Supporting LGBTQIA+ Students and Staff: Creating Safe and Affirming Spaces

Authors : Hannah Kelly , Michelle Woodbridge , Sara Gracely

Hands of different colors together

We encourage school communities to create and maintain a culture of safety of expression for all students and staff, particularly those who identify as LGBTQIA+. In our first blog of this series, we presented an annotated glossary with some of the current terms and definitions related to identities of sexuality or gender. In our second blog, we provided information to help you understand and use pronouns that demonstrate respect, understanding, and care for all individuals. In our final blog of this 3-part series, we suggest ways you can create safe and affirming spaces for your LGBTQIA+ students and school staff.

What are affirming spaces?

Affirming spaces are those that offer a welcoming and safe environment for LGBTQIA+ youth and adults to authentically express their identity. Affirming spaces also support educators and other school staff to become competent in working with diverse populations and empower school and district leaders to design and enact fair, respectful policies and practices that promote positive school climate.

Why do affirming spaces matter?

Messages from popular media and society about LGBTQIA+ people often highlight deficit narratives around trauma, stigma toward LGBTQIA+ people, and “coming out” stories. While all these things can be part of the LGBTQIA+ experience, youth who see these messages repeated across contexts can have a negatively skewed idea of what life might look like for them in the future.

School is a prominent place in students’ lives where some of the deficit narratives can be countered, explained, or reframed. Educators and other adults can model and help LGBTQIA+ youth see both the complicated parts of embodying an LGBTQIA+ identity and the joy they can find in self-expression and living as the full individuals they are.

Affirming spaces are particularly important when considering the fact that LGBTQIA+ youth experience higher rates of mental illness and suicide risk compared to straight, cisgender peers. Data show significant rates of LGBTQIA+ youth who seriously considered suicide (more than 40%)—with LGBTQIA+ youth of color reporting even higher rates, and these data have not changed over years (Trevor Project, 2023 U.S. National Survey on the Mental Health of LGBTQ Young People). LGBTQIA+ youth are not inherently prone to mental health and suicide risk because of their sexual orientation or gender identity; these statistics likely reflect the effects of bullying, harassment, assault, and lack of accountability when incidents are reported.

What can I/we do to create affirming spaces in schools?

Harm reduction can be significant when LGBTQIA+ students and staff feel that their teachers and colleagues care about them; affirming spaces are associated with 34% lower odds that these individuals will attempt suicide and lower rates of anxiety and depression (Trevor Project, 2023). To create affirming spaces and demonstrate your respect, care, and regard for LGBTQIA+ students and staff, commit, invest, and sustain efforts to do the following.

  1. Create a culture of safety of expression for all students and staff.
    • Support, nurture, and empower LGTBQIA+ students and staff who are open about their identities by doing the following.
      • Sponsor and host LGBTQIA+ student/staff groups.
      • Honor achievements of current and historical figures who identify as LGBTQIA+.
      • Display images of LGBTQIA+ allyship prominently throughout your space.
      • Review school laws and policies that protect LGBTQIA+ people’s access to school facilities, sports teams, and student organizations.
      • Review existing school processes, guides, and forms to make sure that they are inclusive of LGBTQIA+ identities.
      • Establish and improve policies and guidelines for responding to victimization.
      • Refer families to community and informational resources to support and affirm their LGBTQIA+ children and loved ones.
    • Acknowledge that there are other LGBTQIA+ students and staff who are in the process of discovering their identities and need role models and allies to support them; they may be looking to others to see whether it is safe for them to share their identities and how to do so. To support and show care for these individuals, do the following.
      • Create spaces for LGBTQIA+ individuals to have safe and supportive conversations with mentors and allies.
      • Create connections between the school community and local LGBTQIA+-affirming community programs and organizations.
      • Make referral and resource lists easily available to individuals with information about LGBTQIA+ organizations.
      • Share joy and positivity about the LGBTQIA+ community, contributions, culture, and achievements.
  2. Demonstrate empathy, open-mindedness, and nonjudgement by listening and being open to new ideas and information. You can demonstrate this care and support by doing the following.
    • Get clarity on current terms and definitions related to identities of sexuality or gender and practice them. Identities are not simple, and we all need to practice them and be prepared to fail, apologize, and course correct. (See Blog #1 Supporting LGTBQIA+ Students and Staff: Glossary of Terms)
    • Use the name, pronoun, and/or gender identity people use for themselves—even when they are not present. Correct others when they slip up. (See Blog #2 Supporting LGTBQIA+ Students and Staff: The Power of Pronouns)
    • Use forms and questionnaires that include space to indicate the name that individuals use (if different from “legal” or “given” name) and optional questions about sexual orientation and gender identity.
  3. Continually educate yourself and others. Disseminate and update information, provide and participate in training, and create and use materials that demonstrate respect, understanding, and a willingness to learn more.
    • Regularly provide and participate in in-depth trainings for all educators and staff, including those that specify federal protections (FERPA, Title IX, Equal Access Act, First Amendment) and state and local policies (e.g., on bullying and harassment, suicide prevention/school-based mental health); discuss regularly how to implement these protections and policies widely and equitably, and share information with the school community and families.
    • Set up space and time for you and your colleagues to learn and reflect, question your knowledge (e.g., How do you know what is true?), discuss how you can integrate new information into your thoughts and actions, and be accountable for your words and actions.
    • Facilitate referral networks to external specialists (such as counselors or mental health professionals) who work with the LGBTQIA+ community when specific expertise, advice, or support is needed to meet the needs of the school community.
    • Engage with the LGBTQIA+ community—go to events, welcome families to schools, build relationships with students and their families, and listen to and make human connections with your colleagues.

Where can I learn more?

Tags: LGBTQIA+