 Boston University is now the seventh college institution in the state of Massachusetts to allow gender neutral housing on their on campus residences. In the start there was an interest in seeing that this be a student driven initiative. In part because you know here at Residence Life and in the Dean of Students office we hadn't heard a lot of students requesting gender neutral housing. So we really wanted to see students themselves develop a thoughtful proposal that could really serve as the starting point for conversation. Well I think gender neutral housing further broadens the options at this college. Being a gay man I had no issue you know finding a male roommate but there are there are definitely people who when applying for college is a concern that if they get connected with or put with a roommate who is against homosexuality there could be issues. The general consensus among the Boston University student body that this is great for the university. Under the rules of the gender neutral proposal no student will be forced to live with someone from the opposite gender unless they request to live with them. I can't remember anybody speaking out in opposition. I think it's really important that at BU we have a very inclusive safe space and I think that part of that is having a safe space for living situations for students because I know that for you for traditional typical students you know gender neutral housing may not be a thing they consider but there's a large percentage of the population that that really is a big deal for them and I think that for a university that's as big and otherwise progressive as BU I think it would be really silly for us not to have something like it. Gender neutral housing will be allowed at Boston University next semester. Students are allowed to go to the BU residence life office and request gender neutral housing for the spring semester via direct SWAT. I am Nick Arito from Boston University News Service.