Citywide Campaign to Support Gay and Lesbian Students

Mayor Thomas M. Menino, the Boston School Committee, and Superintendent Thomas W. Payzant announced today that Boston will launch a citywide effort to support gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered students in the city's public high schools.

The Safe Schools Project will be funded by a $40,000 grant from the Massachusetts Department of Education. The grant will fund the hiring of a central project coordinator, training programs for students and staff, and technical assistance for the creation and support of Gay/Straight Alliances (GSAs) for students. Although individual Boston public schools have received Safe Schools funding in the past, this is only the second grant of its kind awarded to launch a systemwide program, with Springfield being the first. Boston Public Schools committed an additional $5,000 to support the effort.

Mayor Menino said, "I often say that the number-one challenge we face as a city is to ensure a quality education so that no one - not one student - gets left behind. I'm proud that this program will help give every student - gay or straight - access to the tools they need to succeed."

"Quality teaching and learning can only take place in schools where students feel safe, supported, and ready to learn," added Superintendent Payzant. "We know that truancy, drop-out, and suicide rates are much higher among gay and lesbian students. We must provide our school communities with resources to ensure that these at-risk students - and all of our students - come to school, stay in school, and receive a quality education in a nurturing environment."

Officials announced the grant during a 1:00 p.m. kickoff event at Boston High School, which is one of several public high schools in the city with a Gay/Straight Alliance and a gay and lesbian awareness curriculum already in place. The preliminary goal of the new initiative is to create or strengthen Gay/Straight Alliances and other supports in 15 Boston high schools. The school system will work in partnership with the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) to implement the program. A task force composed of BPS teachers, administrators, State officials, and private partners has been meeting since last spring to design the program.

Kim Westheimer, School Program Coordinator for the Department of Education, presented the grant on behalf of Commissioner David Driscoll. Lesa Lessard of the Governor's Commission on Gay and Lesbian Youth, which collaborated with DOE to launch the Safe Schools Program in 1993, also addressed the more than 50 attendees.

Also in attendance at the event were students from Gay/Straight Alliances at the Boston Arts Academy, who spoke about the impact of homophobia on gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered youth, as well as their straight peers.

• According to the Massachusetts Department of Education Youth Risk Behavior Survey (1997), 22% of gay, lesbian, and bisexual students reportedly skip school because of safety concerns, compared to 4% of their peers.
• The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services estimates that gay and lesbian youth account for one-third of all youth suicides and that 28% of gay and lesbian youth drop out of school because of discomfort in the school environment.

The Boston School Committee has adopted policies prohibiting harassment and discrimination of students and staff based on sexual orientation, and approved in 1994 recommendations to provide training, counseling, and support for gay and lesbian staff, students, and their families.