Straight, bisexual, gender queer and transsexual were among the terms used to identify a group of UW students last night at the annual Guess the Straight Person panel event in the Terry Hall main lounge.

The National Residence Hall Honorary (NRHH) collaborated with the Lander Hall Resident Advisor Diversity Committee to arrange the program, in hopes of bringing attention to the various sexual orientations across the UW community.

Hosted by freshman Wade Caves and senior M'Liss DeWald, the panel consisted of 10 UW students who were presented in front of an audience with the purpose of allowing the audience to guess his or her sexuality through a series of questions. In doing so, the program brought about discussion on common sexual taboos.

"I thought [the program] helped reveal some of the stereotypes people have toward gender and sexual orientation," freshman and panelist Lila Zucker said. "It shows that often times, [students] have to fit into little boxes that people prescribe for us."

Questions regarding the panelists' personal hygiene habits, undergarment preference, favorite sports team and opinions about hotel heiress Paris Hilton were brought up by the packed, enthusiastic audience to identify the panelists' sexualities.

"The big thing was to cover points that extended beyond not just gays, lesbians, straight and bisexual because it is much more complicated," said junior and NRHH Director Brandon Knox.

Among the panel, sexual orientation preferences included straight, bisexual, transgender, transsexual, gay, lesbian, asexual, two-spirit and gender queer.

"In past years, the Guess the Straight Person Panel was primarily focused on gay, lesbian, straight and bisexual orientations," Dewald said. "This year, [NRHH] wanted to include more identities and expand on that. Sexuality is more than just those four identities."

Dewald also said the event has become increasingly popular since its debut five years ago. The venue was moved from a small meeting room to a large lounge area.

"I'm really happy with the turnout and audience participation," Knox said. "I think I'm most excited to see that this program has a tradition for drawing a huge number of people wanting to engage in this kind of discussion."

Toward the end of the program, the audience had the opportunity to guess the panelists' sexual orientations before each panel member revealed the truth. Following the revelation, Caves and Dewald led the audience in a discussion of the sexual stereotypes in the UW community.

"I think it was a fun, sensible way to talk about these different orientations that are out there, and it was done in a comfortable environment," Zucker said. "Sexual orientation is a part of who we are, but we are not defined by that."

As a crucial learning and social experience, the program is likely to continue next year at the UW.

"The key point is awareness," Knox said. "The program is meant to get people thinking about sexuality and orientation. I want [students] to come away from this program able to continue the discussion with themselves about sexuality and equal rights laws. I hope people take conversations started here, think about it and have conversations with friends. Without starting these conversations, it is hard to move toward stability and social justice — it's hard to move forward."

Reach reporter Vicky Yan at news@thedaily.washington.edu.