Chicago Delays Vote on Gay High School

Arne Duncan, the Chicago Schools Chief Executive Officer said Friday the proposal to build the city’s first high school aimed at gay youths won’t go before the school board for a vote until the board’s November 19th meeting. The planned School for Social Justice Pride Campus was previously scheduled for a final vote Wednesday.

The Pride Campus plan has attracted national attention, and earlier this week, Duncan met with local ministers who blasted the plan. Duncan denied the delay was the result of the meeting.

Earlier this month, Duncan gave preliminary approval for the district to build the campus, designed as the city’s first school for gay, lesbian and transgender teenagers, but open to all teens.

You can read more about the proposed school here at GayAgenda.com.

OSU Looks at Safety for Gay Athletes

Oregon State University recently hosted a panel that discussed the safety (or lack thereof) of gay students and athletes. The panel was made up of Esera Tuaolo, former defensive tackle for the Minnesota Vikings, Julie Williams, a volleyball and track coach at Corvallis High School, and Kirk Walker, OSU’s softball coach. All three are out athletes and coaches, however their opinions differ regarding the proposed GLBT high school in Chicago.

Read the article by clicking here.

Chicago Steps Closer to Opening GLBT School

As reported earlier on GayAgenda.com, Chicago has been seeking safer alternatives for it’s GLBT student body. Pointing to studies showing that gay high school students are at greater risk of dropping out because of stigma and fear of violence, Chicago Public Schools leaders said they will be making the recommendation to open a campus for GLBT students.

Final approval of the School for Social Justice Pride Campus, which would be the city’s first school for GLBT students, is expected to become reality on October 22, when the city’s Board of Education votes.

Arne Duncan, the schools chief said he will ask the board to approve the school. Upon approval it will be expected to open in the fall of 2009. “We want to create great new options for communities that have been traditionally underserved,” Duncan stated. “If you look at national studies, you see gay and lesbian students with high dropout rates. . . . I think there is a niche there we need to fill.”

Hopefully with this type of forward thinking, unfortunate events, such as the murder of Larry King, will diminish.

Chicago Plans for a LGBT High School

In an attempt to provide a safe environment for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered, and questioning high school students, the Chicago public school system is considering opening a high school for LGBTQ students.  The school would be open to anyone wishing to attend and attendance would on a volunteer basis.

Over one third of Illinois students stated in a 2006 survey that sexual orientation and gender identity are the most common reasons for bullying and harassment in schools. 75 percent of the students surveyed said they heard anti-gay remarks from other students on a regular basis and more than 80 percnet have heard students make comments such as “that’s so gay” or “you’re gay.”

Although I appreciate the efforts of the Chicago Public School System to provide safe learning environments, I feel strongly it would be better if we didn’t have to separate our students. This reminds me of the days of segregation in the old south. Perhaps the Republicans are getting their way after all.

Read more at windycitymediagroup.com.