Skip to Content

Chosen Name and Pronoun

Chosen Names and Pronouns

Sinclair Community College is committed to provide a safe and welcoming environment in which all students can pursue their academic goals. All individuals want and need to be correctly identified.

Sinclair Community College recognizes that students use names other than their legal or official names first provided to the College (official/legal name) to identify themselves. For some students a chosen name may be an important component of their identity. Therefore, the College has established guidelines that allow students to indicate their chosen first names and pronouns to the College community even if they have not changed their official/legal names.

Chosen Name Change Process

Students seeking to use a chosen name that differs from their legal name may do so and will update the following: Self-service, SCC email, student Tartan ID, eLearn class and grade rosters.

  • I understand that changing my chosen first name does not change my legal name on official academic records.
  • I can change my chosen first name only once per academic year (an academic year runs June through July the following year and includes Fall, Spring and Summer semester)
  • I understand that it is my responsibility to get a new student ID with chosen name
  • I understand that Sinclair Community College work with multiple external entities (such as Ohio Board of Regents, U.S. Department of Education, etc.), and that the College will continue to provide my legal name to meet the reporting requirements of these entities.
  • Sinclair Community College reserves the right to deny a chosen name change request that is, or appear to be discriminatory, derogatory, or used for attempted misrepresentation.

Chosen name will not appear in these common systems (list is not comprehensive) Unofficial transcripts, official transcripts, billing records, financial aid records, person proxy, enrollment verifications, student employment documents any state or federal reporting.

Pronouns

Students may designate the pronouns they use to identify themselves. Instructors and staff are encourage to use the pronouns that people use for themselves as a sign of respect and inclusion.

A pronoun is a word that a person uses to identify themselves. For example, if Jamie’s pronouns are she, her, and hers, you would say “Jamie ate her food because she was hungry.” The most commonly used pronouns include they, she, her, hers and he, him, his. These are often referred to as female/feminine and male/masculine pronouns.

Gender pronouns are the pronouns that people choose to use for references to themselves. For example, if Jamie's preferred pronouns are she, her, and hers, you could say, "Jamie ate her food because she was hungry." Some gender pronouns are neutral (them, they, theirs), some are not (she, he), and some have been created as an alternative to or rejection of the gender binary.

Sinclair will implement some of the common gender-neutral pronouns. They are as follows: 

  • He – Him and His
  • She – Her and Hers
  • They - Them, Their—Jamie ate their food because they were hungry.
  • Ze – Hir, and Hirs—Jamie ate hir food because ze was hungry.
  • Ze is pronounced like “zee” can also be spelled zie or xe. It can be used to replace she/he/they.
  • Hir is pronounced like “here” and can replace her/hers/him/his/they/theirs.

Everyone has the right to use the gender pronouns that match their personal identity. These pronouns may or may not match their gender expression (how the person dresses, behaves, or looks).

Not using a student’s correct name and pronouns can make the student feel disrespected, can potentially out this student to their peers, and can create a classroom environment that could be very difficult for them to thrive in.

In an effort to foster a less-stressful environment for the student, we encourage and ask you to respect a student’s gender identities and/or gender expressions and make a conscious effort to use their chosen name and pronouns when referring to them.

To Update Chosen Name or Pronoun:

Updating/Adding a chosen name and pronoun is done in self service:

  1. Log into Sinclair Portal
  2. Once logged in, click on the Colleague Self Service portlet
  3. Click your username, in the top right corner and select User Profile
  4. Under User Profile, click Edit Personal Identity.  You will then be able to enter a Chosen first name and/or select a preferred pronoun

We understand that pronouns and their usage for a person may be new to you and that is okay! One of the best ways to create an inclusive learning environment is to utilize your resources to become knowledgeable and stay up to date about these issues.