CU 鶹ӰԺ recognizes that your legal informationdoesn't always alignwith how youidentify. To foster diversity, equity and inclusion,CU systemsallowyou to indicateyour gender identity, name pronunciation, preferred name, pronouns and/or sexual orientation.
If provided, your personalinformation is protected by theFamily Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and access to it is restricted to staff who have alegitimate educational interestand have completed student data privacy training.
Gender Identity
Gender identity reflects one's innermost concept of self as man, woman,blend of bothor neither. In other words, it's how individuals perceive themselves and what they call themselves. One's gender identity can be the sameor different than their legal sex.
At CU 鶹ӰԺ, you may select fromthe following genders: agender/do not gender identify, cisgender, gender queer/non-conforming, man/male, non-binary, not listed, trans female/trans woman, trans male/trans man, two spirit and woman/female.
The collection and use of gender identity data at CU 鶹ӰԺ is a new and evolving practice. Campus officials are analyzing systems and business processes that currently store and use student's legal sex to determine appropriate and/or required use.
Please note that some campus departments or programs may ask you to provide gender identity information separately, because their systems don't interface with the main student system.
While legal sexdata is required for compliance with select business processes, it's always optional for you to identify your gender identity. You may add, edit or delete this data at any time.
Data Privacy & Security
Gender identity data, including information about individuals who identify as LGBTQ, is protected by theFamily Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).
Access to this informationthroughuniversity systems is restricted to staff who have a legitimate educational interest and have completed student data privacy training.
Campus officials will primarily use this information in aggregate to make informed, data-driven decisions related to strategic resources and student support.
Inquiries & Concerns
If you believe your gender identity information is being accessed or used inappropriately, and/or if you have suggestions for appropriate use, please report your concerns or recommendations to the following CU 鶹ӰԺ office(s) as appropriate:
- Center for Inclusion and Social Change (support, training, on-campus resources)
- Office of Institutional Equity and Compliance (discrimination and harassment reports)
- Office of the Registrar (suggestions or concerns related to data usage)
To add, edit or delete your gender identity (optional):
- Log in to .
- Select your profile at the top right.
- Select “Account Settings,” then “Profile and Privacy.”
- In themenu, select "Gender Identity."
- Follow the steps on the page to add, edit or delete that information.
Name Pronunciation
CU 鶹ӰԺ offersNameCoach, a tool that allows youto record the preferred pronunciation of yournamefor use by faculty, staff and other students.
Even if you choose not to record your own name, use NameCoach to listen to your classmates' and instructors' recordings so you can learn how to pronounce theirs.
Once you've recorded your name or provided the phonetic spelling, thatinformation will be available to instructors and students through Canvas. NameCoach is also available in Outlook.
In the future, we plan to integrate the pronunciation tool into additional on-campus systems, including class listings, the campus directory and commencement proceedings.
Visit OIT's website for instructions on and .
Preferred Name
A preferred name is one that differs from your legal name.
Ifyou'd rather be referred to on campusby a nickname, professional name, anglicized name or name that better aligns with your gender identity, you may identifyit in the CU 鶹ӰԺ system.
The CU 鶹ӰԺ system currentlylimits the length of your preferred first and middle names to 30 characters each.
The university reserves the right to remove any preferred name that is deemed to be inappropriate, derogatory or misrepresentative (e.g., is being used in an attempt to avoid legal obligations or confuse their identity with that of another). If that happens, youmay be subject to disciplinary action in accordance with the Student Code of Conduct or by the Office of Institutional Equity and Compliance.
Where technically and legally feasible, preferred names are displayed instead of primary (legal) names in university systems and recordsand are used to identify students in the classroom and other places on campus.
After designating a preferred name, you'll see it used in the following university systems and records:
- Class and grade rosters (used by faculty)
- Advisee rosters (used by advisors; also displays primary name)
- CU guest access system(used by your authorized guests)
- Unofficial transcripts
- Degree audits
- Buff Portal
- Learning management systems(Canvas)
- Housing systems (StarRez)
- Health & Wellness Services
Preferred names are not used in communications to parents, guardians or otherthird-party recipients.
Most CU 鶹ӰԺ Systems & Records
To add, edit or delete a preferred name (optional):
- Log in to .
- Select your profile at the top right.
- Select “Account Settings,” then “Profile and Privacy.”
- In the menu, select "Names."
- Select "Preferred" to expand that panel.
- Follow the steps on the page to add, edit or delete that information.
- If you haven't set a preferred name, select "Add a new name"; if you have set one, select "Edit"to modify it or "Delete"to remove it.
Additional Systems & Records
The following university systems and records require additional steps to update your preferredname.
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Email
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Display Name: To change the name displayed in the "from" line of email messages,see OIT's貹.
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Alias: To request an update to your email alias (the part of your email address before @), contact OIT at help@colorado.edu or 303-735-HELP.
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Campus Directory (online student lookup):The campus directory publishes the display name from the Identity Management system; see .
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Buff OneCard: If you've set yourpreferred namebefore yourBuff OneCardis issued,then your Buff OneCard will display your preferred name. Otherwise, your Buff OneCard will be issued with your primary name (seecolorado.edu/buffonecard for a timeline of when cards are issued). If you've established a preferred name after receiving your Buff OneCard, you may contact the Buff OneCard office atboc@colorado.eduregarding a replacement card.
Note: due to the encoding on your Buff OneCard, if your first and last name is greater than 35 characters, this will create issues when you swipe your card to access on-campus resources. You may emailboc@colorado.edufor recommendations on how to handle this situation.
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IdentiKey username/CU login name: Your IdentiKey username iscomposed of the first two letters of your legal first name, the first two letters of your last name, and four random digits. If you have a new legal name or have privacy concerns, contact theto request a change to the letters in your username. See also OIT's .
Contact the Office of the Registrar for instructions on updating your preferredname in university systems and processes not listed here.
For recommendations on how to address preferred name with your instructors, see theCenter for Inclusion & Social Change's Names/Gender Markers On Campus貹.
Pronouns
Personal pronouns are used inplace of specific nouns for people, places and things.For example, we refer to a group of peoplewith the pronouns they (subjective case), them (objective case) and their (possessive case).
To referto an individual, it's respectfulto use the pronouns they prefer. For example, someone who identifies as transgender may prefer the pronouns ze, zir and zirs, rather than those associated with their legal sex.
At CU 鶹ӰԺ, you may select fromthe following pronouns: she/her/hers, he/him/his, they/them/theirs,ze/zir/zirs and xe/xer/xers.
Student-identified pronouns appear in class, grade and advising rosters and systems.
Although CU doesn't consider pronouns to be highly sensitive data, only authorized school officials (e.g., staff, advisors and others with a legitimate educational interest) have access to view them.
If a third party contacts CU and requests your pronouns, we won't release that information unless you've provided explicit consent for us to do so.
To add, edit or delete your pronouns (optional):
- Log in to .
- In the navigation menu on the left, select"Account," then "NameCoach."
- If NameCoach requests access to your account, select "Authorize."
- Under "Your recording for Name Profile," click "Edit your info."
- Under "Pronoun," click to select your pronouns. (If you've already identified your pronouns, click them to open the drop-down menu.)
- To submit your pronouns without recording your name pronunciation, change the recording radio button selection to "Web Recorder," then click "Submit and Finish."
- Log in to .
- Select your profile at the top right.
- Select "Name Pronunciation & Pronouns."
- If NameCoach requests access to your account, select "Authorize."
- Access your editing panel:
- If you haven't identified your pronouns yet, you'll automatically land on the editing panel.
- If you've already identified your pronouns, you'll land on your NameCoach dashboard. Under "Your Recordings," click "Edit your info."
- Under "Pronoun," click to select your pronouns. (If you've already identified your pronouns, click them to open the drop-down menu.)
- To submit your pronouns without recording your name pronunciation, change the recording radio button selection to "Web Recorder," then click "Submit."
Communication and training around the use of pronoun information is evolving on campus.
If a faculty or staff member refers to you using incorrect pronouns,it is appropriatetotell them you've provided your pronouns to CU and that the Office of the Registrarcan help them locate that information.
For recommendations on how to address pronounswith your instructors, see theCenter for Inclusion & Social Change's Names/Gender Markers On Campusand Pronouns pages.
Sexual Orientation
Sexual orientation is used to describe a person'ssexuality with respect to his or her sexual desire.
At CU 鶹ӰԺ, you may select fromthe following sexual orientations: asexual and/or aromantic, bisexual/fluid, gay, heterosexual/straight, lesbian, pansexual, queer andnot listed.
The collection and use of sexual orientation data at CU 鶹ӰԺ is a new and evolving practice.Campus officials will primarily use this information in aggregate to make informed, data-driven decisions related to strategic resources and student support.
Some campus departments or programs may ask you to provide gender identity orientation information separately, because their systems don't interface with the main student system.
Data Privacy & Security
Sexual orientation data, including information about individuals who identify as LGBTQ, is protected by theFamily Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Access to this informationthroughuniversity systems is restricted to staff who have a legitimate educational interest and have completed student data privacy training.
Inquiries & Concerns
If you believe your sexual orientation information is being accessed or used inappropriately,and/or if you have suggestions for appropriate use, please report your concerns or recommendations to the following CU 鶹ӰԺ office(s) as appropriate:
- Center for Inclusion and Social Change (support, training, on-campus resources)
- Office of Institutional Equity and Compliance (discrimination and harassment reports)
- Office of the Registrar (suggestions or concerns related to data usage)
To add, edit or delete your sexual orientation (optional):
- Log in to .
- Select your profile at the top right.
- Select “Account Settings,” then “Profile and Privacy.”
- In the pop-up menu, select "Sexual Orientation."
- Follow the steps on the page to add, edit or delete yoursexual orientation.
Photo ID
Photo identification or photo ID is an identity document that includes a photograph of the holder, usually only their face.
At CU 鶹ӰԺ, your photo ID is your Buff OneCard. It’s considered directory information and is part of your academic record.
Buff OneCard photos are used by various campus systems and serve as your profile image in Canvas, where instructors and classmates can view it, and in class and advisor rosters.
Buff OneCard Office staff may release a student’s ID to authorized university departments or the public after a request has been made in writing and reviewed by committee.
Currently enrolled students may withhold disclosure of public directory information under FERPA by electing full privacy status.
You can update your photo ID through the .