Explore our education work:
Teach and Affirm
With a program called Teach and Affirm Students in New Jersey, GSE and community partners—Make It Better for Youth, North Jersey Pride, GLSEN Central New Jersey, HiTOPS, Spectrum Diversity, the Innisfree Foundation, New Jersey Coalition for Bullying Awareness and Prevention, Gender Rights Advocacy Association of New Jersey, and ACLU-NJ—plan to empower schools to be safe and affirming learning spaces for all students, including LGBTQ students, students of different racial/ethnic backgrounds, and students with disabilities.
GSE and partners are asking that schools show their commitment to the kinds of policies and outcomes that, research shows, make safe and inclusive learning environments where bullying has no place. GSE and partners will measure schools based on a wide variety of outcomes, including, but not limited to whether they have affinity groups, such as GSAs (Gay Straight Alliances, or as they’re increasingly called, Gender Sexuality Alliances), where minority students and allies can provide one another social support and advocacy opportunities; whether the schools have health curricula that is inclusive and affirming of LGBTQ persons and persons with disabilities; and whether schools have dress codes that allow for transgender and other gender nonconforming students to express themselves.
GSE and partners are engaging in concerted outreach to schools. If schools think they already meet the outcomes, the schools will be lauded on the Teach and Affirm website. If schools feel as though they need help in meeting the outcomes, GSE and partners will provide extensive assistance to ensure that the schools can eventually be lauded. Learn more about making your school more affirming to LGBTQ students at our Safe Schools & Inclusive Curriculum Trainings page.
LGBTQ-Inclusive Lessons and Resources
The LGBTQ-Inclusive Lessons & Resources Pilot Program study was conducted from January 2020–June 2020. The intent of the LGBTQ-Inclusive Lessons & Resources Pilot Program was to examine the application, experiences, and outcomes of the application of LGBTQ-inclusive lessons and resources. The LGBTQ-Inclusive Lessons & Resources Pilot Program included the development of LGBTQ-inclusive lessons across all content areas, professional development training for teachers and administrators, information sessions for community members, and data collection and analysis.
Anti-Bullying
GSE is tackling issues integral to bullying, such as the “school-to-prison” pipeline, where punitive school policies push students out of schools and into incarceration. GSE is studying policies promulgated by NJ’s Juvenile Justice Commission (JJC) that regard sensitivity to LGBTQ residents of JJC establishments, to see where GSE’s advocacy is needed, and how to better project LGBTQ youth from the depredations of our juvenile justice infrastructure.
Underscoring Garden State Equality’s commitment to the universal safety and dignity of students, our Anti-Bullying Helpline provides help to people who need to navigate the process for filing a Harassment, Intimidation, and Bullying (HIB) complaint under NJ’s ABBR. To contact our Anti-Bullying Helpline, call 1-877-NJBULLY. You may call whether you are a bullied student, or the parent or concerned friend of a bullied student.
Educators for Equality
The mission of Educators for Equality is to provide networking opportunities and support for LGBTQ+ educators and their allies in order to ensure an inclusive and safe environment for all educators in the state New Jersey. Learn more and request to join the Educators for Equality Facebook group.