2025 ACSA Lead With Pride Summit

This interactive session will explore how K-12 educators and administrators can create affirming and equitable environments for LGBTQ+ students. Participants will engage with research-based strategies to address implicit bias, reduce microaggressions, and implement inclusive policies. The session will include an overview of California Education Codes, the importance of culturally responsive teaching, and actionable steps to foster student well-being. Attendees will be equipped with tools to advocate for systemic changes that improve school climates for all students, particularly LGBTQ+ youth.

3 Key Audience Takeaways:
Practical Strategies to Address Bias and Microaggressions
Understanding and Applying Legal Protections
Building Systems of Support

"But I don't feel like a girl." I can remember vividly the first time our beautiful twelve year old daughter shared those feelings with us. We didn't know what that meant or where to even begin. Over time, through a great deal of reading, having conversations with other parents, and collaborating with experts, my husband and I began to navigate through what can be a frightening process for so many. Over time and with a great team of supporters, our amazing child has grown into the happy, healthy, and thriving young man he is today. But the education system and familial challenges were immense at times, even for a veteran public school educator.

During this co-led session, Everett and Amanda will discuss highlights of what they have learned over the years as well as ways to navigate through the school and family hurdles in order to affirm and support young people in transition. They recognize and honor that every transition is incredibly personal and unique to that specific human, but they hope their story can shed a positive light on what can be a very scary and complex evolution for a family. Even through the difficulties, a great deal of beauty, awareness, and unconditional love have been discovered.

Learning Objectives: By the end of the presentation, attendees will have...
1. Tips and resources for navigating the public schools systems.
2. Ideas on working through challenges with family and friends.
3. Ways adults can support children including other kids in the family.

Through the slide deck, Everett and Amanda will combine their personal stories along with data, resources, and ways attendees can extend their learning. At the end of the presentation, there will be a question and answer period.Sharing their lessons learned, this mother and son will speak to challenges experienced inside and out of school, what they would have done differently, and how to support the other kids in a family during and after this unique experience.

Learn how two districts, San Francisco and Fresno, have created and continue to evolve systems for collaborative and equitable Gender Action Plans (GAPs). GAPs are a great way to empower staff to take meaningful and policy aligned action when supporting LGBTQ+ students and their families. In this politically fraught moment, helping folks know what can be done and said is crucial in turning policy into praxis. We will share our journeys and the tips we’ve learned along the way!
Key Audience Takeaways:
1. Understand how a GAP process can be used to create collaboration between school staff and families in order to meet the needs and uphold the rights of LGBTQ+ students.
2. Develop insight that will allow participants to iterate in the creation of their own GAPs and engender district-wide adaptation and ownership of GAPs.
3. Review materials used in two districts to assist you in reflecting on your own district’s process.