Peter DeWitt - Dignity for All: Safeguarding LGBT Students

Dignity for All

To my partner, Doug, for all of your support,
encouragement, and guidance.

Dignity for All

SAFEGUARDING LGBT STUDENTS

PETER DEWITT

FOR INFORMATION

Corwin
A SAGE Company
2455 Teller Road
Thousand Oaks, California 91320
www.corwin.com

SAGE Publications Ltd.
1 Olivers Yard
55 City Road
London, EC1Y 1SP
United Kingdom

SAGE Publications India Pvt. Ltd.
B 1/I 1 Mohan Cooperative Industrial Area
Mathura Road, New Delhi 110 044
India

SAGE Publications Asia-Pacific Pte. Ltd.
3 Church Street
#10-04 Samsung Hub
Singapore 049483

Acquisitions Editor: Arnis Burvikovs
Associate Editor: Desire A. Bartlett
Editorial Assistant: Kimberly Greenberg
Project Editor: Veronica Stapleton
Copy Editor: Amy Rosenstein
Typesetter: Hurix Systems Pvt. Ltd
Proofreader: Dennis W. Webb
Indexer: Molly Hall
Cover Designer: Michael Dubowe
Permissions Editor: Karen Ehrmann

Copyright 2012 by Corwin

All rights reserved. When forms and sample documents are included, their use is authorized only by educators, local school sites, and/or noncommercial or nonprofit entities that have purchased the book. Except for that usage, no part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

All trade names and trademarks recited, referenced, or reflected herein are the property of their respective owners who retain all rights thereto.

Printed in the United States of America

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

DeWitt, Peter.
Dignity for all: safeguarding LGBT students / Peter DeWitt.

p. cm.

A joint publication with the National Association of School Psychologists.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-4522-0590-8 (pbk.)

1. Homosexuality and educationUnited States. 2. Lesbian studentsUnited States. 3. Gay studentsUnited States. 4. Bisexual studentsUnited States. 5. Transgender youthEducationUnited States. 6. SchoolsSafety measuresUnited StatesHandbooks, manuals, etc. I. Title.

LC192.6.D48 2012

371.82664dc23

2011049859

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

12 13 14 15 16 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth are coming out at an earlier age than they did in years past. Many young adults in the LGBT community come out by the age of 15, and some have known their sexual identity since the age of 10. LGBT students who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender often fear the consequences of coming out at such a young age. They fear losing friends and family and are often threatened by their peers. LGBT students are more likely to be harassed or abused by peers, which can negatively affect their school engagement and performance.

In order for students to be engaged in school, they must feel safe in their school environment. School personnel can help this often mistreated group by providing safeguards and supports to protect LGBT students. School administrators have the influence and duty to create those safeguards and supports, and therefore, can have a profound impact on LGBT students. Safeguards and supports include codes of conduct and board policies as well as offering curriculum, resources, and after-school opportunities. This book explores safeguards and supports to help engage LGBT students.

Educators who believe they can change their school culture will gain insight by reading Dignity for All: Safeguarding LGBT Students because there are personal stories from the field as well as practical tips on how they can safeguard and support LGBT students in schools.

Creating safe spaces, incorporating curriculum, and establishing GayStraight Alliances (GSA) are some of the ways educators can help LGBT students. Action steps are provided in this book to help educators find ways to make LGBT students feel safer in school. In addition, establishing a more accepting school climate will help students who come from diverse backgrounds feel more welcome in schools.

Administrators need to read this book. As a practicing administrator, I understand that I influence the culture of the building, and teachers will only feel that they can step out of their comfort zone if I provide them with the environment to do so. It is an administrators job to make staff and students feel safe so that students can explore a diverse curriculum that will help them become career and college ready. In addition, I understand that we need safeguards in our code of conduct as well as our school board policies so that we have support as we confront issues with parents and students. I have tried my best to provide steps to bring administrators closer to those safeguards in their school system. When all is said and done, every single student who enters school doors deserves an education that will help foster their imagination and help them find their strengths. It should not matter what their race, gender, religion, or sexual orientation is, and it is not the job of educators to be the gatekeepers to a quality education. All students deserve it.

In addition, this is an important resource for parents. Parents have a role in the education of their children and deserve a place in the discussions that affect their children every day. When we involve parents in the discussions about our school systems, we get another voice that can lead to a stronger, more inclusive school system. The reality is that there are parents who disown their children when they identify as LGBT. This sad reality can happen for numerous reasons, but one of the biggest is that parents have not been exposed to people in the LGBT community. This book will offer resources to parents who lack exposure to LGBT issues.

Through stories from LGBT students and adults, readers will be exposed to the real-life experiences of these individuals. This book will encourage educators to make at least one change in their classrooms or schools that will help an LGBT student feel safer and more welcome. A friend told me that he saw an LGBT student from Rochester, New York, speak once, and the teenager stood up in front of a crowd of educators and said, You dont have to do everything; you just have to do something. It is not my intention for readers to think they have to make every change I suggest, although that would be great, too. It is my intention to offer suggestions on where educators can make changes, and have them make one or two changes in their classrooms or schools. That alone may help an insecure LGBT student feel more secure.

Changing a school system to be more inclusive for LGBT students is a net positive for all students because it provides them with the exposure to diverse people, which will help them when they reach adulthood and enter society. If it is good enough for a heterosexual student, it should be good enough for an LGBT student as well.

I am a former elementary school teacher and a practicing elementary school principal. I work with students at their level, which means I do not use a great deal of educational jargon and try not to use big words. Although some readers may be uncomfortable addressing this issue, the book is designed to be a reader-friendly resource. I have included current and past research on all issues regarding LGBT students. I begin with why this is a timely and worthwhile topic, and then the book explores bullying, curriculum, GSAs, and school board policies, all of which will create a more inclusive school. Although the book does focus on the bullying of LGBT students, the suggestions I make can help with all bullying, not just one minority group.