[glstn.newsletter.fall.95] Provided by: GLSTN 122 West 26th Street, Suite 1100 New York, NY 10001 USA Tel: (212) 727-0135 Email: glstn@glstn.org Web: http://www.glstn.org/freedom/ GLSTN FALL 1995 NEWSLETTER (ONLINE EDITION) IT'S TIME TO GO BACK TO SCHOOL Director's Note: Welcome Back! We begin this fall with our "Back-to-School Campaign." The purpose of this effort is to get gay, lesbian, and bisexual adults to write their old teachers or the principals of their old high schools, tell them what it was like to be gay there, and ask what is being done to make it better for the next generation. We have undertaken this effort because we so often here from educators that they don't think homophobia is a problem in their community. We are sure that, once they have received a letter from a former student who tells them exactly what it is like to be gay at their school, they'll understand the issue in a new way. Greg Louganis, the Olympic diver and New York Times best-selling author, agreed to participate in the Campaign and to lend his public support to it. He is featured in the Campaign's brochure, and has generously offered to use a copy of his own letter to a former teacher for this newsletter. As you can see from Greg's letter, the power of this technique cannot be underestimated. Please read on--and start thinking about who you are going to write! --Kevin Jennings Dear Teacher: You might remember me, though it's been a long time since I was in one of your classes at Valhalla High School. When I transferred there in 1976, at the beginning of my junior year, you and the other teachers probably thought of me as one of the school's most popular and successful students. At age 16, I had just won a silver Olympic medal. I coached the boys' and girls' diving teams and helped coach the girls' gymnastics team. The following year, my classmates voted me best-dressed, best dancer, and best physique. Everyone wanted to be my friend, and I'm sure most of my peers thought I was the luckiest, happiest guy on campus. In reality, those years were very painful for me. Growing up is tough for everyone, but even more so when you feel different, as I did--for a number of reasons. For one thing, I was dyslexic, and because of that I struggled to keep pace academically. But even where I excelled, as I did at diving, the success was bittersweet for me because I could not truly feel I deserved it. When teachers praised me or other students admired me, I couldn't help wondering, What would they think if they knew my secret? My secret, of course, was that I am gay. Earlier, in grammar school, I was called names like "sissy" and "faggot" and even beaten up occasionally. By the time I was at Valhalla, those things had stopped happening to me, though I'm sure they happened to others, and for me the name-calling probably continued behind my back. But discrimination doesn't have to be overt or physical to be hurtful, especially to a high school student. Every time there's a reference to homosexuality and the other students snicker and laugh, you get the message: This is about you, and what it means is that you can't tell anyone, ever. Years later, other students have told me they remember that time differently-that if I had confided in them I would have found sympathetic friends. But at the time, there's no way you can reach out for help. Counseling wasn't an option I considered; it was even more stigmatized then than now. I was more fortunate than many others-at least I was able to partially escape my frustration and loneliness by channeling my energy into diving. But I still felt the pressure of isolation, and I used other means to escape as well. I withdrew from the school scene as much as possible. I would leave right after school and go to the beach, where I eventually met an older gay man. I was lucky in that my experiences with him were positive overall. But what I really wanted was to be learning how to be myself, with people my own age. The only way knew how to do that was to do the drugs everyone else was doing-that was the one thing I had in common with them, an easy way to fit in with a group. Plus, taking drugs was a way to deaden the pain. In my senior year, the sense of having a guilty secret become overwhelmingly oppressive, and I decided to make the final escape. I stole a handful of Valium and Codeine from my parents' medicine chest, swallowed them, wrote a suicide note, and went to bed for what I hoped would be the last time. I survived, but a lot of high school kids don't: Studies show that an astounding one out of every three gay or lesbian adolescents in America attempts suicide. If school was tough for me, it's so much harder for many other gay and lesbian kids. For some, it's a truly terrifying place where they are threatened with verbal harassment and physical violence every day. Today, all high school kids, gay and straight, face another threat: HIV. They know it's out there--I didn't. Kids need to love themselves enough to protect themselves. And self-esteem is what high school kids are all too often lacking. That applies to all kids, but especially to gay and lesbian kids. They need extra support and understanding. And yet, it's hard even for well-meaning teachers to reach out to them individually, because you don't always know who they are and what's going on under the surface of their lives. Still, teachers and school administrators can make a big difference. With this letter, I'm sending you a list of suggestions on how. It comes from the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Teachers Network, a New York-based group that encourages gays and lesbians across the country to write letters like this one as a part of a national awareness campaign. It's not an easy thing to do. Most of us would just as soon not think about those dark days, much less write about them. It's over, we think. But for millions of gay teens it's not over yet, and they need help even more than we did. Please write me back and let me know what you're doing to reach out to gay and lesbian kids at Valhalla, to make their experience easier than mine was, and to let all kids who feel different know they're not alone. Sincerely, Greg Louganis DIRECTOR'S LETTER: WHAT'S HOMOSEXUALITY GOT TO DO WITH IT? First off, welcome to the second full year of GLSTN's work as a national organization! If you had told me at this time last year that we'd have over twenty chapters, an office in New York, and ten conferences planned for the coming year, all by August 1995, I would have recommended institutionalization. But here we are! However, as rapid and successful as our expansion has been, we also face more and more challenges. The Radical Right is increasingly targeting gays in general, and gay issues in education in specific, as part of an overall strategy to impose their vision of America on the rest of the country. They have been able to play on the fears of many well-meaning people to advance this agenda. The basic worry of every parent is, "Is my kid safe?" By playing on the myth that homosexuals recruit children, reactionary attacks on inclusive education direct a positive impulse--the desire to have the best for one's children--toward a destructive end--intolerance for others. This became poignantly clear to me when I traveled to Merrimack, New Hampshire in August. Townspeople in Merrimack were fighting an anti-gay policy being put forth by some reactionary board members, a policy that would ban any representation of gay issues in a positive or even a neutral light. At the request of local organizers, I came to Merrimack to speak at a rally being held the night the school board was set to vote on the policy. I arrived early so I could observe the school board debate. Perhaps because I was wearing a tie, a mother in her mid-thirties standing near me decided I must be on her side of an argument that had divided the large audience in attendance, the bulk of whom seemed to be against the policy's passage. She sidled over to me and began to unload her frustration with what she saw as a foreign issue that had no place in her town's schools. Saying all she wanted was "pure education" for her children, she finally exploded. "What does homosexuality have to do with education?" she demanded. The setting didn't allow me to fully answer her provocative and important question, so it has stayed with me. What does homosexuality have to do with education, after all? To answer her question, we have to first answer another: what is a good education? For me, education is about learning to think. A good teacher is one that takes a subject that matters to his or her students and helps them to think about it in a thoughtful, critical manner. In America, we have also traditionally seen the opportunity to get an education as the first step on the road to success, and created the world's first free public school system to make sure that all people got an equal chance to develop the critical faculties that are the product of a good education. Good public education is an essential part of a democracy where the citizens rule and are free to advance themselves as far as their abilities, ambitions, and hard work will take them. Homosexuality itself has nothing to do with education, any more than biology, chemistry, algebra or any other subject does. In themselves, subjects have no intrinsic value: what is important is what one can learn from the study of a given subject. A discussion of how we understand homosexuality in our culture and how this reflects our values, beliefs, and worldview has tremendous educational value. It is clearly a subject that matters to kids: they talk about it, they ask about it, they use phrases like "That's so gay" routinely, so few can argue that it isn't a subject that needs addressing (although some will, believe me!). The question is, can we use it to help students think and learn? The answer is manifestly YES. But this is not the agenda of folks who put forth policies like that passed in Merrimack on August 14. They see education serving a different purpose. For them, schools are there to inculcate values: developing independent thought is not the overriding goal. And they call upon a strong historic tradition in this belief. The vast growth of public education in late nineteenth century America was fueled, at least in part, by the fears of native whites who saw the influx of southern and eastern European immigrants as a threat to their way of life. They saw the public schools as means to "Americanize" these foreign elements and to indoctrinate them with "American values." Today, many families feel bewildered by the rapid cultural change sweeping our nation, and some have been led to believe that a "gay agenda" is, at least in part, responsible for what they see a breakdown of our society and a seemingly-bleak future for their children. They feel that, if they can regain some sense of control over what goes on in their community's schools, maybe the whole society will become a little more coherent. They often just want to feel as if things are not completely out of control. So they come out to public meetings and demand to know what homosexuality has to do with education, and demand that it be banished so that the school can return to the basics of reading, 'riting, and 'rithmetic. Sadly these people are simply pawns in a game, a game wherein unscrupulous politicos manipulate their very real and legitimate concerns for short-term political gain. Those doing the manipulating cleverly fly the banner of "parental control." They protest that "they have nothing against gays"--Merrimack school board members who voted for the policy in question repeatedly said they were not prejudiced and would not tolerate verbal gay-bashing in their schools--but that they only wish to make sure that parents have the final say over what their children learn. Who could be against that? It will do no good to point out the illogic of this position. Parents have little say over the day-to-day teachings of a school, and any school where they did would quickly become an unmanageable bureaucratic nightmare. Imagine if every lesson plan had to be approved by parents before implemented--nothing would get taught at all, while we attended interminable board hearings on whether or not Mr. Smith should spend 2 or 3 days discussing the causes of the Civil War! Parental control is only invoked when a particular subset of parents wants to impose their own values on a school. Pointing this out, however, would have had little effect on the mother with whom I spoke in Merrimack. She had real fears about her children, and wanted them addressed. Knowing this, we must start thinking now about how to speak to her fears. We must help her understand that an education that teaches her children to think for themselves, rather than one that turns them into automatons, is her best hope for securing their future in the global marketplace. We must help her understand that bigotry and name-calling represent a greater threat to her child's welfare than an open discussion of touchy issues. We must help her understand that silencing people will never make an issue go away, but will simply cause it to fester. In short, we must help her understand that homosexuality is not a threat to her children: homophobia is. That is what homosexuality has do to with education. It's about freedom of thought, it's about the ability to use one's mind, it's about the right to be educated rather than trained. And we have to help people who don't understand that to get it. Our initiatives this fall are built around this as a theme. Through our September "Back-to-School" Campaign, we hope to get gay adults to tell their stories to their old teachers so that a real person takes the place of a bogeyman when these teachers think of gay students. In October we're leading the organizing for Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual History Month so that all Americans learn of the contributions of gay people to our nation's development and, more importantly, come to understand that we have and always will be part of this nation, whether some like it or not. And, as always, we are committed to founding and supporting local chapters who can engage in ongoing work in their communities to help people get what homosexuality has to do with good education. I hope you'll make this fall a time when you personally can get more involved with GLSTN, and can reach out to others to involve them as well. GLSTN's not just for teachers anymore--we need everyone's help to do the educating we must do if gay, lesbian, and bisexual youth are to get the education they deserve. Help us find more folks who want to see equality become a reality in this country. We're counting on you. -- Kevin Jennings, August 23, 1995 THE NEW NEWSLETTER This issue marks a new look and a new editor for our newsletter. After three years, Melanie Dana of GLSTN/Boston stepped down as our newsletter editor. Our expansion as a national group made the newsletter a monumental project, and we thank Melanie for hanging in there and nursing it from a 2-page, bi-annual publication to its current incarnation. Taking over for Melanie is Jean Pendleton, a long-time volunteer for GLSTN/Boston whose work you are already familiar with as she has designed our membership brochure letterhead, and conference programs. You may also recall her article, "Out of the Highest Regard for Love," which appeared in our last newsletter. The Director of Public Relations at the Brimmer and May School in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts and the Secretary of the GLSTN/Boston Board, Jean knows publications, schools, and GLSTN, making her the ideal person for the job! Jean's work is responsible for our new look, and she can be reached with comments, suggestions, news, or submissions for the newsletter over e-mail at GLSTNNews@aol.com. Welcome aboard, Jean! NEW DIGS FOR GLSTN After a six month search, GLSTN has moved into its New York offices. Located in New York on the same block as the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation and the Gay Cable Network, GLSTN can now be found at 122 West 26th Street, Suite 1100, New York, NY 10001. Telephone: (212) 727-0135 Fax: (212) 727-0254. For those in the New York area, there will be a regular volunteer night where you can meet other GLSTN members and lend a hand with the multitude of tasks we must perform to be an effective national organization. Anyone interested in volunteering in the national office should all John Spear at (212) 727-0135. SUMMER INSTITUTE GETS NATIONAL NETWORK OFF THE GROUND: SPECIAL BRAGDON FUND MAKES EVENT AFFORDABLE FOR MANY Amidst the un-air-conditioned swelter of Haverford College outside of Philadelphia, 35 individuals representing 23 local chapters gathered July 17-22 for GLSTN'S FIRST ANNUAL LEADERSHIP TRAINING INSTITUTE. The following states or cities were represented: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Colorado, Connecticut, D.C., Detroit, Hudson Valley (NY), Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Philadelphia, Portland (OR), San Francisco, St. Louis, and Washington State. The Institute was divided into two halves. The first half, called "Change Agent Training," offered three days of work on how to carry through a project for change in a local school or school district. Utilizing a curriculum developed by Willis Emmons and Mary Gentile, openly gay faculty members of the Harvard Business School, Kathy Henderson, GLSTN Co-Founder and a teacher at Phillips Academy (Andover), and Jonathan Rotenberg, a consultant at Monitor Company, these three days focused on such techniques as situation diagnosis, action planning, and effective communication in one-on-one settings, drawing on case studies and curricular materials specially developed for GLSTN. The second half of the Institute focused on giving chapter leaders the skills they need to establish effective local groups in their communities. Training sessions included presentations on legal issues by GLSTN Board member Mary Bonauto of Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders, financial accounting by GLSTN Board Treasurer Donna Crocker, resource development by Digital Queers Director of Development Tom DiMaria, grant writing by GLSTN Assistant Director John Spear, computer training by Digital Queers Co-Founder Karen Wickre, board development by GLSTN Board member Lou Alexander of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and media strategy by Human Rights Campaign Fund Deputy Director of Communications Doug Hattaway. Participants also received a number of resources to take home. Each evening, participants also got to preview films for classroom use including THE QUESTION OF EQUALITY (a four-part series scheduled to air on PBS in October), TREVOR (the 1995 Academy Award winner for best short), and STRAIGHT FROM THE HEART (a 1995 Academy Award nominee). GLSTN/National also developed a five hundred and eight page manual for chapter leaders, entitled "GLSTN A-Z," designed to give them all the information they need to make change (or at least a much of it as can be crammed into a three-ring binder!). Computer resources such as databases for gay and mainstream media as well as America On-Line diskettes were also distributed. In all, participants left with brains and bags full, ready for a full year of organizing in their communities. Registration fee for the Leadership Training Institute was only $200, with each participant subsidized to the tune of $500 by GLSTN/National's fundraising. The key element in this was a major project entitled The Bragdon Fund, a private fund created by donors to GLSTN in memory of Bill Bragdon, a 1964 graduate of Trinity College. Bill died of AIDS in 1993. His successful career as a television advertising producer included ground-breaking work for Bloomingdales and Anacin. Even in later life as a successful producer, Bill remembered how he had struggled in school with society's acceptance of his sexual orientation, having gone so far as to turn down the presidency of his high school senior class because of related doubts about his self-worth. Trinity classmates and friends have contributed to the Bragdon Fund in his memory and to help foster schools which will be nurturing and affirming to all students. NEA, OREGON GOVERNOR BACK LESBIAN, GAY, AND BISEXUAL HISTORY MONTH: ADDITIONAL ENDORSEMENTS FORTHCOMING Thanks to the hard work of GLSTN members Flo and Ted Olkowski of Salem, Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber became the first Governor to officially proclaim October 1995 as Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual History Month, on July 12. Following proclamations last year by Connecticut Governor Lowell Weicker and Massachusetts Governor William Weld, Kitzhaber becomes the third Governor to officially back the idea. The Governor's proclamation is included in this newsletter. The same week, the National Education Association voted at its annual Representative Assembly to endorse the Lesbian and Gay History Month. As the nation's largest teachers union, the NEA adds tremendous momentum to the drive to establish October as a time to celebrate lesbian, gay, and bisexual history. Other GLSTN chapters and individual members are hard at work planning activities for History Month and, in specific, pursuing official proclamations from mayors, governors, and other elected officials. To support this, GLSTN/National has developed a "Tips of Getting a Proclamation from Your Elected Official" brochure, which includes step-by-step advice and excerpts of previous proclamations. To obtain a copy, call John Spear at 212-727-0135. GLSTN Online! As part of our effort to use electronic communications to better serve our members, GLSTN is expanding its online capabilities this fall to provide more resources and better communication for all. The first major project is the launch of our World Wide Web site, which can be accessed at http://www.glstn.org/freedom/ and will eventually contain a library over 30 publications. Among the topics covered by this online resource will be GLSTN's current programming, school-based programming such as articles on how to start a Gay-Straight Alliance, and curricular resources. Writers such as Warren Blumenfeld, David Bruton, Hope Burwell, Pat Griffin, Arthur Lipkin, Laurie Lindop, Bob Riddle, Patty Smith, and Dan Woog have all donated materials to the Web site to make it as full and effective a resource as possible. Check it out! A second initiative is bring all of our chapters online with America Online accounts that will enable us to send files, exchange databases, and even meet online at regular intervals. By September, a list of chapter addresses will be available so that local organizers can keep in touch and share ideas as we all seek to be creative and effective in our work. To offer suggestions or help with GLSTN's online work, use e-mail and write us at GLSTN@glstn.org and we'll plug you in! MAJOR GIFTS FROM GEFFEN, GILL, DIGITAL QUEERS, AND AN ANONYMOUS DONOR SUPPORT GLSTN'S WORK In June, GLSTN received matching $10,000 gifts from the David Geffen and Tim Gill Foundations to support our work in building a national network. The Geffen Foundation is funded by David Geffen, the Los Angeles film and record producer, while the Gill Foundation is funded by Tim Gill, the Denver-based inventor of the popular Quark software program. Both gifts went to support the addition of a full-time Assistant Director to better serve local chapters. The Gill Foundation also donated software to improve the quality and look of GLSTN's publications. In August, GLSTN received two exciting new gifts. The first consisted of funds raised at a special benefit on August 10 at Boston's Club Cafe by Digital Queers/New England. Executive Director Kevin Jennings attended the event and spoke to the over one hundred guests who were present. Funds raised through this effort will underwrite computer technology and training for GLSTN's staff. The second August gift was an matching anonymous gift of $5,000: this money will be used to match, dollar for dollar, all funds raised to support the Back-to-School campaign through a direct mail effort currently in the mail. "This is an exciting opportunity to get 2 for 1 for your money," said Kevin Jennings. "Now is definitely the time to make a gift that goes the furthest for GLSTN." GLSTN members should watch for a special mailing detailing this matching programs, set to arrive in September. Jennings pointed out that all gifts resulted from personal solicitation by GLSTN members. "People give money to people they trust know what they're doing and to whom they feel a personal connection. We depend on our members for these kinds of connections." SPECIAL BOARD LIAISON TO CHAPTERS ESTABLISHED: NEW BOARD STRUCTURE BEGINS Beginning in 1995-96, GLSTN's National board will take on a new look. All chapters whose membership represents 5% of more of the total membership will be automatically entitled to send a representative, and at least two smaller chapters will be allotted seats as well. "This is part of our effort to make sure the National Board is as representative and responsive to local groups as it can be," said Charley Todd, GLSTN's National Board President. "Chapters are the heart of GLSTN, and we want them to have a strong voice in shaping its policies and direction." As part of the new structure, a new position of Regional Liaison has been established on the National Board. Anne Simon, the GLSTN/Boston Representative to the National Board, has volunteered to hold this post in 1995-96, which involves putting together a Board committee to look at the national-local relationship, serving as a link between local boards and the national one, and communicating the needs of local groups clearly to staff. Anne is a long-time GLSTN member and has been intimately involved with the movement to end homophobia in schools. A special education teacher at Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School, she helped establish a Gay-Straight Alliance there, and then served as a coordinator of the regional training component of the Massachusetts Department of Education's "Safe Schools for Gay and Lesbian Students" program. She also chaired the GLSTN/Boston Board in 1994-95. "I'm committed to making local groups be the central part of GLSTN, and I am delighted to be the person on the Board with chief responsibility for this," Anne said. "I think my experience as a classroom teacher and a local organizer will help me be an effective liaison between local and national levels." Anne lives in Somerville, Massachusetts, with her husband, Don Heller (who is a member of the Massachusetts Governor's Commission on Gay and Lesbian Youth), and her two-year-old daughter, Rose. She welcomes communication from local leaders about their ideas and concerns: she can be reached online at "GLSTNLocal@aol.com" or by phone at 617-625-9521. BUSY FALL: GLSTN PROGRAMMING, SEPT-NOV 1995 With the resumption of school, GLSTN/National is back in high gear for a variety of initiatives this fall. In addition to the Back-to-School Campaign and the Second Annual Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual History Month, these include: Regional conferences in the: * San Francisco Bay Area (Oct. 14); and * the Mid-Atlantic region in Washington, D.C (Nov. 4). New chapter organizing, with initial meetings in: * Manchester, N.H. (Sept. 20); * Portland, ME, (Sept. 21); * Portland, OR (Oct. 12); * Minneapolis/St. Paul (Nov. 8); and * Detroit (Nov. 12). Special Programs for existing chapters in: * Seattle (Oct. 11); and * Los Angeles (Oct. 16). Coalition building through presentations for: * The National Association of College Admission Councilors (Boston, 9/22); * National P-FLAG Convention (9/29-10/1); * The Center for Gay and Lesbian Studies (New York, 10/7); * The National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association (D.C. 10/21); * The Diversity Resource Collaborative (New York, 10/26); * The New England Teachers Conference (Springfield, Mass., 11/6); * The National Council on the Social Studies (Chicago, 11/10); and * The National Lesbian and Gay Task Force (Detroit, 11/11). For details on all events, please refer to the GLSTN Fall Calendar below. MEET GLSTN In order to introduce you to the people who make GLSTN go, each newsletter this year will feature three profiles: one of a GLSTN National Board member; one of a staff person or volunteer project coordinator; and one of a local chapter. We hope this will put a human face on the name GLSTN! DONNA CROCKER Donna Crocker is the Treasurer of GLSTN's National Board of Directors. She has been on the Board since 1994, and is responsible for all financial matters of the organization. A former volleyball coach, Donna is now a stock broker by profession, John Spear, GLSTN's Assistant Director, managed to pry her away from her work for a few moments to conduct this interview. What was school like for you? I was very naive throughout my school years. I can remember that feeling of not fitting in--the square peg, round hole syndrome. I was so sheltered I didn't even know there was such a thing as being lesbian. But I did fit in athletically. I lived in the gym. Athletics were always a big part of my life--and still are. In school I played volleyball, softball, basketball, and I still play those sports regularly. How did you get involved with GLSTN? I was at Lincoln Sudbury Regional High School visiting some clients there, and it just happened to be Gay Awareness Day. Kevin Jennings was giving a talk there, and I listened in. The talk was so powerful it made me cry. I could sense the entire audience was moved as well. I thought, "Oh God, this work is finally happening," and I tracked Kevin down after the talk and told him I wanted to be involved. Next thing I know I'm having lunch with Kevin and I'm on the Board of Directors. What I intended to be an occasional envelope stuffing session has turned out to be a lot more, but I love the work I do with GLSTN. What do you do with GLSTN? I'm the one in charge of the money. Simply put, I try to assist the local chapters with their finances. I want to help chapter organizers make managing their chapter's finances as easy as possible. We don't want being a CPA a prerequisite for being a GLSTN organizer. Why are you involved with GLSTN? GLSTN's work means a lot to me. It's so important. If we can show schools why it is crucial for them to address homophobia, then we will be doing so much. Homophobia is just one layer of so many other problems, and like those other problems, every student is hurt when schools choose to ignore them. What are your hopes for GLSTN? That we make a difference. That an open dialogue can take place in every school. That school heads and principals will have the courage to start confronting homophobia in their schools. That everyone will realize what we need to do is to teach people to feel good about themselves. That's all. What do you do for fun? I love to sail. I just came in seventh place (out of 35) in a regatta in Marblehead, MA. I still love to play basketball. In fact I was on the gold medal basketball team in the Gay Games in New York. I still play a lot of softball and volleyball, and I've recently taken up golf and tennis. I like to travel. My job takes me to San Francisco a lot. I'm also going to Nepal with two of my friends from San Francisco in September. We are going on a 13-day trek and then spend a week in a monastery. I can't wait! Oh, and I also love to dance. JOHN SPEAR John Spear is the Assistant Director of GLSTN. He has been working for GLSTN full-time since June 1st. Kevin Jennings pried him away from his beloved PowerBook to do this interview. What was school like for you? I was born in South Boston but moved to Lowell, Massachusetts right when I began school. Lowell was hard: I got into a lot of fights. My name rhymed with "Queer" so I was always called "Spear the Queer." I moved to upstate New York for high school and things got a lot better. I got very involved with hockey and settled into a community of athletes. Hockey remained a big part of my life through college--I went to Williams, where I was captain of the hockey team my senior year. I always felt like I was a visitor there. I was intimidated by the wealth, by the academics, and then--toward the end--because I was starting to come out. How did you get involved with GLSTN? After I graduated from Williams in 1992, I went to teach at my old school, the Northwood School in Lake Placid, New York. Because he saw me as the most progressive faculty member, the Headmaster gave me a copy of a newsletter called "Speaking Out" which addressed gay issues in boarding schools. Through that I found out about GLSTN and attended its annual conference in April, 1994. It was one of my first public expressions of being gay. It was great to be around gay people, to be around other teachers, great to fit in. I then went to a retreat in November, 1994, and did some volunteer work "long distance" while I was in graduate school at St. Lawrence University in upstate New York. By the end of the school year I really wanted to get out of St. Lawrence and be in an urban area where I could do some activist/organizing work related to the gay community. I emailed Kevin Jennings about it and it so happened that the day he got my message was the day his part-time assistant got his dream job at THE ADVOCATE magazine and had given his two weeks notice. I was living in New York three weeks later and working for GLSTN. What do you do in your involvement in GLSTN? I run around frantically doing whatever Kevin tells me to do! Seriously, I do a lot of administrative things--membership management, database management, filling out forms, keeping the books--as well as some more program-based things, like developing foundation grants and doing outreach to other gay organizations. What is the best part of your involvement with GLSTN? I love it when a local chapter calls to ask for something and I can give it to them. In July, for example, one of our members from Oregon called for advice on getting a proclamation on Gay History Month from their Governor. I sent her some materials and, a couple of weeks later, she mailed a copy of the Governor's proclamation back to me! That's the kind of thing I like doing--it's the whole reason we exist. What is your biggest hope for GLSTN? I want every school to have a Gay-Straight Alliance but, more than that, I want the school to have an environment where every kid would feel comfortable going to such a group if they wanted to. I don't think I would have been able to do so when I was in high school, even if such a group had existed. I would also like to see a GLSTN chapter in every community. What do you do for fun? Fun? I work all the time! Working for GLSTN actually is fun. Right now I'm spending my free time exploring New York City, especially the East Village, which I love. I do want to spend some time back up in the Adirondacks, though, as I love to rock climb. Sometimes I love being here in New York, but sometimes I really miss the outdoors. MEGAN SPEARS Megan Spears, the Co-Chair of GLSTN/Philadelphia, teaches upper-school European History and a course called "Peace and Justice" at Westtown School, a Quaker boarding school outside Philadelphia. Meagan has been active in GLSTN since the chapter first formed in November of 1994. John Spear interviewed her at home as she recovered from the Leadership Institute and prepared for the beginning of the school year. What was school like for you? Although I didn't know I was lesbian, I was miserable through most of my school years. I was lonely, isolated and very depressed. Looking back now, it's strange: I was a total over-achiever. My list of accomplishments was very long, but at the same I felt like a loserÑ-I didn't fit in. How did you get involved with GLSTN? It just sort of happened. I heard about a GLSTN conference in Philadelphia, and went. While I was there I saw that a GLSTN chapter was being formed in the area, and I decided to go to a few meetings. I had a lot going on at the timeÑI was a first-year teacher with a lot of boarding school obligations, and I lived out of the cityÑ-so I thought I'd just sit in on a few meetings. I happened to be at the meeting when we elected officers. Nobody wanted to take the second co-chair position, so I said I'd be co-chair. I went from just sitting in on a few meetings to co-chair. What do you do with GLSTN? GLSTN/Philadelphia has a lot of things going on now. We are working hard to promote the Back to School Campaign by distributing brochures and writing letters. We have an exciting project for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual History Month: WHYY-Channel 12, our local PBS station is doing a screening of A Question of Equality, a new documentary chronicling the history of the gay rights movement. We are also having a youth panel discussion and a city councilman will issue a proclamation naming October as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual History Month. We also have a fabulous table at OutFest, Philadelphia's celebration on National Coming Out Day. Why are you involved with GLSTN? GLSTN fits naturally into my life and my skills (not my schedule)! I'm not just a lesbian. I'm a lesbian, a woman, a teacher, and a person who cares about youth. While there are other groups that are very important, GLSTN fits with who I am and what I want to do with my life. What are your hopes for GLSTN? On a pragmatic level, I want to help create a local chapter that will still be functioning if the entire board decides to quit the same day. We need to get and keep people involved while at the same time not burning anyone out. On a more global level, I don't want any kid in the Philadelphia area to go through school and feel alone or that her life is hopeless. My hopes include teachers who are out, happy and feel good about themselves. I also hope to see continued involvement of straight people in GLSTN. What do you do for fun? I love to nap. During the school year I don't get many chances to nap, but I've had a few this summer. I like to go on walks, to swim. I used to play rugby, but I haven't found a club in my area yet. I'm toying with the idea of swimming in the next Gay Games. Kathy (Fleming, of GLSTN/Philadelphia), Wendy (Leighton, of GLSTN/New Mexico), Suzanne (Horoschak, of GLSTN/New Mexico) and I were talking about it at the Institute. We'll see... FALL 1995 GLSTN/NATIONAL EVENTS CALENDAR THE BACK-TO-SCHOOL CAMPAIGN. A national effort in which lesbian/gay/bisexual adults write to educate their old schools on how homophobia shaped their experiences. Info: GLSTN/National, 212-727-0135. Manchester (NH), Wed 9/20, 7-9 pm ORGANIZING MEETING FOR GLSTN/NEW HAMPSHIRE. Guest Speaker: Executive Director Kevin Jennings. Info: Knox Turner, 603-463-5608. Portland,(ME), Thu 9/21., 7-9 pm ORGANIZING MEETING FOR GLSTN/PORTLAND (ME). Guest Speaker: Executive Director Kevin Jennings. Info: Rita Kissen, 207-766-5158 Boston, Fri 9/22 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COLLEGE ADMISSION COUNSELORS ANNUAL CONVENTION. GLSTN Executive Director Kevin Jennings will speak. Info: Ed Hu, 818-980-6692. Indianapolis, Fri-Sun, 9/29-10/1 P-FLAG NATIONAL CONVENTION. Come by the GLSTN table or sit on the two workshops facilitated by GLSTN!. Info: P-FLAG, 202-638-4200. October SECOND ANNUAL LESBIAN, GAY, AND BISEXUAL HISTORY MONTH. Focuses attention on the contributions of gay people to America's development. Many local activities. Info: GLSTN National, 212-727-0135. New York, Sat 10/7, 1:30 p.m. LESBIAN AND GAY HISTORY: DEFINING A FIELD, a conference sponsored by the City University of New York and the Center for Gay and Lesbian Studies. GLSTN Executive Director Kevin Jennings will speak. Info: Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies, 212-642-2924. Seattle, WA, Wed 10/11, 7 p.m. From the Arapaho to ACT-UP: A Slide Survey of America's Lesbian, and Gay History, a lecture by Executive Director Kevin Jennings based on his book Becoming Visible: A Reader in Gay and Lesbian History for High School and College Students. Hosted by GLSTN/Washington State. Info: Kirk Bell 206-548-0662. Portland (OR), Thu 10/12, 7-9 pm ORGANIZING MEETING FOR GLSTN/PORTLAND (OR). Guest Speaker: Executive Director Kevin Jennings. Info: Merry-Lynn Amesbury, 503-284-0214. Portland (OR), Fri 10/13, THE THIRD REGIONAL LESBIAN, GAY, AND BISEXUAL YOUTH CONFERENCE, at the Portland (OR) Conference Center. GLSTN Executive Director Kevin Jennings will speak. Info: 503-731-4029. Oakland, CA, Sat 10/14, 9 am-5 pm THE FIRST ANNUAL GLSTN/SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA CONFERENCE. Focuses on creating change on homophobia issues in K-12 schools. Features premiere of excerpts from DON'T LOOK THE OTHER WAY, a video from the RESPECT FOR ALL: ADDRESSING HOMOPHOBIA WITH SCHOOL-AGE CHILDREN SERIES, a new video by Academy-Award winning director Debra Chasnoff and Helen Cohen of Women's Educational Media. Co-hosted by the Bay Area Network of Gay and Lesbian Educators (BANGLE) and GLSTN. Info: Bob Latham, 510-234-3429. Los Angeles, Mon 10/16, 7 pm FROM THE ARAPAHO TO ACT-UP: A SLIDE SURVEY OF AMERICA'S LESBIAN, AND GAY HISTORY, a lecture by Executive Director Kevin Jennings based on his book BECOMING VISIBLE: A READER IN GAY AND LESBIAN HISTORY FOR HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE STUDENTS. Hosted by GLSTN/Los Angeles. Info: Bob Riddle 310-829-7391 ext. 223 Washington, D.C., Sat 10/21 NATIONAL LESBIAN AND GAY JOURNALISTS CONVENTION. GLSTN Executive Director Kevin Jennings will speak. Info: NLGJA, 707-823-2193. New York, Thu 10/26, 4 pm DIVERSITY RESOURCE COLLABORATIVE. Executive Director Kevin Jennings will speak. Info: Susan Hinkle, 718-852-3964. Washington, D.C., Sat, Nov. 4, 9 am-5 pm SECOND ANNUAL GLSTN/MID-ATLANTIC CONFERENCE. Focuses on creating change on homophobia issues in K-12 schools. Sponsored by GLSTN/DC. Info: Jill Karpf, 301-229-0496. Springfield, MA, Mon 11/6 THE NEW ENGLAND TEACHERS CONFERENCE. Executive Director Kevin Jennings presents FROM THE ARAPAHO TO ACT-UP: A SLIDE SURVEY OF AMERICA'S LESBIAN, AND GAY HISTORY. Info: AISNE, 617-849-3080. Minneapolis, Wed 11/8, 7 pm ORGANIZING MEETING FOR GLSTN/TWIN CITIES. Guest Speaker: Executive Director Kevin Jennings. Info: Rick Aarons, 612-825-2291. Chicago, Fri 11/10, 10 am-Noon. NATIONAL COUNCIL ON THE SOCIAL STUDIES ANNUAL CONVENTION. Executive Director Kevin Jennings presents FROM THE ARAPAHO TO ACT-UP: A SLIDE SURVEY OF AMERICA'S LESBIAN, AND GAY HISTORY, based on his book BECOMING VISIBLE: A READER IN GAY AND LESBIAN HISTORY FOR HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE STUDENTS. Site: Hyatt Regency Chicago. Info: NCSS 202-966-7840 ext. 108 or 109. Detroit, Sat 11/11, 9 am-7 pm 8TH ANNUAL NATIONAL LESBIAN AND GAY TASK FORCE CREATING CHANGE CONFERENCE, "EDUCATION TRACK" featuring workshops by Kevin Jennings, Arthur Likpin, Debra Chasnoff, and many more. Coordinated by GLSTN/National. Site: Westin Hotel, Detroit. Info: Sue Hyde, NGLTF, 617-492-6393. Detroit, Sun 11/12, 7 pm (tentative) ORGANIZING MEETING FOR GLSTN/DETROIT. Guest Speaker: Executive Director Kevin Jennings. Info: Frank Colasonti, Jr., 810-646-8784. ***** ***** ***** This document is part of THE GLSTN TOOLBOX, an online resource of practical information and tools, for educators, students, parents and community organizers, to help fight homophobia in K-12 schools. Founded in 1990 as a regional volunteer organization in Boston, The Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Teachers Network (GLSTN) today has over 20 chapters around the country and is the largest organization of teachers and community members dedicated to ensuring that all students are valued and respected, regardless of sexual orientation. GLSTN's work includes community organizing, providing programming to schools, and developing materials that teachers can use to raise awareness among their colleagues and students. Membership is open to all who are committed to ending homophobia in schools, regardless of sexual orientation or occupation. The GLSTN TOOLBOX is available from the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Teachers Network World Wide Web Site: http://www.glstn.org/freedom/ In the interest of sharing this information with others, you may copy and redistribute this document provided that all notices remain intact. You may not charge or make a profit from the redistribution of this material. If you have writing which you would like to contribute to The GLSTN TOOLBOX, please contact us by phone at (212) 727-0135 or by e-mail at glstn@glstn.org.