The Advantages and Disadvantages of Lean Six Sigma

The Advantages and Disadvantages of Lean Six Sigma 1. Introduction While businesses seek for ways to survive and also to remain competitive in a changing global environment, they either choose adopting business excellence models or continuous improvement philosophies to guide them in the journey of organisational excellence. Lean Six Sigma is a new breadth in the area of continuous improvement, which constitutes strengths and key focuses of Lean and Six Sigma approaches. The rest of the paper is organized as follows: section 2 provides an insight on the concepts Lean,Six Sigma and Lean Six Sigma. Then relevant examples of Lean Six Sigma in manufacturing and service sector will be presented in section 3.The advantages and disadvantages of Lean Six Sigma will be discussed in section 4. Lastly, an overall recap on the subject is done. 2. Literature review The objective of this section is to provide an insight of the Lean Six Sigma by briefly outlining the concepts behind Lean and Six Sigma, the two ingredients of this blend, along with their strengths and criticisms. 2.1 Lean Approach Lean manufacturing, developed by Toyota Motor Corporation in 1950s, has been adopted and adapted by many companies (Finch,2006). It then extended into a concept of Lean thinking that was introduced by Womack and Jones.The current state of Lean is called Lean enterprise that reaches beyond the shop floor and encompasses various departments within the organisation as a whole (Papadopoulou and Ozbayrak,2005). Dale (2007) defines Lean as a way of thinking, consisting of a set of methods and operating principles to identify and eliminate waste in business processes (Dale,2007,p.565). While for Ferguson (2007) Lean is a change that takes an organisation from where it currently stands and move to a desired state. Briefly, the objective of Lean is to eliminate all types of unnecessary waste by managing resources depending on customers needs and at the lowest possible costs (Andersson et al. 2006). In other words, doing more with less (Thomas,2009). Principles There are 5 principles of Lean; providing right product or service for the right price and time to customer,identification of value stream,smooth flow of processes,only customers demand trigger the action and lastly continuously improve to value stream in pursuit of perfection (Dale,2007). The first step when implementing Lean is to identify value-added and non-value added processes (Pepper and Spedding, 2009) by Value stream mapping(VMS) which is a qualitative analysis tool. Other tools and techniques from the Lean Toolkit such as Single Minute Exchange of Die, 5S, TPM etc. are used in order to achieve above-mentioned principles. Whereas, it should be noted that using these tools and techniques only, does not guarantee a Lean organisation (Bendell,2006). Criticism In the literature, there are many criticism topics on Lean where the most popular ones are about its universality and social aspects. It has long been argued that Lean is not flexible (Andersson et al.,2006) and not applicable to all environments but only to high volume-low variety (HVLV) operations. Authors like Arnheiter and Maleyeff (2005) define this view as one of the key misconceptions whereas Pepper and Spedding (2010) refer it as a limited success of Lean in their work. There is a common misconception caused by the misunderstanding of the concept that Lean means laying-off people (Arnheiter and Maleyeff,2005). However, Flinchbaugh (2001), Arnheiter and Maleyeff (2005) stress that Lean does not mean less people but using people in a smarter way. David Meier (2001) who is a Senior Lean Manufacturing Consultant, argues that Lean creates a stressful, uncomfortable environment due to sense of urgency while ensuring an immediate response to customers. On the other hand, Papadopoulou and Ozbayrak (2005), and Williams et al. (1992) take the opposite view. 2.2 Six Sigma Approach Six Sigma,which is developed by Motorola and popularised after the adoption of General Electric (Finch,2006) aims at value creation and improving the process through variation reduction (Dale et al,2007).Six Sigma inherits principles from TQM (Arnheiter and Maleyeff, 2005) while setting focus on customer satisfaction. In statistical terms, the goal is to achieve a defect rate of 3.4 per million (Pepper and Spedding,2010). This structured,top-down approach has a positive impact on business in monetary terms since it reduces risk and costs (Slack et al., 2006) especially related with scrap and rework. Due to realised benefits, many organisations have adopted Six Sigma today. Principles DMAIC(Design,Measure,Analysis,Improve and Control) is the most commonly used 5-stage methodology which is employed to achieve minimum defects and to reduce the variation throughout the processes in an organisation (Bhuiyan and Baghel,2005). The approach is on project basis and these projects are carried out by trained supervisors called Black belts and Green belts (Bendell,2006). Criticism Six Sigma has long been seen as a statistics-heavy, technical approach to process control (Pepper,Spedding, 2009, p.145). Bendell(2006) supports this view and criticises Six Sigma due to its tendency towards being a complex approach. The training of Black Belts and Green Belts is required in order to be able to use statistical tools and handle the projects effectively. Senapati (2004) mentions that these trainings and solutions to problems can be costly for many businesses. Bendell (2006) states that there is no formal link to policy deployment in Six Sigma. Since Six Sigma projects are chosen depending on their cost-effectiveness, it is possible for this cost-down approach dominates the primary customer driven focus. and may shift it to cost-down possible to be dominated by immediate cost down driver (Bendell,2006). 2.3 Similarities and Differences between Lean and Six Sigma: The point of intersection -overlapping areas(kà ¼me Ã…Å ¸ekli) The intersection point:Similarities-The area of convergence Both approaches have related operating philosophies,performance objectives,work focus,team approach and improvement focus (Watson,2003). Lean Six Sigma Since Lean Sigma or Lean Six Sigma (LSS) is a relatively new management trend, there is not much literature available comparing to the information and facts found about Lean and Six Sigma alone. Recently, many companies have started to combine continuous improvement programs together by utilising the best of each initiative to get an extensive and more effective program than individual programs (Bhuiyan and Baghel, 2005). Thus, Lean Six Sigma is evolved as a hybrid methodology that encompasses benefits from both Lean and Six Sigma (Bhuiyan and Baghel, 2005). Watson (2003) defines the merge between Lean and Six Sigma as a marriage of necessity. The objective of this integrated approach is boosting quality and reducing costs through elimination of waste and variation reduction (Kamensky,2008). The origins of Lean and Six Sigma come from different roots however they both have an aim of improving the processes of a business. It has been shown that the benefits achieved with LSS cannot be achieved when applying Lean or Six Sigma solely (Bhuiyan and Baghel, 2005). This data-driven approach enables sustainable competitive advantage if properly applied (Burgess,2009). In the report of John Maleyeff (2007) to IBM Business of Government, LSS is defined as: Lean Six Sigma encompasses many common features of Lean and Six Sigma such as an emphasis on customer satisfaction,a culture of continuous improvement,the search for root causes,and comprehensive employee involvement.In each case,a high degree of training and education takes place,from upper management to shop floor. It is now being realised by many businesses that Lean is more powerful and meaningful when combined with Six Sigma and vice versa (Watson,2003). Many businesses in both manufacturing and service sector including GlaxoSmithKline,Xerox and Dell turned to Lean Six Sigma and achieved significant benefits (Neuhaus and Guarraia,2007). There has to be a careful blend of Lean and Six Sigma that brings two extremes into equilibrium. One end is becoming too Lean thus being very responsive to the market whereas the other end is too much focus on reducing variation beyond the expectations of customers resulting in unnecessary resources being wasted to achieve zero variation (Pepper and Spedding 2010). The optimum point is where market share is maintained by creating sufficient value in the eyes of a customer and the process variation is kept inside acceptable levels to achieve lower costs without over-engineering (Pepper and Spedding 2010). Principles George (2002) states the principles of LSS as the activities that cause the customers critical-to-quality issues and create the longest time delays in any process offer the greatest opportunity for improvement in cost,quality,capital,and lead time. Focus is on customer needs as in Six Sigma and also on speed as in Lean, in order to be responsive to market by shortening lead times. It should be noted that there is no standard framework of LSS that businesses can take it and apply step by step for a specific problem. In other words, there is no one fit for all since it depends on the situation and also the environment within a company. Nevertheless, there have been some attempts regarding different ways of implementing LSS in the literature and industry. Some authors argue that it would be more effective when Lean is used as a first step smoothen the process by eliminating waste and then run the DMAIC cycle. Another view is to implement Lean tools within DMAIC cycle as it can be seen in the work of Kumar et al (2006). Thomas et al. (2009) also proposed a similar framework where basic Lean principles are integrated in each phase of DMAIC method. Criticism Since it is a new breadth in the area of management, LSS has become the target of criticism in the literature. Bendell (2006) suggests a single approach that effectively combines the two philosophies rather than an alleged combination (Pepper and Spedding,2010). Another criticism is about the compatibility of these two approaches. Mika (2006) argues that Six Sigma cannot be embraced by the workers in the shop floor since it requires an effective use of statistical tools and techniques unlike Lean. In contrast, George (2003) outlines several points that Lean compliments Six Sigma and vice versa. Furthermore, since LSS is an integration of two different approaches there is a possibility that one dominates other throughout implementation. Some authors and practitioners see this new continuous improvement initiative as the latest management fad. However, Westwood and Silvester (2007) argue that these approaches such as Six Sigma, Lean or Lean Six Sigma are not fads but they are vital for improving and sustaining competitive advantage. As opposed to views about the negative social aspects of LSS, Burgess (2009) strongly disagrees that it does not support creativity and turns people into robots mainly due to increased workload. It has been argued that the continuous improvement initiatives including LSS are not working well in small-to-medium-sized enterprises (SME) due to lack of critical success factors such as commitment from top management, lack of understanding of tools and techniques and lack of financial capability (Thomas et al. 2009). 3. Findings In this section, an attempt is made to present examples regarding the application of Lean Six Sigma in both manufacturing and service sectors. Manufacturing firms were the early adopters of LSS. Then, it was embraced by the service sector in the 1990s (Kamensky,2008). Halliburton, which is one of the worlds largest oilfield providers, began to implement Lean Six Sigma in 2004, in response to the growth in demand with the purpose of being able to respond customer needs by increasing efficiency and improving customer service (Atkinson,2009). The amount that they used to produce in the manufacturing plants is tripled as a result of reduced cycle times and high utilisation of their equipments. Halliburton also encouraged its supply base to adopt the same strategy so that a synchronisation can be achieved in terms of being more responsive to the market (Atkinson,2009). The main reason to implement LSS approach in Caterpillar Inc. was to gain competitive advantage by breakthrough improvements. As a result of innovative products, their revenues had grown by 80 percent (Byrne et al.2007). Another notable example would be Xerox Corp., which was having problems with its long filing time for patents so first of all the root causes of delays were identified. To eliminate these non-value added steps, Xerox Lean Six Sigma team carried out DMAIC, and came up with a solution which reduced the cycle time of 64 days and saved $400,000 in overall time (Xerox Corp. Brochure,2009). National Grid, who is a client of GE Fleet Services in the UK listened to the voice of its customers and applied Lean Six Sigma to reduce the time spent running (issuing and managing) order prompts (Fraser and Fraser,2008).This project is an example of a well-applied Lean Six Sigma method in a service sector in terms of achieving expected results in a timely fashion (Fraser and Fraser,2008). In the work of Kumar et al. (2006), the implementation of LSS in a die casting manufacturer is resulted in a significant decrease in the number of defects occurred in the final product and an overall savings of around $140 000 per year. Apart from the success stories, National Health Service Modernisation Agency (MA) in UK, is a well-known failure case of LSS. In 2004, Six Sigma together with Lean implemented in NHS to improve processes and quality (Proudlove and Moxham et al., 2008). Whereas, due to lack of well-designed processes, lack of support and unclear link between business strategy, it resulted in failure (Montero,2010). 4. Discussion In light of the findings and review of literature, the advantages and disadvantages of LSS will be discussed in this section. It is believed that this integrated approach will bring better results when the structured and systematic approach of Six Sigma came together with the agility of Lean with a focus of customer in the centre (Antony et al,2003). Despite some views arguing its effectiveness, in theory, by integrating the best of Lean and Six Sigma, the outcome would be satisfactory or even delightful both from the organisations and the customers point of view that creates a win-win situation. According to Arnheiter and Maleyeff (2005), if Lean firms adopt Six Sigma principles, costs incurred by defective products such as rework or scrap costs and the related overhead costs can be reduced. Likewise, when Six Sigma companies adopt Lean principles, faster lead times and deliveries can be achieved. Antony et al. (2003) outlines four major benefits of implementing LSS as; becoming faster and more responsive to customers, striving for Six Sigma capability level, operating at lowest costs of poor quality, achieving greater flexibility throughout the business (Antony et al.,2003,p.41). Companies that have successfully implemented Lean Six Sigma have gained considerable benefits in terms of increased shareholder value and market share. Based on the examples of several companies given in the Findings section, these benefits are provided in dollars. On the other hand, a recent BainCo.survey of 184 companies, shows that 80 percent is dissatisfied with the results they got from their LSS efforts because they have not achieved their goals in both monetary terms and level of improvement (Neuhaus and Guarraia,2007). Because it brought many advantages to leading firms, it does not imply that every attempt will be success or that every firm is ready for this initiative. Basu (2001) outlines the difficulty of sustaining a process improvement program even it may be successful in the beginning. Thus, this situation causes employee layoffs and a decrease in employee morale (Basu,2001). Despite being a powerful engine for businesses, the necessity of high skills to be able to use relevant tools and techniques is seen as one of the weaknesses of LSS (Montero,2010). This factor is seen as a critical prerequisite for the successful implementation of LSS. Though,the training and necessary investment can be costly to some companies. Therefore, this situation may limit its applicability. Unless a necessary change within the business is done including cultural aspects, mindset of employees together with the full commitment of top management, the result will be a failure. 5. Conclusion Many businesses in various sectors have recently started to adopt LSS either as a result of an external pressure or due to inadequate results achieved with their current methodology applied (internal need). Benchmarking plays a significant role in creating a trendy environment in the market where companies follow the giants and trying to adopt the best practice in order not to be obsolete. Although, this integration is seen as a fad by some authors and practitioners The concept was emerged as a response to market requirement. This merge between initiatives Regardless of the continuous improvement strategy that is chosen to follow, there is a common ground that no positive results can be gained without an adequate support, and attention across the business. There are still some uncovered areas of LSS for further research or no one knows what is next.

Jean-Paul Sartre: On the Other Side of Despair Essay examples -- Biogr

Jean-Paul Sartre: On the Other Side of Despair    In an age of modern pessimism and inauthentic, insignificant existence, Jean-Paul Sartre clearly stands out amongst the masses as a leading intellectual, a bastion of hope in the twentieth century. Confronting anguish and despair, absurdity and freedom, nihilism and transcendence, "Sartre totalized the twentieth century... in the sense that he was responsive with theories to each of the great events he lived through" as Arthur C. Danto commented (Marowski and Matuz 371). As a philosopher, dramatist, novelist, essayist, biographer, short story writer, journalist, editor, scriptwriter, and autobiographer, his impact is simply undeniable. Between his expansive body of literary work and the philosophical ideas expressed within his words, Jean-Paul Sartre was one of the leading minds of recent times and perhaps the father of existentialism as we know it. Jean-Paul Sartre was born in Paris on June 21, 1905. Due to his father’s early death, he and his mother lived with his grandfather, Charles Schweitzer. As Sartre notes in his 1964 autobiography Les mots (The Words), Schweitzer was a professor of German and instilled in him a great passion for literature in his early years (Marowski and Matuz 371). Growing up as the only child in a household where the adults doted on him, historians explain that, "Sartre perceived hypocrisy in his middle-class environment as manifested in his family’s penchant for self-indulgence and role-playing" and he therefore "held anti-bourgeois sentiments throughout his life" (Marowski and Matuz 371). While attending the Écà ´le Normale Supà ©riuere in Paris, Sartre met fellow philosophy student Simone de Beauvoir and then formed what was to be a lifelong per... ...d Other Stories. By Jean-Paul Sartre. New York: MJF Books, 1975. v-xiv. Crosby, Donald A. "Nihilism." Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Ed. Edward Craig. 8 vols. London and New York: Routledge, 1998. Howells, Christina. "Sartre, Jean-Paul." Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Ed. Edward Craig. 8 vols. London and New York: Routledge, 1998. "Jean-Paul Sartre". Connect.net Home Page. 2000 Online. Internet. Available http://www.connect.net/ron/sartre.html 19 July 2000. Marowski, Daniel G. and Roger Matuz, eds. "Jean-Paul (Charles Aymard) Sartre." Contemporary Literary Criticism. Vol. 52. Detroit: Gale Research Inc., 1989. "Sartre Cortege Plus Thousands End in Crush at the Cemetery." The Boston Globe April  1980.  Ã‚  The   Boston Globe Online. Internet. 19 July 2000. Turnbull, Neil. Get a Grip on Philosophy. Essex, UK: Ivy Press/Time Life Books, 1998.

Sample Cscp Questions

Module: 1 Question 1 All of the following are key components of the definition of supply chain management, EXCEPT: A. monitoring of supply chain activities with the objective of creating net value B. synchronizing of supply and demand C. building a competitive infrastructure D. selecting suppliers Question 2 Which of the following is a key supply chain process? A. forecast B. source C. benchmark D. analyze Question 3 Supply chains create value by: A. increasing profitability and return to shareholders B. providing multiple variants of products for customers C. making transaction processing more efficientD. developing more accurate forecasts Question 4 Which of the following is not an â€Å"entity† of a supply chain? A. producer B. supplier C. customer D. manager Question 5 Which of the following describes the typical flow of cash in a supply chain? A. customer to producer to supplier B. producer to customer to supplier C. supplier to producer to customer D. customer to supplie r to producer Question 6 Suppliers provide all of the following to a supply chain, EXCEPT: A. materials B. energy C. services D. demand Question 7 All of the following describe a supply chain flow, EXCEPT: A. he flow of physical materials and services from supplier to other entities B. the flow of cash upstream to raw material suppliers C. the flow of information within a supply chain D. the flow of employees from one department to another Question 8 Reverse supply chain is employed for the following reasons, EXCEPT: A. repairs B. disposal C. recycling D. quality control Question 9 Tier 2 suppliers: A. provide materials or services to suppliers of the producer B. provide lower quality raw materials C. serve only as a back-up to Tier 1 suppliers D. supply raw materials to the secondary products of a company Question 10Which of the following best describes the term lateral supply chain? A. processes are no longer performed internally and become dependent on outsourced collaborations B . the supply chain grows incrementally C. a supply chain that is applicable in various industries D. a supply chain that holds significant centralized control of processes Module: 2 Question 1 What condition describes the magnification of demand fluctuations up the supply chain? A. bullwhip effect B. demand variability C. exponential smoothing D. square root rule Question 2 Each of the terms below are sources of demand variability, EXCEPT: A. ompetition B. seasonality C. life cycle trends D. manufacturing delays Question 3 What is one cause of the bullwhip effect? A. lead times B. seasonality C. weather D. quality control Question 4 Each of the following is an approach to avoiding multiple forecasts, EXCEPT: A. information sharing B. system integration C. vendor-managed inventory (VMI) D. transactional processing Question 5 What is one way to reduce the contribution of lead time to the bullwhip effect? A. reducing order batch size B. time management C. prioritization D. cost reducti on Question 6 Which of the following is true about forecasting?A. It should be done once a year B. It should be conducted by the supply chain leadership C. It is more accurate for groups than for individual items D. It is better to under-forecast rather than over-forecast Question 7 Independent demand is best defined by: A. demand for the finished product B. demand forecast of an unbiased third party provider C. demand that is based on actual orders D. demand for manufacturing raw materials Question 8 When do corporations employ qualitative forecasting? A. When products are low value B. When products are at the end of life stage C. For new product introductions D.When reliable historical sales data is available Question 9 Intrinsic forecasting focuses on: A. data about demand for the product itself B. variables that affect the demand of the product C. leveraging the collective experience possessed by employees D. the inherent value of the product to the customer Question 10 Which of the following is true about naive forecasting? A. assumes the demand will be consistent from one period to the next B. makes educational guesses on demand for a new product C. request input from employees outside of the supply chain D. it is an error prone forecast Module: 3 Question 1Customer relationship management (CRM) is best described as: A. a focus on managing long term supplier relationships B. a marketing philosophy based on putting the customer first C. managing customers to promote your products D. transactional guidelines when dealing with customers Question 2 One general goal of supplier relationship management (SRM) is: A. ensure mutual profitability while meeting customer needs B. manage supplier costs C. build relationships with as many suppliers as possible D. improve negotiation process Question 3 What impact has the focus on CRM and SRM had on business mindset? A. lower costs B. reater integration C. shorter cycle times D. focus on bottom-line results Question 4 What is a key reason for the move to greater integration with suppliers? A. consolidation of the industry B. technology transfer C. improved relationships D. reduce complexity Question 5 All of the following are typical requirements when implementing CRM and SRM EXCEPT: A. new job definitions B. new organization structure C. new corporate vision D. new technology platform Question 6 Independent organizations that cooperate based on mutual values and act as a single entity is called a: A. lateral organization B. integrated supply chain C. ean supply chain D. virtual organization Question 7 What role has technology played in CRM? A. It has made it easier for business to gather information on customer buying habits B. It has spawned new software companies C. It has changed the roles of participants D. It has reduced the complexity of the supply chain Question 8 Technology has played all of the following roles in SRM, EXCEPT: A. Systems can show current status of operations B. Suppliers can communicate with customers in real time C. Transactional processes can be automated D. Security enhancements now effectively segregate enterprise business processes Question 9Based on the APICS definition of SRM, a firm will implement this philosophy with: A. all tier 1 type suppliers B. a selected group of suppliers C. all suppliers D. a few suppliers who are deemed indispensable Question 10 A firm that has a customer first marketing philosophy practices: A. CRM B. TPM C. SRM D. CTM Module: 4 Question 1 Which one is NOT among the three largest companies presently providing ERP software: A. SAP B. Oracle C. Microsoft D. Sybase Question 2 All of the following are key characteristics of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems EXCEPT: A. odularized business applications B. common data source C. seamless integration enabling the flow of information throughout the firm D. normalized application structure Question 3 All of the following are key to maximizing the ROI of an ERP syst em EXCEPT: A. hiring skilled employees and providing adequate training B. system monitoring and constraint improvement C. early global launch D. business process mapping Question 4 The MOST significant characteristic of leadership in determining the value realized by an ERP system is: A. competence B. vision C. intelligence D. analytical strength Question 5A successful deployment of a fully integrated ERP system is a characteristic of a: A. Stage 1, functional focused supply chain B. Stage 2, internally integrated supply chain C. Stage 3, externally integrated supply chain D. Stage 4, cross-enterprise collaboration and optimized supply chain Question 6 What provides the foundation for a supply chain to move to Stage 3 and ultimately Stage 4 of supply chain development? A. MPS B. ERP C. DRP D. MRP Question 7 The ERP software design shift from proprietary, closed applications to web-based modules: A. increased user training requirements B. increased costs C. eased system implementatio nD. eased system integration with legacy and 3rd party systems Question 8 When selecting an ERP system, it is important to ensure the business model implicit in the system is: A. based on the industry standard B. robust C. aligned with your business model D. scalable Question 9 What percentage of your required functionality should you expect in an industry leading ERP system off-the-shelf product: A. 50% B. 70% C. 80% D. 90% Question 10 What is MOST likely to increase if an off-the-shelf ERP system lacks at least 80% of your required functionality? A. training costs B. consulting costs C. license costs D. hardware costs

Transgender Bathrooms - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 3 Words: 853 Downloads: 5 Date added: 2019/07/03 Category Religion Essay Level High school Tags: Transgender Essay Did you like this example? Imagine waking up and not feeling equal to what you see in the mirror. How you are on the inside is the complete opposite of whats reflected back to you. Now imagine trying to use the bathroom that` equates with what you identify as and who you are and being turned out because who you are is making others uncomfortable. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Transgender Bathrooms" essay for you Create order Well I just described to you how 10% of just youth (The Williams Institute) or 150,000 children, feel everyday when they are forced to go to school and use the bathroom that doesnt reflect what they identify as. 62.1% (Human Rights Campaign) of those 150,000 kids are reporting mental health struggles daily. As a result of these feelings of not being supported and feeling alone, 41.8% (Human Rights Campaign) of that 150,000 children attempted suicide. But this can be turned around. These statistics of mental health woes and suicide attempts can be lowered. But it starts with changes to our schools. Gender neutral bathrooms need to be installed for the safety of the worlds youth, and to show that they are cared for. Even though many citizens feel these restrooms are not cost efficient, schools should contain gender neutral bathrooms because they would lower mental health issues in trans children, would help stop trans oppression, and they would help normalize being part of the LGBTQ+ community by breaking down stereotypes. To start with, multiple studies have led to prove that transgender and gender nonconforming youth suffer through depression and other mental health issues more when not supported in their community. Gender-neutral bathrooms would help that 62.1% (Human Rights Campaign) of trans youth lessen their suffering. But a big issue is that; many adults and parents belittle a transgender youths true feelings on a much deeper level. For many trans kids, this doubt and belittlement usually takes the form of parents saying that this is all a phase or even sending their kids to conversion therapy. (EYNKADOTPB). When schools, parents, and communities start to disregard or make less importance of their child or students feelings and brush-off someones identity, then its a perfect recipe for an unsupportive environment. Dr. Hansel Arroyo, director for the CTMS at Mount Sinai Medical even stated that; This isnt necessarily new data. Transgender youth and adults have higher rates of mood disorders, like depression and anxiety. He added that transgender people also have a much higher rate of suicide than people who correlate with their designated gender and are heterosexual (Health Day). But this hard path for transgender youth can be avoided; Socially transitioned transgender children who are supported in their gender identity have developmentally normative levels of depression and only minimal elevations in anxiety, suggesting that psychopathology is not inevitable in this group. (MHTGNYCWTP). If a school, university, or even a local restaurant started installing gender neutral bathrooms, k ids and young adults would understand that they are not alone, and shouldnt be ashamed of who they are. Gender-neutral bathrooms would make kids feel comfortable with themselves, which bring me to my next point. Having these non-gender restrooms in our schools can help stop trans oppression. Without schools showing their LGBTQ+ support or just simply being bystanders is contributing to trans oppression. Schools and communities cannot say they are in favor of something but not show any actions supporting that. And what better place to start than the restrooms? Using the restrooms is the great equalizer in all of us said by trans activist Janet Mock, and imagine having that basic right turned against you, just because of the way you look? In the Jim Crow era, bathrooms†along with water fountains and lunch counters†were places that were marked with white only signs. (EYNKADOTPB), and when you think about the Jim Crow era and whats happening now, the unfortunate reality is that both of these situations arent that different. But change is already starting to happen in one of New Jerseys neighboring states; Vermont; Lawmakers in the state of Vermont passed a bill recently that will re quire all single-user bathrooms in public buildings and other public places to be marked as gender-neutral. (Vermont passes gender-neutral bathroom bill). Change is possible, as proven by Vermont, but we first have to take the first step of action. Although many local and global citizens feel that gender-neutral bathrooms in schools would not be a smart way to spend money, schools should contain gender neutral bathrooms because the bathrooms would lower mental health disorders, end trans oppression, and non-gendered bathrooms would help to stop trans stereotypes. The biggest hurdle is the mass amount of fear of the unknown due to the lack of education. But evidence shows that change can happen, but only if we are all willing and lenient. All that is needed is to show your pride and support. Once again, imagine waking up and not feeling equal to what you see in the mirror. How you are on the inside is the complete opposite of whats reflected back to you. Now imagine using the bathroom that conforms to your identity, and feeling confident in who you are. Imagine being loved, supported, and accepted by your community.