Youth Resource Guide

A recent national survey of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) students found these sobering results:

• 85% of LGBT youth reported that they sometimes or frequently hear homophobic remarks in their school (words such as "faggot," "dyke," or "queer").
• Almost half of these youth (46.5%) reported that they heard homophobic remarks from other students.
• About one-quarter of the youth (23.6%) reported hearing homophobic remarks from faculty or staff.
• Almost half of the youth (46.1%) reported that faculty or staff were either never present when such remarks were made or never intervened when present.

For all young people, feeling that school is a hostile or unsafe place interferes with their ability to learn:

• 69% of LGBT youth surveyed reported experiencing some form of harassment or violence in school.
• Students who said they had experienced anti-gay harassment were 6 times more likely than their non-harassed peers to skip at least one entire day of school in the past month out of fear for their safety.

The availability of positive resources about LGBT-related issues and supportive faculty or staff can go a long way in creating a more positive school climate for youth. On average, however, only a third of youth surveyed reported having access to LGBT-related resources in their schools. Further the direct impetus for the creation of this guide arose from requests to the New Jersey Lesbian and Gay Coalition by school staff for resources and information.

The purpose of this guide is to take a step in addressing these needs. It has a two-fold purpose: its statewide distribution is intended to raise awareness among school administrators, teachers, counselors and support personnel about the needs of the often invisible GLBT students in their midst. Unfortunately, GLBT students are only too good at hiding, hoping to remain invisible in order to avoid rejection, harassment, or worse. In addition, the guide is intended to provide a ready source of information, referrals, and resources in New Jersey for LGBT youth, their families, their friends and the educators who work with them. The organizations, agencies, websites, and guides listed herein are often not widely known. We hope that by compiling them in one easy-to-use reference guide that we will be assisting you in better meeting the needs of all your students.

Please share this guide with anyone who might best make use of it, and check for updates and expanded resources through the NJLGC/PLF web site "http://www.njlgc.org/publications/youth_guide/".

All statistics, unless otherwise noted, are from the 2001 National School Climate Survey. GLSEN (www.GLSEN.org). The 1999 National School Climate Survey, GLSEN (www.GLSEN.org) Directory, p. 34