History Of The LGBTQ Education Conference

[The Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) organization at my high school, which meets twice per month, generated a list of concerns that they shared with school administration. The focus was specifically about gender identity, the lack of support from school staff, and the daily scrutiny they face as a result of their sexual orientation and gender identity. Through collaboration with my colleagues it was evident that there had been an increase in teacher and student referrals surrounding gender identity. The feedback from GSA clearly identified that as a school we are not meeting the needs of our LGBT students and those struggling with sexual orientation. Members of the GSA clearly feel that teachers ignore negative comments like “gay” and “faggot” when they hear them in class, that teachers may not clearly understand gender neutral language, and that our Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) students do not feel safe and protected in school. Students needed support advocating for their right to use a restroom, correct pronoun, etc., requiring district, community, parent, and colleague

In the documentary, Noah, an 18 year old male to female transgender, many people in school ask question about her gender over and over again. Because of the harassment, many tend to drop out from school. “Harassment and bullying lead almost one-third of LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning) students to drop out of high school” (T Salazar). For most of them dropping out from school means working at a lower wage. Or even worse they became homeless. Some people argue that we should create a separate school of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) students. However critics say that it means of “segregation or shielding the youth from the real world.” Giving a class about LGBT people in schools might be the solution, since students then will be aware of it. Education about LGBT people teaches not only students, but also the whole generation. Therefore, schools should be the primary targets to teach the society about LGBT

Education is an important factor in life in order to thrive, but LGBT students face harassment in school due to their identity. According to a Human Rights report conducted in 2001, two million American students in the LGBT

After reading week 13’s article by Coiser (2009) I agreed with the teachers who were served that said they would intervene if a queer student felt a problem was arising at school. The sad thing is that Coiser (2009) states that students from queer families do not feel confident that their teachers would intervene if a problem arises. This made me think back to my previous comment about how I am unaware of the queer families at

As a club, our goals are to promote a safe space where students who identify or sympathize with the LGBTQ community can express their feelings and explore topics such as the needs of transgender students and how to address the discriminatory language used in our hallways. Fostering healthy discussion provides each member with the opportunity to understand new perspectives and find creative ways to solve problems.

In Michael Sadowski’s article, More Than a Safe Space, he briefly discusses three separate schools in different areas of the eastern portion of the United States and the ways that they have created “safe space” for LGBTQ students. At Amherst Regional High School located in Massachusetts, there is a specific elective course dedicated to LGBTQ literature. This course also specifically touches on issues affecting transgender people and LGBTQ people of color, which is an extremely important way to be inclusive of minority groups within the LGBTQ community. Decatur High School in Georgia runs a group LGBTQ counseling session with a teacher leading who is openly gay. This has further ensured that students at the school know that they have somewhere

Supported by my high school principle, I researched the topic, created and presented a multimedia workshop to the Roslyn School District faculty discussing positive interventions for LGBTQ youth facing discrimination. The purpose of the training was to increase awareness of LGBTQ youth, to identify language that supports inclusion, and to offer interventions that address bias and discrimination in school settings.

In “We must celebrate gender and sexual diversity in our schools” published in The Conversation, February 16 2016, Lucy Nicholas argues that the current commentary on the LGBTI (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex) community against schools and the SSC (Safe Schools Coalition) is extremely out of touch. Many of youths already understand their sexuality, whether it be heterosexual, homosexual or bisexual.

Most LGBT youth become happy with who they are which gives them room to thrive during their adolescent years. Attending a school that has a safe and comfortable environment for every student is especially important. Positive environments can help all youth achieve good grades and maintain good mental and physical health. However, some youths are more likely than their straight peers to experience bad health and life outcomes. Experiences with violence, compared to other students, come easy to LGBT individuals that can cause increased risks for unfortunate circumstances.‘Violence’ includes behaviors such as teasing, harassment, and physical assault. It is important that students at risk have access to resources and support to deal with any questions or challenges they may have or face as they mature. Surveyed LGBT students reported 10% were threatened or injured, 34% were bullied, and 28% were bullied electronically.

GSA groups have been around since the 1980’s and according to the Gay-Straight Alliance Network there are currently over 4,000 school based groups throughout the United States (Currie, Mayberry, and Chenneville, 2012; Tommey, Ryan, Diaz, and Russell, 2011). GSA groups came out of the Gay Rights Movement during the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. Adolescents identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) or align within the context of this spectrum have been victims of bullying, discrimination, prejudice, persecution, and hate within the school system. For one decade, between 1999 and 2009, the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) in the United States asking students to describe their high school milieu. According to the findings, 61% of LGBT students feel unsafe, 72% report hearing degrading comments, 85% are verbally harassed, and 40% are physically harassed (Fetner, Elafros, Bortolin, and Drechsler, 2012). The statistics for minority high school students including Latinos and African Americans had slightly elevated rates in both verbal and physical harassment. It was not until the realization that LGBT adolescents, like other adolescents, spend the majority of their time within the confines of the American public education system and suffer, did acknowledgement of creating a safe space for LGBT students develop (Toomey et. al, 2011).

LGBTQA Student Services faculty and student activist leaders informed the 160 student attendees about the

Due to finding my voice, I was attended the safe on campus training. In the nine of participants, there are LGBTQ students and employees who are identified as LGBTQ. The main reason attending the training is to recognize violent preventions on campus. Moos (1991) noted understanding climate to form physical nature of the human behavior could be intervening marginalized group of students. The training was organized by office of diversity and inclusion at WMU. The Safe on Campus training provides information on counseling and university policies, safety resources, and violence reporting requirements that help me maintain a safe personal and learning environment.

Inequities facing the LGBTQ community will take a long time to resolve. However, by implementing an inclusive health curriculum and giving knowledge to students about the LGBTQ community, we can combat bias and discrimination in schools. In schools, students are given foundational knowledge that will be useful to them in the future.

For my award, I decided on the topic of the LGBTQ+ community, and specifically helping students who are in the community. This topic has, I believe, become even more important with recent current events. Despite whatever alternative facts that may be presented, members of the community, especially the young ones, are scared and worried for their future and what may happen to their rights. I am planning a number of things to help out, the most important being the panel that will take place in May. For this event, I will be inviting the eighth graders from North’s sending districts. I tried to directly help out at CTMS, but was ultimately turned away. I may also be helping to start up a group for LGBTQ+ students outside of school, with the help of a former

Sexual orientation and gender identity are two things that members of the LGBTQ community often fear opening up about. They fear that they will be rejected or harmed because of who they are, and it is important that we make all aspects of our society a safe place for every human being, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity. As School-based risk and protective factors for gender diverse and sexual minority children and youth: Improving school climate explained, “64% of students feel unsafe at school because of sexual orientation prejudice, and 44% feel unsafe at school because of gender expression” (American Psychological Association). Therefore, schools in America should be making a conscious effort to make their buildings a safe, comfortable place for members of the LGBTQ community. Schools can do several things to promote the