A Gender and Sexuality Alliance is a student group centered around the empowerment, and education of the Queer community for Queer identifying  students, and passionate allies. GSA’s are student groups  whose members explicitly address LGBTQ+ topics in an affirming and representative way. In doing so, these clubs raise awareness of diverse gender and sexual identities at school, and can have an impact on overall school climate through education and advocacy efforts. They also help LGBTQ students to meet, support, and affirm one another. According to the Trevor Project, “LGBTQ youth are not inherently prone to suicide risk because of their sexual orientation or gender identity but rather placed at higher risk because of how they are mistreated and stigmatized in society.” GSA’s are a suicide prevention, and the safety of Queer kids is the first priority. Many GSA’s serve as a social opportunity for students to connect with one another as a means of support and connection, however my GSA’s are student centered and driven, and provide lessons each week to promote each student’s skills in areas such as:

• Self Advocacy
• Setting Boundaries
• Queer History
• Representation in Media
• Ways to Interrupt Assumptions