Mak finds an aspect of his transformation humorously ironic: in his pursuit of a post-gender identity, he has “become the stereotypical male.”

“It is complicated because a lot of these things are rooted in biology,” he said. “We really don’t understand it … that even though we are ruled by all these biological factors that doesn’t mean that we are just one thing or another because everyone’s biological factors are wildly different.”

Mak plans on having chest reconstruction in May. He will have a full mastectomy and then have a plastic surgeon reshape the tissue to resemble a more masculine pectoral muscle. His insurance will not cover the procedure, but it may cover the hospital fees.

The University has taken steps in recognizing and accommodating freedom of gender expression. In 2007, it became one of 266 colleges in the United States to include gender identity and gender expression in its non-discrimination clause, according to the Transgender Law and Policy Institute.

But even with progressive policies, the University cannot ultimately control the way that people on campus view transgender students, some of whom have been the targets of hate crimes and discrimination. Many of them have not come out to their peers out of fear of how the people around them will respond. Others have not revealed their true sexual identity out of fear of losing their jobs.

Charlie and Mak have both experienced discrimination on the Michigan campus. Mak has been accosted on the street walking home at night and last winter, he was reproached for the bandages he uses to make his chest appear flatter when he went to the emergency room of University Hospital for minor injuries he received in a car crash.

In the words of Javier, “there is always more to be done” despite all the policies the University has adopted to accommodate transgender students. There could be more unisex bathrooms offered on campus, and the forms the University requires students and employees to fill out could include a blank space after gender that would allow people to fill out a true description of their gender expression if it falls outside the male and female dichotomy.

The University of Michigan Gay and Lesbian Association offers two $1,000 scholarships every year to students who demonstrate a commitment to gender and sexual orientation on campus. But Mak hopes to help establish the first scholarship at the University specifically geared toward transgender students.

When addressing a subject so closely tied to our self-perceptions and the perceptions others hold of us, anger and misunderstandings are common. Gender is an issue that is constantly discussed in our society, whether it be in politics where pundits argue if Hilary Clinton should wear pantsuits, in a clothing store where men discuss whether or not they should wear pink or in academia, where there is an entire department devoted to the study of women.

The discussion that transgender students put forth is a continuation of the greater gender dialogue, but one of a different flavor. A discussion on how we can better fulfill gender stereotypes becomes a discussion of how perceptions of gender can better suit our individual wants, needs and desires. But with progressive policy making and transgender activists, the University might see the day when it has achieved a truly “post-gender” campus.