A change for gender equality has started at Moorpark College with the establishment of four gender-neutral bathrooms.

Director of Facilities, Maintenance and Operations John Sinutko has now established four “All Gender” bathrooms in the Student Services Annex and in the Music Building, making Moorpark the first in the Ventura County Community College District to do so.

The term gender neutral is defined as, “not referring or applying specifically to either males or females,” according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary.

Advisor of the Spectrum Club Sally Ponce-O’Rourke agrees with the placement of gender-neutral bathrooms on campus.

“We’ve talked about it in the club over the years and I was supportive and then I said ‘okay somebody needs to spearhead [this].’” said Ponce-O’Rourke.

Director of Academic Affairs for the Associated Students, Carmel Gutherz first saw this was a necessity when attending General Assembly with the Associated Students earlier this semester.

While attending Student Senate for California Community Colleges, Gutherz witnessed the passing of several resolutions pertaining to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer students’ rights, inclusion and sensitivity.

“This resolution provides additional leverage to express the importance of creating these facilities for students,” said Gutherz via e-mail.

Ponce-O’Rourke and Gutherz understand that not every student might agree with the establishment of these bathrooms.

Ponce-O’Rourke had this to say to students who might be worried of the violence that comes with the establishment of these bathrooms.

“I have heard from other people that where worried about someone maybe being assaulted in one of the gender-neutral bathrooms, but they’re more likely to be assaulted if they walk into a male restroom and they’re a trans woman and so forth,” said Ponce-O’Rourke.

Gutherz also pointed out that this topic of conversation will not go away and continue to remain relevant.

“Although the creation of gender-neutral bathrooms will be a huge success, we must ensure the safety of our students; this will be a topic included in discussions going forward,” said Gutherz via e-mail.

Besides the precautionary steps taken to ensure the safety of Moorpark College students, Gutherz believes this is just the first step towards inclusion.

“I also believe this is just one step of many to fully accommodate to the needs of these students,” said Gutherz. “I will continue to advocate wherever I can and where it is most needed.”