Heteronormative and cisnormative assumptions, policies, and practices are pervasive in our society. Heteronormativity refers to the false belief or assumption that all people are heterosexual, and cisnormativity refers to the false belief that there are only two genders (male and female), and that gender is fixed and defined by one’s biological sex (Enke, 2012). When heterosexual and cisgender identities are centered as the default, LGBTQ+ individuals are othered and excluded. Many heterosexual, cisgender people remain unaware of heteronormativity and cisnormativity in their daily lives. However, the impact of these beliefs and assumptions can be significant for LGBTQ+ individuals.

The language that you adopt can either reinforce or reject heteronormative and cisnormative assumptions. By choosing to incorporate gender-inclusive and gender-affirming language, you send a clear signal to your students that you acknowledge and respect gender and sexual diversity. Tips for incorporating LGBTQ+ inclusive and gender-affirming language include:

• Wherever possible, use gender-inclusive language when referring to your students en masse, such as “folks,” “friends,” “y’all,”  “everyone,” “scholars,” or “first-years” instead of gendered language such as “you guys,” “ladies & gentlemen,” or “freshmen.”
• When you do not know someone’s gender or sexuality, avoid making assumptions. You can refer to people by their first names when you do not know their pronouns. You can also use they/them/theirs or identifiers like “partner” instead of “girlfriend/boyfriend,” until you are signaled otherwise.
• Include your pronouns when you introduce yourself, in your syllabus, on name tags, and in your email signature.
• Give students the opportunity to provide their names and affirmed pronouns on the first day of class, if they are comfortable doing so. If you ask students to share pronouns with the class, be sure to make it optional. To avoid pressure on students, you can give students the option to submit their pronouns in writing on a general information form on the first day. By providing this opportunity, you can reduce anxiety for nonbinary or trans students by taking the burden off of them to approach you to disclose their gender identity (Goldberg, 2019).
• Do your best to use students’ affirmed pronouns. However, if you make a mistake, simply apologize and correct yourself.

Be aware that a student’s gender marker in Banner may not reflect their true gender identity. Brown’s LGBTQ center provides more information on different options for student name changes.

As a role model or ally, you have the opportunity to make a difference for students during their transformative college years. Knowing just one accepting adult has been shown to reduce suicide attempt rates among LGBTQ+ youth ages 13-24 (The Trevor Project, 2019). The most important thing is to make your support and acceptance visible and explicit so that students feel supported and included in your classroom. If you are a member of the LGBTQ+ community and you feel it is safe to do so, being out in the classroom can provide your students with confidence, validation, and a supportive person to talk to if they are not ready to share their identity with others (Ward & Gale, 2016).

Tips for being a visible ally or role model:

• Signal in your syllabus.
  •  Include LBGTQ+ identities in your syllabus diversity & inclusion statement. Examples can be found on the Sheridan Center website.
  •  Specify where the gender-inclusive bathrooms nearest to your classroom are located.
• If you are a member of the LGBTQ+ community and have decided you want to be out to your students, you can signal this by including your LGBTQ+ identity in your introduction slide on the first day of class along with other information about yourself.
• Attend LGBTQ+ events, seminars, panels, and trainings.
• Create opportunities for LGBTQ+ students to connect with role models and allies in their discipline by organizing events such as panels, round-tables, or socials or by inviting speakers who have been vocal about LGBTQ+ issues related to your field.

Heteronormativity and cisnormativity manifest in the curriculum at many levels - from the topics and people we study to the stock photos in our powerpoints and textbooks. In some disciplines, such as humanities and social sciences, LGBTQ+ topics may be logically incorporated into the existing curriculum. However, in fields such as physical sciences and engineering, finding a direct curricular connection may be more challenging. In both academic and industry settings, STEM environments have been identified as particularly hostile or “chilly” to LGBTQ+ individuals. Recent evidence shows that LGB+ students are 7% less likely to persist in STEM majors as compared to their heterosexual peers (Hughes, 2018). If you reflect critically on your own discipline and defaults, you can find opportunities to increase the visibility of marginalized identities in your teaching and make your discipline a more welcoming environment.

Tips for inclusion in curriculum and teaching:

• Critically examine the heteronormative and cisnormative assumptions of your discipline. Resources can be found here.
  •  In your class, read and discuss articles pertaining to the marginalization of queer identities in your field and look for opportunities to highlight the work of individuals from underrepresented identities.
  •  Look for specific cases in your discipline where heteronormative or cisnormative biases have influenced scholarship.
• Diversify hypothetical scenarios or fictional examples in a problem set or language exercises and avoid heteronormative or cisnormative stock photos, cartoons, or icons.