How many schools have gay straight lesbian alliance clubs

In those cases, and many others, the American Civil Liberties Union has sued on behalf of students. The first such group was created by Kevin Jennings when he was a teacher in Last week, Mr. Jennings left his post at the department as assistant deputy secretary of the office of safe and drug-free schools.

A gay–straight alliance, gender–sexuality alliance (GSA) or queer–straight alliance (QSA) is a student-led or community-based organization, found in middle schools, high schools, colleges, and universities. For years after a group of students tried to start a gay-straight alliance at one Salt Lake City high school in the s, the school board banned all student clubs from forming.

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan reads. About Us. Group Subscriptions. On Monday night, the school board in West Bend, Wis. Duncan wrote. The groups have been challenged ever since. Events and Webinars. Students in schools with a GSA are more likely to report that school faculty, staff and administrators are supportive of lesbian, gay, and bisexual students (52% compared to 37%) Gender & Sexuality Alliance Clubs (or GSAs)—formerly known as Gay-Straight Alliance Clubs—are youth-led school or community-based groups organized for the purpose of supporting LGBTQ+ youth and straight allies through discussion, action, friendship, and advocacy.

All Topics. The State of Teaching. Now the organization has a website devoted to giving students advice about forming gay-straight alliances. In 45 states and the District of Columbia, less than half of all high schools report having a gay-straight alliance (also known as a genders and sexualities alliance, or GSA), according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Duncan said schools must treat all student-initiated groups equally, pointing out the benefits of groups that address issues related to students who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender in particular, and noting the verbal and physical abuse these students sometimes experience.

The U. Department of Education on Tuesday warned school districts across the country against taking steps to ban students from forming gay-straight alliances and similar support groups in their schools. Recruitment Advertising. But in spite of the positive effect these groups can have in schools, some such groups have been unlawfully excluded from school grounds, prevented from forming, or denied access to school resources.

Although these groups have been around for more than 20 years, students attempting to create gay-straight alliances still face many hurdles. However, less than half of students surveyed said their school had an alliance or similar group. In addition, only about half of students at schools with these clubs said they felt unsafe because of their sexual orientation, compared with about two-thirds of students at schools without gay-straight alliances.

Special Reports. These are primarily in the United States and Canada. Leaders to Learn From. Current Issue. In Clovis, N. In May, the school board relented, in part because of the threat of a lawsuit from the New Mexico chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union.

There, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revealed results of a survey that found students who are gay or bisexual are more likely than heterosexual students to smoke, drink alcohol, use drugs, and take other risks. It rescinded that policy in Some students in Corpus Christi, Texas, are still working with their school district on getting permission to have a gay-straight alliance permanently.

In another recent show of support for gay students, the Education Department recently hosted its first Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Youth Summit along with the U. Department of Health and Human Services.