Date: Wed, 17 Sep 1997 15:47:14 -0700 From: richter@eecs.berkeley.edu (Jean Richter) Subject: 9/17/97 P.E.R.S.O.N. Project news 1. CA: Corrected submission info for GLSEN conference 2. WA: Controversial Marysville sex education policy 3. GLSEN issues national school "report card" ============================================================= Date: Tue, 16 Sep 1997 13:30:56 -0400 (EDT) From: CYounglove@aol.com Subject: GLSEN Conference The e-mail address on the original Call for Proposals for the Nov. 1 Northern California GLSEN Conference was misprinted. If you have already submitted your proposal electronically, could you please resubmit it to the following address: steffens32@aol.com by Saturday, Sept. 20? Another Call for Proposals is included below. We apologize for the inconvenience. Carol Younglove, Program Committee Member A Call for Proposals for the Third Annual West Coast Conference on Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues in Education: Opening Minds Saturday, November 1, 1997 James Logan High School, Union City, California Sponsored by GLSTN/San Mateo and GLSTN/San Francisco Bay Area (formerly BANGLE) The GLSTN Conference Planning Committee cordially invites you to submit a proposal to present at the Third Annual Bay Area Conference on Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues in Education. The conference is scheduled for Saturday, November 1, 1997, at James Logan High School in Union City, California. The site offers easy driver access and is within walking distance of the Union City BART Station on the Richmond-Fremont Line. Conference goals are to make school environments safe and supportive of ALL students and to provide concrete tools and tested activities to combat homophobia on campus. Please submit your proposal(s) on the enclosed form postmarked or e-mailed no later than Wednesday, September 10. Please feel free to duplicate and share this invitation with others. All workshops are planned to be 75 minutes. This includes time to allow for questions or discussion. We regret that we are unable to reimburse presenters. However, all presenters will receive complimentary registration for the conference. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -------------- Proposed Title ____________________________________________________ Presenter(s) ______________________________________________________ Affiliation ________________________________________________________ Address, Phone Number, E-mail Address of Presenters: __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ A/V Equipment Needed ____________________________________________ I can repeat my presentation. [ ] Yes [ ] No Brief Description of Workshop (75 words or less--use back if necessary) __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________ Return to: Wanda & Ben Steffens, 7 Creekside Dr., Half Moon Bay, CA 94019 Or e-mail to: steffens32@aol.com For more info, call: (415) 726-6902 Return by Saturday , September 20, 1997 ===================================================================== The Herald, September 9, 1997 Box 930,Everett,WA,98206 (Fax 206-339-3049, print run 51,800) (E-MAIL: e.herald@plink.geis.com) Sex ed policy will get hearing Marysville plan a bit controversial By ERIC STEVICK Herald Writer MARYSVILLE -- [Deleted article. filemanager@qrd.org] ==================================================================== From: GLSTNAlert@aol.com Date: Wed, 17 Sep 1997 12:20:37 -0400 (EDT) Subject: SCHOOLS FAIL AS EDUCATORS RELEASE NATIONAL "REPORT CARD" ***************************************************************** PRESS RELEASE PRESS RELEASE PRESS RELEASE THE GAY, LESBIAN AND STRAIGHT EDUCATION NETWORK Teaching Respect For All In Our Schools ***************************************************************** To contact the THE GAY, LESBIAN AND STRAIGHT EDUCATION NETWORK, please call us at (212)727-0135, fax us at (212) 727-0254 or write to us at 121 West 27th St., Suite 804, New York, NY 10001. www.glsen.org ***************************************************************** EMBARGOED UNTIL: THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 1997 SCHOOLS FAIL AS EDUCATORS RELEASE NATIONAL "REPORT CARD" ON EFFORTS TO PROTECT STUDENTS AND TEACHERS FROM HARASSMENT Rawley Farnsworth, inspiration for new film "In and Out" to appear Contact: Kevin Jennings, Executive Director (212) 727-0135 x113 Kate Frankfurt, Director of Advocacy (212) 727-0135 x 108 John Spear, National Field Director (212) 727-0135 x 114 WASHINGTON, D.C.-- The nation's largest organization addressing anti-gay bias in schools released its first "report cards" today identifying schools that fail to protect students and teachers from harassment and discrimination. The average grade was a C. The annual report cards were prompted by the 1996 landmark court decision in which Wisconsin High School student Jamie Nabozny won $900,000 in punitive damages against his school district due to the school's failure to protect him from harassment and physical harm. This decision established a precedent on anti-gay harassment that affects schools across the country. "The Nabozny decision, for the first time, holds school systems accountable for offering equal protection to gay and lesbian students," said Kevin Jennings, Executive Director of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN). "The report card initiative is our effort to make fair, objective judgments of schools on this issue and to understand what steps are needed to improve conditions. The results show a need for immediate and dramatic action to protect our students." Jennings will discuss the report cards at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. at 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, September 18. He will be joined by Rawley Farnsworth, a retired high school teacher, and the inspiration for the new film In and Out, starring Kevin Kline. Among the highlights of the report's findings: --- 1/2 the districts reporting received a failing grade. --- Massachusetts, the first state in the nation to enact legislation prohibiting discrimination in public schools on the basis of sexual orientation, received the highest grade: an A minus. --- The national average drops from a C to a D when Massachusetts is removed from the scoring. The reports were based on data collected from 128 districts in 20 states nationwide and compiled by 62 GLSEN chapters. Criteria used included whether schools have policies in place that: protect students and teachers from harassment and discrimination; provide staff with workshops and training; provide accurate and age-appropriate information in school libraries; support extracurricular activities and clubs; and offer an accurate and inclusive curriculum. In all, a typical high school student hears anti-gay slurs as often as 25.5 times a day. When this occurs, only 3% of faculty will intervene in such incidents. As a result of this lack of intervention, 19% of Gay and Lesbian students suffer physical attacks associated with sexual orientation with 13% skipping school at least once per month and 26% dropping out all together. These startling numbers, along with recent legal actions taken by students against their school systems for failure to protect them from harassment, have brought to light the need for a nationwide advocacy effort to protect gay and lesbian students, estimated to be 5 million or 9% of the total school population, from such discrimination. With lesbian, gay and bisexual youth increasingly visible, many school districts will find it necessary to address anti-gay discrimination and harassment for the first time. -30- The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network(GLSEN) is the only national organization working to make sure that schools respect and value all people regardless of sexual orientation. For more information on GLSEN and its annual "Back-to School-Campaign," visit their web site at http://www.glsen.org or call their national office at (212) 727-0135 The Back-to-School Campaign is sponsored by the Tzabaco Catalog Lesbian and Gay Community Fund as part of their Safe Schools Initiative. The Tzabaco Catalog is the Largest at home shopping company for gays and lesbians, offering unique clothing, gifts and home items. _______________________________________________________ The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) 121 West 27th Street, Suite 804 New York, NY 10001 212-727-0135 http://www.glsen.org _______________________________________________________ Do not hit reply to send an email to GLSEN. GLSEN's email address is glsen@glsen.org Staff Addresses: Deidre Cuffee-Gray: dcuffee-gray@glsen.org Jenesha de Rivera: jderivera@glsen.org Janice Goldfarb: jgoldfarb@glsten.org Kevin Jennings: kjennings@glsen.org John Spear: jspear@glsen.org Student Pride: studentpride@glsen.org GLSEN Interns: GLSTNintrn@aol.com _______________________________________________________ GLSENAlert is a GLSTN news bulletin service of the The Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN). * * * * * * * To Unsubscribe from GLSTNAlert simply send an email to GLSTNAlert@aol.com with the words "unsubscribe" in the subject line (no quotes and note the lack of space in GLSTNAlert). * * * * * * * To Subscribe to GLSTNAlert simply send an email to GLSTNAlert@aol.com with the words "subscribe" in the subject line (no quotes and note the lack of space in GLSTNAlert). Also: please write your name in the message portion of your email. _______________________________________________________ ===================================================================== Jean Richter -- richter@eecs.berkeley.edu The P.E.R.S.O.N. Project (Public Education Regarding Sexual Orientation Nationally) CHECK OUT OUR INFO-LOADED WEB PAGE AT: http://www.youth.org/loco/PERSONProject/