Newnham College Cambridge restricts women’s fellowships …

[SabrinaThwaite]

… to actual women.

newn.cam.ac.uk/research/research-fellowships

There’s proper full on meltdowns going on:

The decision by Newnham College to bar trans people from applying for the Research Fellowship for outstanding female researchers early in their careers constitutes a blatantly discriminatory act of prejudice and intellectual cowardice.

https://feministgenderequality.network/fgen-statement-on-newnham-college-transphobic-fellowship-announcement/

Ffs. As far as I can see, it's not trans exclusionary, it's just not for anyone born male.

This is literally where every TRA argument falls flat. It's not trans-exclusionary, it's open to all born female.

Good.
Newnhamite here.

It's not excluding trans people of any description if they're female, are they? Surely lots of female people are agender, nonbinary, loads of ways to be trans. It's awful for FGEN to deny their existence.

Or are they just lying? Weird.

It’s men that just don’t like to hear the word ‘no’.

Sad times.

Of course Newnham broke its all-female fellowship rule to admit Rachael Padman as a fellow way back. Germaine Greer kicked up a fuss to no avail, attracting a lot of misogynist press coverage if my very hazy memory serves me correctly. The excuse was that it was a choice of Padman or a man plain and simple: not enough female physicists.

Padman wrote about his experience as a 'gender immigrant'.

You have to be "assigned female at birth" (Newnham's words, not mine) and have the documentation to prove it. Transwomen are irrelevant to this, being born male. But see below.
Trans men would be eligible, though I suppose some may have made difficulties for themselves by changing all their documentation to say they are male and no longer having any proof that they were born female.
What Newnham will do with transwomen who were clearly not AFAB but have changed their documents and are claiming to be female, I don't know.

Oh, huge bonus on both counts!

Wow! I hope first of many and also that Newnham stands their ground against the onslaught.

Yup, @UnpaintedLily - there was a fuss back in the 90s. Germaine Greer was a star about the situation. Back in the 1990s when I started my academic career, the dominance of men in universities was far greater than nowadays, and quite extreme in the sciences. A male applicant, thinking he's a woman, would have had all the oodles of male privilege and socialisation that actual women lacked.

I'm pleased that 30 years later, Newnham is reversing its policy.

I think Newnham have to stand their ground or else they're breaking the law.

According to the announcement, this is an appointment under Schedule 22, relevant provisions below:

3(1)A person does not contravene Part 5 (work) only by doing a relevant act in connection with the employment of another in a relevant position.
(2)A relevant position is
.......
(b)the head, a fellow or other member of the academic staff of a college, or institution in the nature of a college, in a university;
........
(3)A relevant act is anything it is necessary to do to comply with
........
(b)a requirement of an instrument relating to the college or institution that the holder of the position must be a woman;
.....
(4)Sub-paragraph (3)(b) does not apply to an instrument taking effect on or after 16 January 1990 (the day on which section 5(3) of the Employment Act 1989 came into force).
(5)A Minister of the Crown may by order provide that anything in sub-paragraphs (1) to (3) does not have effect in relation to—
(a)a specified educational establishment or university;
(b)a specified description of educational establishments.
(6)An educational establishment is
.......
(b)a college, or institution in the nature of a college, in a university;
........

It’s almost like women only scholarships were created to counteract long standing male privilege.

What a wonderful decision. But also, I’m sure they would say ‘just following the law’.

Murray Edwards have gone fully in the other direction so far, though I’m not aware of a specific decision like this. It makes me wonder if they might decide to become a mixed-sex college. I think the statutes might now allow them to do so.

I hope those with a connection to any Cambridge college will contact Newnham and express their support. All those TRAs will not be shy in putting their point of view forward.

My degree is from The OU, I contacted them regarding Jo Phoenix
and also to express my support for John Pike, who I occasionally worked with. I didn’t hear anything back, but I would like to think it was at least noted.

A transman could prove she was female by exhibiting her current birth certificate and her GRC.

A transwoman could be excluded by otherwise only accepting a certificate issued shortly after birth. I can see issues for people with lost certificates or registrations corrected for medical reasons or because of registration errors, so things could get a bit intrusive.

This problem will arise all over the place: GRR needs abolishing.

Good.

All those TRAs will not be shy in putting their point of view forward.

Fantastic news. 😁

Parents who may have children who may at some point be considering higher education may like to contact the college to send support, too.

Then again ...

Can trans women apply to Newnham?
Trans women who hold a form of formal identification as female on a current passport, driving licence, birth certificate or gender recognition certificate are very welcome to apply directly to Newnham.
Can non-binary people apply to Newnham?
Non-binary people who hold a form of formal identification as female on a current passport, driving licence, birth certificate or gender recognition certificate are very welcome to apply to Newnham. If they do not wish to select the ‘Woman’ option in their UCAS application, they will need to apply directly to Newnham and select the ‘I prefer not to say’ or ‘I use another term’ option.
Can trans men apply to Newnham?
Trans men who hold a form of formal identification as female on a current passport, driving licence, birth certificate or gender recognition certificate are very welcome to apply to Newnham; if you do not have this, please contact us to discuss what other forms of identification may be acceptable. If they do not wish to select the ‘Woman’ option in their UCAS application, they need to apply directly to Newnham and select the ‘I prefer not to say’ or ‘I use another term’ option.
At what point in the admissions process would you need to see formal documentation that states my gender?
We require all offer-holders to submit evidence of ID (usually a copy of a passport, but it can be a driving licence) by early summer, following the issuing of offers in January. This is one stage in the fulfilment of our legal duty to check that everyone has the right to study in the UK. If you do not have a passport or driving licence, please contact us to discuss alternative forms of identification.
Do you require formal recognition of gender from everyone, or only transgender applicants?
Newnham requires all its applicants to hold a form of formal identification as female on a current passport, driving licence or birth certificate. We check this when we see your formal documentation. All those who hold such female ID will be treated in the same way.
I am a trans student and I would like to apply to Newnham, but I’m concerned about whether it would be an accepting environment or not. What measures are taken to ensure that trans students are included in Newnham’s community?
Newnham prides itself on being a welcoming environment for all students. The Health and Wellbeing Team, College Tutors, JCR LGBTQ+ and Trans and Women's Officers provide support to trans and non-binary students. If you have any questions about the student experience at Newnham or about the application process please contact them ...[edited to remove emails]

and ...

'There are communal bathrooms, shower rooms and toilets on each floor'

https://newn.cam.ac.uk/study-here

Newnhamite here too. Excellent news. Glad to see them holding the line.

That’s been the case for a long time. Murray Edwards went for pure self ID I believe but Newnham requires documentation.

Well, it's not a women's college, in that case.

Wait, so Newnham is a women's college that accepts a few men? Isn't that a problem in itself?

Good, good...
My Grandma (may she RIP) gained an honours degree, an MA and a PHD in the 1930s from Newnham - she was the first pupil from her Grammar school ever to get to University - and we all know the barriers to women in Academia in those times.
She was a brilliant woman - she'd be appalled at the men muscling into women's spaces.