Strategies to Support LGBTQ+ Students in High Schools: What Did We Learn in Chicago Public Schools?

Abstract

In 2013, the Chicago Public Schools district received funding from the Division of Adolescent and School Health at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to implement a series of strategies aimed to reduce HIV, STIs (sexually transmitted diseases), and related risk behaviors among students. One such set of strategies included “safe and supportive environments” (SSE), aimed to support lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning, and other LGBTQ+ students. SSE strategies included professional development and technical assistance provided to K–12 school staff (teachers, administrators, social workers, etc.) to implement the following practices: support for transgender and gender nonconforming students in accordance with district guidelines, use of LGBTQ+ inclusive curricula, posting of signs and symbols of support, and creation of Genders and Sexualities Alliance student clubs. To monitor progress and performance, both quantitative and qualitative process measure data were collected. Quantitative data consisted of key metrics such as number of staff trained and surveillance data collected through school health profiles in collaboration with the CDC. Qualitative data were gathered to understand barriers and facilitators to implementation of SSE practices via interviews with 55 school staff members and four focus groups with 31 high school students. Results indicated an increased uptake of all SSE activities across the 5-year funding period. Findings also reveal additional needed supports, such as increased availability and offering of professional development for all staff, support for staff in engaging parents, and ensuring the LGBTQ+ inclusive sexual health education curriculum is experienced as such by students. Current work to address these needs is described.

Trends in diversity-related learning among secondary schools in 35 US states, 2014–2018

“…Recent increases in both pre-service and in-service teacher training and professional development (PD) offerings related to diverse, culturally relevant teaching and curricula may also support the implementation of classroom-based opportunities for students to learn about people who are different from them (Bottiani et al, 2018; Brown et al, 2019; McKenney et al, 2017). When teachers receive PD related to teaching students from various cultural backgrounds and identities, not only does teacher-self efficacy related to meeting the needs of diverse students increase (Choi and Mao, 2021; Christ and Sharma, 2018; Jarpe-Ratner et al, 2022; Johnson, 2011; McAllister and Irvine, 2002; Payne and Smith, 2011), but students are more likely to perceive supportive instructional environments and student-centred practices and experience confidence and comfort within the school community (Jarpe-Ratner et al, 2022; McAllister and Irvine, 2002; Payne and Smith, 2011).…”

Queer and transgender joy: A daily diary qualitative study of positive identity factors among sexual and gender minority adolescents.

“…Among the extant literature, SGMA use pride flags and other rainbow symbols to express their membership in the LGBTQ+ community, experience positive feelings upon seeing such symbols, and interpret them as social safety cues, such as indicators of a place, organization, or person’s supportiveness and affirmation (Wolowic et al, 2017). Similarly, the display of affirming badges, stickers, posters, and signs in school spaces or worn by teachers was found to signal that the school environment was more inclusive (Jarpe-Ratner et al, 2022). Overall, these symbols represent social safety cues that affirm and provide a sense of safety and inclusion.…”

HPP Celebrates Pride

“…In HPP ’s articles, LGBTQ people are not “studied”—they are engaged, they are experts, they are organizers, they are activists, they are thought leaders, and very often, they are coauthors. They share tools and strategies for supporting youth, such as Florida’s Theatre Connect (Pufahl et al., 2021) and Chicago public schools’ “safe and supportive environments” (Jarpe-Ratner et al., 2021). They warn of “disparity fatigue” (Mendez et al., 2019) and temper our enthusiasm for online solutions if the online world is a dangerous place (Gerke et al., 2020).…”