A section of alumni members and faculty of Kongunadu Arts and Science College, Coimbatore, has raised objections to a proposal to include an elective subject titled SOGIESC (SOGIESC – Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, Gender Expression and Sex Characteristics) Studies replacing ‘Women’s Rights’ in the list of non-major electives, from 2024-25.
The college is looking forward to getting the approval of the Boards of Studies later this week, for the elective to be included in the curriculum, under government-aided and self-financing streams, it is learnt.
Any subject related to, or focusing on sex education needs to be introduced very cautiously and after ensuring its necessity as the contents of the paper may have serious consequences/impacts on young minds, said K. Ramya, an alumna of the college.
SOGIESC Studies will include studies of issues involving, and the rights of LGBTQIA+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer/Questioning, Intersex) communities, and the study of other sexual orientations such as asexual, non-binary and pansexual.
Neither the T.N. State Council for Higher Education (TANSCHE) nor the Bharathiar University (to which the college is affiliated) has prescribed or made the teaching of this content mandatory, the alumni and the faculty have said in separate representations to the college management, according to M. Ananda Kumar, another alumnus.
It has also not been made mandatory by the University Grants Commission or the Higher Education Department, they said, seeking an intervention from Bharathiar University, said S. Shanjana, also a former student.
According to K. Krisnhnaveni, assistant professor of chemistry at the college, the removal of the Women’s Rights paper at a time when the government was scaling up the enrolment ratio of girls in higher education was “highly objectionable”. Under no circumstances can one justify the importance of a paper on SOGIESC studies, she said.
Responding to the objections, college principal M. Lekeshmanaswamy said the course was proposed in the Curriculum Development Committee meeting on January 23, 2023, with acceptance of all heads of departments (HODs). No objections were raised by the HODs, both aided and self-financing and they were part of the deliberations. Further, in the Academic Council Meeting on June 13, it was recommended by experts that SOGIESC course could be included form academic year 2024-25 after preparation of the study material.
“Kongunadu Arts and Science College is one of the most inclusive campuses in T.N. supporting transgender individuals in education and employment. Scholarships, free seats, employment and safe spaces are being created, and the college wants to raise awareness among other educational institutions about the importance of LGBTQIA+ inclusion in academia,” the principal said.
The Tamil Nadu government had also informed the Madras High Court that laws to protect rights of these community members would be announced and put into force, the principal said, requesting the alumni and the opposing faculty to furnish any notification or circular from higher authorities that prohibits such a course from being offered to students as an elective.
