Two Boston Public Schools — Haley Pilot School and Mozart Elementary — received the Human Rights Campaign’s Seal of Excellence for their dedication to creating LGBTQ+ inclusive school environments.
“In the midst of outrageous legislative attacks on families and students across the nation by lawmakers who wish to silence and erase the LGBTQ+ community in our schools, we’re inspired by educators who are going the extra mile to create truly welcoming schools,” said Cheryl Greene, HRC Foundation’s director of Welcoming Schools, in a June 21 press release.
“Creating LGBTQ+ and gender-inclusive schools means embracing and welcoming all students and families as their authentic selves – it is simply the right thing to do. Educators want to create wholesome environments in which students can learn, grow and thrive. Welcoming Schools gives educators the resources to do just that. We’re incredibly proud of Haley Pilot School and Mozart Elementary for their commitment to supporting and affirming all families and students.”
Says HRC:
Welcoming Schools provides educators “with the tools and training to embrace teachable moments, interrupt bias-based bullying, support transgender and nonbinary students and be prepared to answer important questions about LGBTQ+ and gender topics with students and families. The program offers LGBTQ+ and gender inclusive professional development training, lesson plans, booklists and resources specifically designed for educators and youth-serving professionals.
Schools earning the Welcoming Schools Seal of Excellence (SOE) demonstrate, with documentation, specific benchmarks, including policies that are in place and enumerated to all aspects of diversity; an established Welcoming Schools leadership team; completing the Welcoming Schools staff development modules; hosting school family nights; and having books from Welcoming Schools bibliographies that are publicly available to all students in the library/media center and classrooms, among other important benchmarks.
More: hrc.org
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