Gender Affirming Resources

If you identify as transgender, genderqueer, two spirit, non-binary, gender non-conforming, agender, bigender, or anything else under the trans umbrella, GSR is here to support you.

If you’re looking for a basic introduction to transgender issues, please visit our Trans Introduction page. You may also wish to visit our links page for other transgender resources. You can also learn more about trans affirmative research.

students

Coming Out as Transgender

Coming out as transgender or gender non-conforming can be similar to coming out as lesbian or gay, but it also has unique aspects. If you need assistance with coming out, you may wish to email GSR, visit the Counseling Center, or join the Counseling Center LGBTQ Support Group.

Here are some additional guides for people who are coming out.

How do I navigate being misgendered?

There’s no “one size fits all” response to being misgendered, but here are a few ideas & suggestions:

  • Pick your battles and prioritize your safety
  • When able, gently correct/indicate as an FYI — say, “oh, I actually use [insert pronouns] pronouns”
  • Communicate with your professors via email about your name/pronouns before classes begin
  • Connect with trans students/support groups/forums to get support and advice from those going through it
  • Make friends who affirm your identity using the proper pronouns
  • Display your pronouns via pronoun pins if you’re comfortable (pronoun pins are available in the GSR office!)
  • Remind yourself that how people perceive you does not define who you are/your reality. You are valid regardless!

If you’d like to get connected to trans community at Hopkins, email our office at GSR@jh.edu

Resources for Our Trans Community at Hopkins

Athletics & Recreation

Student Health and Well-Being (SHWB) published A Guide to O’Connor Rec Center for Transgender and Nonbinary People that answers FAQs about navigating the rec center’s services and activities.

Hopkins adheres to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) transgender policy background and resources. This clarifies participation of transgender student-athletes undergoing hormonal treatment for gender transition. In summary, a transgender woman treated with testosterone suppression medication may continue to compete on a men’s team but may not compete on a women’s team without changing it to a mixed team status until completing one year of testosterone suppression treatment. A transgender man who has received a medical exemption for treatment with testosterone is no longer eligible to compete on a women’s team without changing that team status to a mixed team. The policy was established in 2010 after widespread input from the membership and subject-matter experts in science, medicine and inclusion.

Chosen Names

We offer gender-affirming resources for students, faculty, and staff looking to change their name in JHU systems, including having their chosen name printed on their J-Card. Visit the Chosen Name at JHU page and the J-Card page for more information.

Gender Inclusive Housing

We’re proud to offer gender-inclusive housing in the Homewood residence halls. This is available for incoming first-year students and for returning students. Check out this PDF Document: gender-inclusive housing at JHU FAQ for more information.

If you have questions, email GSR or contact our colleagues in University Housing and Residential Life.

Health Insurance

Student, faculty, and staff health insurance at Hopkins have provisions for trans-inclusive care. Hormones and gender confirmation surgery are covered as any other medical procedure would be. Individual, small-group, and student health plans sold in Maryland are prohibited from excluding transition care in their policies. If you feel like you are not getting the coverage you are entitled to, you may be able to get legal support from the Maryland State Attorney General’s office, Free State Justice, and Whitman-Walker Clinic.

Student Health and Well-Being (SHWB) has more comprehensive information on their site, including information on in-network providers, requirements for various procedures, and services and resources available through student health services. (link coming soon!)

As of July 1, 2022, Hopkins has expanded coverage of surgeries and procedures related to gender-affirming care for student insurance plans.

Examples of Covered Surgeries/Procedures

  • Breast Augmentation
  • Breast Reduction
  • Brow Lift
  • Buttock Implant
  • Calf Implants
  • Cheek/malar implants
  • Chin/nose implants or genioplasty
  • Coloproctostomy
  • Colpocleisis – vaginal walls sewn together
  • Electrolysis of donor site tissue
  • Eyelid lifts
  • Facial bone reconstruction
  • Forehead contouring
  • Gonadectomy or orchiectomy
  • Hair Grafts
  • Hysterectomy and salpingo-oophorectomy
  • Jaw implant
  • Jaw reduction (jaw contouring) Jaw and/or Chin reshaping
  • Lip Reduction/shortening
  • Lipofilling of hips, thighs, buttocks
  • Mastectomy with liposuction of the chest
  • Metoidioplasty
  • Mons lift/mons reduction – lifting and tightening and/or reduction of the mons pubis area
  • Nipple/areola complex Reconstruction (both male to female and female to male)
  • Pectoral implants
  • Penectomy
  • Perineoplasty – narrows vaginal opening
  • Phalloplasty
  • Repair of introitus
  • Rhinoplasty
  • Scalp (hairline) advancement
  • Scrotoplasty
  • Skin grafts
  • Testicular prosthesis (insertion of)
  • Urethroplasty /urethromeatoplasty
  • Vaginectomy/colpectomy
  • Vaginoplasty
  • Voice modification surgery
  • Vulvectomy
  • Wrinkle removal

Policy Protections

Our non-discrimination policy at Hopkins includes gender identity and expression, as well as sexual orientation. It reads “The University is committed to maintaining learning and working environments that are free from all forms of harassment and discrimination. Each member of the community is responsible for fostering civility, for being familiar with this policy, and for refraining from conduct that violates this policy. Accordingly, discrimination based on sex, gender, marital status, pregnancy, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status or other legally protected characteristic is prohibited.”

Restrooms

Everyone should be able to use restrooms that are safe and accessible. We support the rights of transgender and gender-non-conforming individuals to use restrooms that correspond with their gender identities. We also believe it is important to provide the option of all-gender restrooms, as they can serve the needs of transgender people, people with children, people who need assistance accessing the restroom, and anyone who needs extra privacy. We are working on listing all-gender restrooms and single-occupancy restrooms across Hopkins. Let us know if you’d like to help us identify or expand them!

We’ve created a map of all-gender restrooms at Johns Hopkins, which you can view by visiting bit.ly/JHUallgender

Beyond Campus – refuge restrooms is a web application where users can search for restroom access for transgender, intersex, and gender nonconforming individuals, as well as comment and rate existing listings.

Transgender Resources in the Baltimore Area

The Johns Hopkins Medical Institution is proud to support the Center for Transgender Health. Learn more about the work of the Center for Transgender Health through these stories.

There are several transgender groups offered by the Pride Center of Maryland. Contact them to learn more about dates and times.

Chase Brexton Health Services – Founded in 1978, Chase Brexton Health Services provides patient-centered interdisciplinary health care for diverse communities including those individuals who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender; HIV positive and affected; and all others who face barriers accessing quality health care. Chase Brexton offers hormone treatments for transgender individuals looking to transition. They also offer a variety of other transgender-specific services. Chase Brexton has multiple locations, including one in Mt. Vernon.

Baltimore Community Relations Commission – This city agency investigates discrimination within the city in employment, housing, credit, health, and public accommodations.

Hearts and Ears – Hearts & Ears is a peer support and advocacy program for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people with mental health issues or concerns. Hearts & Ears provides a safe and confidential setting where members can network and offer one another support. Other programs include advocacy within the mental health systems and the community-at-large, a newsletter, and activities. Hearts & Ears’ center is located at 1133 Pennsylvania Avenue, Suite 204, Baltimore, MD 21201.

Resources for Legally Transitioning

Visit trans*youthMD and NCTE for more information about legal aspects to transitioning in Maryland(some information may be out of date). Trans Maryland also offers a Name Change Program for Maryland residents. Contact Free State Justice for assistance with name changes and other legal concerns. This page is not legal advice, only a listing of resources.

Legal Name Changes for Maryland Residents

If you are 18 or older, here are PDF Document: instructions for changing your name in Maryland. The PDF Document: petition for change of name form is here. Keep in mind that the reason you write in for requesting the name change will be the reason included in the newspaper announcement of your impending name change. Also note that there is a $135 fee for filing the name change (which may be waived if you have little or no income and file a form stating such). There is also a fee (about $80) for having it printed in a newspaper that circulates in the county where you live, which is a requirement of the name change process. You will then need to update Johns Hopkins and any other places where your legal name is in use.

Sex Marker Change on Maryland Licenses or IDs

Currently the state of Maryland does not require residents to obtain sexual reassignment surgery (SRS) before changing their sex marker on their license or state issued ID. You can change your gender on your ID, learner’s permit, or driver’s license without getting an order from the court. Gender marker changes are only done at the Glen Burnie MVA. You can either go in person or mail your request to: MD MVA , ATTN: Driver Wellness and Safety Division, 6601 Ritchie Highway, NE, Glen Burnie, MD 21062. If you mail in your request, make sure to keep copies of everything you mail. Note that if you also want to change your name at the same time, you need to go in person. (Currently the link to this information is unavailable on the MVA site)

Sex Marker Change on Birth Certificates

The rules around changes to your birth certificate vary based on where you were born. Check out Transsexual Road Map for help and these resources from Lambda Legal.

If you were born in Maryland, the Maryland Division of Vital Statistics will only change your sex marker on your birth certificate if you have gotten a legal gender change (an order from a court that says your gender has been changed.) The Division of Vital Statistics may issue an “amended” birth certificate for gender marker changes. This means that they may attach a sheet to your current birth certificate that shows your new gender identity. PDF Document: More information is here.

Trans-Friendly Health Services

This list is based on lists originally created by Chase Brexton and mySupport. We have not independently verified any of these providers.

Therapists & Mental Health Providers

Chase Brexton Mental Health Services
1111 North Charles St., Baltimore, MD 21201
410-837-2050 ext. 2428

Barbara Cohen, LCSWC, MSW
2 Hamill Road, Suite 127, Baltimore, MD 21210
410-464-9005, Office; 410-486-3075, Home

Chris Kraft, PhD (JHH Private Practice)
2688 Greenspring Station, Baltimore, MD
410-583-2688

Feinberin Psychological Associates
Dr. Stanley Fishbein, psychologist
Dr. Susan Fishbein, psychologist
Mt. Vernon, Randallstown, and Towson, MD
410-521-2150

Pro Bono Counseling: offers sliding fee scale
410-825-1001

Kate Thomas, PhD
2360 W. Joppa Road, Ste. 200, Baltimore, MD 21093
410-616-7152

Jill Gaumer, LCSW Therapist
55 E. High Street Elkton, MD 21921
302-354-0074

Hawn Therapy and Consulting
405 Allegheny Ave
Towson, MD 21204

Healthcare & Primary Care

Johns Hopkins Center for Transgender Health
844-546-5645

Chase Brexton Health Care
1111 North Charles St., Baltimore, MD 21201
410-837-2050

Mary Blackburn, MD
7801 York Road, Suite 102, Towson, MD 21204
410-769-4920

Sam Westrick, MD
MedStar Union Memorial Adult Medicine Specialists at Lake Falls
6080 Falls Rd #204
Baltimore MD 21209
410-323-2757

Speech/Voice Therapists

  • Johns Hopkins Voice Center, 443-997-6467
  • Carol Beswick, SLP, speechpeech@msn.com
  • Jennifer Smith, MS, CCC-SLP, Hearing and Speech Agency, jsmith@hasa.org
  • Tish Moody, George Washington University Speech and Hearing Center, 202-994-7360 or 301-840-1215
  • Laser Assisted Voice Adjustment – Melissa Walker, GBMC, 443-849-2087
  • Lynda Wilner, Speech/Language Specialist – Owings Mills, MD, 410-356-5666

Electrolysis

Sollay Laser Center
3700 Koppers Street
Baltimore, MD

Village Electrolysis
1621 Sulgrave Avenue
Mt. Washington, MD 21209
410-578-0033

American Laser Skincare
7801 York Road, Suite 101A, Towson, MD 21204
410-377-6789

Physical Therapy

Dudley Physical Therapy
8502 Kelso Drive
Essex, MD 21221
443-742-0019