After I published my story on the 20th anniversary of the Gay-Straight Alliance at Phillips Academy Andover, I received this letter from alumna and writer Robin Chotzinoff, who now lives in Texas. She shares not only her reaction to how times have changed, but also what her 11-year-old daughter is doing to support LGBT rights.
(Originally published in Bay Windows, February 26, 2009. I did this piece to cover a local event, but I thought it might be of wider interest. Phillips Academy Andover has the second-oldest gay-straight alliance in the country—though it is perhaps better known for being the school of George H.W., George W., and Jeb Bush. Stay
The award-winning film about teaching LGBT inclusion in schools, It’s STILL Elementary, is having its national television premiere this Saturday, March 7, on LOGO at 8 p.m. EST. I interviewed Academy Award-winning director Debra Chasnoff in 2007 about the film. She also spoke about her film That’s a Family, which caused a brouhaha in Evesham,
Thanks to Steven at Book Dads for letting me know about Share a Story – Shape a Future: A Blog Tour for Literacy, which will kick off one week from now on March 9. The tour is “an ensemble effort not only to celebrate reading among those of us who already love books, but to
Sometimes, signs of progress pop up in unexpected places. The Chicago Tribune this weekend ran a piece titled “Preschool FAQ,” by Heidi Stevens, who regularly writes on parenting for the Tribune. There’s nothing remotely LGBT-specific about it; it’s all about addressing questions that any parent, LGBT or not, might have if her or his child
(Originally published in Bay Windows, Thursday Feb 19, 2009.) Last week I registered my son for his first year in our public school system. It was one of life’s strange coincidences that news also broke last week about my very own state representative, House Minority Leader Bradley Jones, who filed a bill to require parental
Passing along this information from COLAGE about their 2009-10 Fellowship Program. Any questions, please contact them. (Info at bottom of post.) In addition to the Fellowship below, COLAGE also awards four $1000 scholarships to children of LGBTQ parents. See their Web site for more details. The application deadline for the scholarships is May, 1, 2009,
Today marks the first anniversary of the murder of openly gay teen Larry King (who identified as Letitia King in the weeks before the murder). I feel like a broken record, once again trotting out my list of safe schools resources, plus a few additional ones from GLSEN and PFLAG, as well as an update
The folks at the big G are holding a “Doodle 4 Google” competition, and want K-12 students to play around with the Google homepage logo to see what new designs they come up with. The competition is open to all students in U.S. schools from kindergarten to grade 12 (including private schools and all homeschoolers).
Today marks the start of No Name-Calling Week, “an annual week of educational activities aimed at ending name-calling of all kinds and providing schools with the tools and inspiration to launch an on-going dialogue about ways to eliminate bullying in their communities.” The event was created five years ago by GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian, and Straight
