UNC Charlotte will no longer let students request housing aligned with their gender identity next semester, a change the university says is meant to comply with UNC System and federal policy.
Starting in the fall 2026 semester, UNC Charlotte student housing will be based on sex assigned at birth, a change that will predominantly affect transgender students.
The university cited President Trump’s executive order that directed federal agencies to interpret sex-based laws according to biological sex rather than gender identity as its reason for the change.
“As a recipient of federal funds, UNC Charlotte must comply with applicable Title IX directives,” said Christy Jackson, UNC Charlotte’s deputy chief communications officer.
The end of UNC Charlotte’s gender-affirming housing program came without notice to the 30 students who used the accommodation during the spring 2026 semester.
“Gender-affirming housing prevents gender non-conforming students from facing undeserved harassment and bullying due to their gender identity,” Kylie Greenelsh, a third-year student at UNC Charlotte and the president of Prism, an LGBTQIA-focused student organization, said in a statement to The Assembly. “Forcing transgender students to use facilities that align with their birth or legal sex sends the message that ‘you don’t belong here.’”
In 2025, UNC Asheville revised its housing practices to require students to provide legal documentation that aligns with their gender identity before receiving gender-affirming housing. UNC Asheville Chief Marketing Officer Eden Bloss said the change was made to comply with UNC System and federal policy.
“Institutions shall not assign members of the opposite sex to any institutionally owned and operated dormitory room, dormitory suite, or campus apartment unless the students are siblings, parent and child, or they are legally married,” reads a UNC System housing policy in place since 2013.