which possesses a decidedly liberal reputation — rejected the dorm proposal for the 2017-18 school year, the Hoya reported.

But the school's Office of Residential life approved the “Crossroads: Gender and Sexuality” Living Learning Community in December for the 2018-19 academic year, Campus Reform said.

What has been said about the dorm?

The "Gender and Sexuality" dorm was said to be a place that would “promote knowledge, critical conversation and a deeper understanding of LGBTQ histories, cultures, and social and political movements,” LGBTQ Resource Center Director Shiva Subbaraman told the Hoya last spring.

What did an administrator say about the dorm?

Vice President of Student Affairs Todd Olson told the outlet that the dorm “will provide a community space for discussion on gender and inclusion while upholding the Jesuit values of community in diversity and educating the whole person.”

Olson added to Campus Reform that the dorm will “follow Georgetown’s current housing policies” regarding gender, which lets students live with those who identify as the same gender regardless of sex.

“Our Catholic and Jesuit values call on us to engage with ‘respect, compassion, and sensitivity’ with our LGBTQ community,” Olson also told the outlet. “It is in keeping with our Catholic and Jesuit values to provide a language, perspective, and sense of inclusion for deepening our sense of cura personalis [i.e., Latin for 'care for the whole person']."

What did a student who pushed for the dorm have to say?

Grace Smith — a Georgetown student who pushed for the "Gender and Sexuality" dorm and manages a school LBGT group, GUPride — called the dorm approval “A REALLY BIG DEAL AT A JESUIT UNIVERSITY" in a Facebook post, Campus Reform said.

“This means that students will now begin to have a unique residential space dedicated to exploring and understanding themselves and others in relation to gender and sexuality,” Smith said, according to the outlet. “Congratulations to everyone who made this dream a reality.”