by Miki Thomas

This time of the year, the time when the buses come out of summer mothballs to bring kids back to school, does not make many wax nostalgic for their own school days. As the recent spate of school shootings and bomb threats prove, the school experience can be anything but positive. This is especially true for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered youth, who often have to face the wrath of their peers and are often at a great risk for suicide. Fortunately, educators, counselors, and the GLBT youth themselves are working to change this situation and several have Web sites that feature resources on how to create a safe educational environment.

The Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network is a nationwide organization of nearly 85 chapters (including one in Putney, VT) that, according to its mission statement, "strives to assure that each member of every school community is valued and respected, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity." GLSEN's site has an extensive online 'library' of articles on community activism, organizing, and anti-homophobia training in schools, reference materials and links to other sites that deal with GLBT youth and their families.

Youth Pride, Inc. of Providence, RI offers an online guide called Creating Safe Schools for Lesbian and Gay Students: A Resource Guide for School Staff. This all-in-one source for educators not only spells out the problems that GLBT face on a daily basis, but offers suggestions on how to solve them.

The P.E.R.S.O.N. Project — Public Education Regarding Sexual Orientation Nationally — has a rather quixotic mandate: to promote the addition of GLBT history into the nation's K-12 curriculum. If you want to know more about the P.E.R.S.O.N. Project, check out its site. There you can read its brochure and organizing handbook as well as news and action alerts.

Many GLBT youth have taken it upon themselves to create safe schools by organizing Gay/Straight Alliances. This undertaking is not without controversy (just ask any GLBT high school student in Utah), but GSAs do provide a space where GLBT youth can get together to educate their peers and teachers on homosexuality and homophobia and to simply have fun with social events. For a list of GSAs in Vermont, go the Vermont Gay/Straight Alliances Home Page.

If, by chance, you survive your high school years relatively intact, college could possibly loom on the horizon. Like your non-gay counterparts, paying for college can prove to be a problem. However, there are financial aid options specifically for GLBT students. FinAid, an online listing of scholarships and loans, provides information on such scholarships. The site offers listings in general, regional, and campus-specific categories.

Once on campus, you might notice the presence of fraternities and sororities, with members staffing rush tables and putting up posters for 50 keg parties. These anachronistic institutions exist for the most part to give rich, spoiled brats an opportunity to engage in anti-social behavior. However, if you do belong to either a fraternity or a sorority and are gay to boot, there is now an organization called Lambda 10 that addresses concerns and issues related to the GLBT Greek experience. It features a number of educational resources for those involved in the Greek system.

As for me, I'm too lazy to even consider going back to school for anything other than basket weaving or something along those lines. However, if school is on your docket this fall, don't forget that the Internet is a wonderful resource for serious (and not so serious) research not to mention a great way for some mindless surfing after a killer round of studying.

FYI

The recent visit of the Phelps family to Vermont has brought the same-sex marriage issue once again to public consciousness — although their vitriol threatened to overshadow that very issue. To discuss and learn more about same-sex marriage without the added distraction of the Phelps clan or groups such as Take it to the People, witness one via Webcast.

On OUT.com on October 16 at 7pm, Jeffrey L. Newman, president and COO of gfn.com and CEO of OUT.com will marry Jeffrey W. Parker, a men's accessories designer. It is the first ever gay wedding to be broadcast on the web and it the wedding participants hope the broadcast will show the importance of marriage to many in the GLBT community.

Copyright © 1999 Mountain Pride Media, Inc.