Gender-Inclusive Bathrooms FAQ
Why are we going to see Gender-Inclusive bathrooms at MHKC?
MHKC strives to create a more inclusive and affirming environment for everyone who comes to Camp. We are continually taking steps to be a leader in inclusivity.
We received a generous grant from RE-MAX this past year to buy new signs for all the bathrooms.
Where are the gender-inclusive bathrooms?
Changes that you might notice are the bathrooms in Fanning (for campers, staff, and counselors) and the pool house (for counselors and staff). For campers, the only change is in Fanning.
On the right side of the Fanning bathrooms is a single-use locking stall with a vacant/in-use deadbolt lock. This will only allow one person at a time to use this bathroom.
At MHKC all the staff and counselors are in a caregiver role. Because of this, people of all genders can assist campers in the bathrooms and always have been able to. Staff and counselors do not use the camper dorm bathrooms for personal use, only to assist campers.
Most bathrooms in camp have always been gender-inclusive with single-stall bathrooms.
How do gender-inclusive bathrooms work in lodging buildings?
For Campers: Camper lodging bathrooms have not changed. The camper building bathrooms will be staying the same since our camper groups are still broken out into Male identifying and Female identifying. Counselors and staff of all genders will still be able to assist campers in their respective bathrooms. All camper housing bathrooms have multi-use locking stall doors around the toilets and shower curtains in the showers. Staff and counselors do not use these bathrooms for personal use, they only assist campers who need it. There will not be male or female-identifying campers in the other camper dorm bathrooms.
For Staff: All staff housing has single use bathrooms and showers.
For Counselors: Counselors reside in the platform tents or personal tents. They will mainly
utilize the bathrooms and showers in the Pool House. They also have access to all other
bathrooms across Camp in Fanning, Laurel, and porta-potties.
What will gender-inclusive bathrooms look like at the Pool House?
Campers: When/if campers use the Pool House for showers, it will be at swimming and they will be with their group. In this case, all the campers will be either male or female-identifying. Staff and counselors never shower at the same time as campers, they will only assist campers if needed.
The Pool House has multi-stall showers and toilets. There are barriers with curtains. The showers have a double curtain for extra privacy. We ask those showering to open the shower curtains when they are done. Closed shower curtains mean it is in use.
It is in our future plans to get locking doors on all showers and toilets.
What will supervision look like?
At camp there is a 2:1 rule, where a counselor or staff member is never alone with a camper for everyone’s safety. If a camper needs assistance in the bathroom, there will be 2 people there to assist. If a camper is independent in the bathroom, the counselor/staff members will be close by outside the door.
What if gender-inclusive bathrooms are new to me?
Please email us and ask any questions you may have. We are very excited about this move and
are happy to provide more information and answer questions!
Email Savannah Buck at savannah@mhkc.org