Our advocacy efforts are focused on the systems that work together to advance our mission.
Systemic change is a long game that requires new curriculum policy at the state level, investment in teacher preparation, and clear and consistent communications with stakeholders – which is everyone. We are providing guidance for educational leaders and politicians as they craft new policies mandating the inclusion of LGBTQ-inclusive curriculum in their state, ensuring all schools can invest in our curriculum, and supporting collaborative efforts to build family and community support.
POLICY
Our leadership team co-authored the National Council for the Social Studies Position Statement on contextualizing LGBTQ-inclusive curriculum (2019). Our guidance recommendations for states crafting new curriculum policy outline how the policy will be realized within the calls-to-action in the position statement, including a timeline for communications to school and district leaders, school staff, and parents, and funding teacher preparation.
INVESTMENT
The teaching of history and social studies has always had unique challenges. This fact is more pronounced today, as we, as a nation, are trying to reconcile with historic discrimination. And introducing LGBTQ-inclusive content is layered with even more complexities which prompt new implications and considerations for educators. Because of this, we have developed a whole-school, sustainable model and we work hard to ensure it is accessible to all.
COLLABORATION
Building community support is complex, and our team of experts is uniquely prepared, with decades of experience, to collaborate with stakeholders to build support for LGBTQ-inclusive curriculum. We help educators navigate potential disagreement by incorporating unique considerations for classroom teachers, school and district leaders, as well as offering informational sessions for families, school committees, and community members.
"Like History UnErased, we want to make sure that the students and educators who come after us are not just better off, but are better than us, better at understanding, better at empathy, better at creating a world where all people belong." - Tina L. Haefner, President of NCSS
States with Mandates for LGBTQ-inclusive Curriculum
| STATE | POLICY | BILL SPONSOR | EFFECTIVE | SUMMARY |
| California | Senate Bill 48 | Sen. Leno & Sen. Kehoe; Rep. Ammiano, Atkins, Gordon, & Lara (principal co-authors) | 1/1/2012 | Education Code Section 60040 directs governing boards to only adopt instructional materials that “accurately portray the cultural and racial diversity of our society.” That section already included a number of groups, and was amended to include all of those in Section 51204.5 as listed above. Finally, the legislation provides a reminder to charter and alternative schools that they are also prohibited in engaging in discrimination per Section 235 of the Education Code. |
| Colorado | HB19-1192 | Sen. Julie Gonzalez & Rep. Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez & Rep. Bri Buentello | 7/1/2019 | Current law requires school districts to convene community forums to discuss the content standards in history and civil government at least once every 10 years. The act requires the forums to be held at least every 6 years. |
| Illinois | House Bill 246 | Rep. Anna Moeller & Sen. Heather Stearns (principal co-authors) | 7/1/2020 |
Amends the School Code. With regard to the textbook block grant program, provides that the textbooks authorized to be purchased must include the roles and contributions of all people protected under the Illinois Human Rights Act and must be non-discriminatory as to any of the characteristics under the Act. Provides that textbooks purchased with grant funds must be non-discriminatory. Provides that in public schools only, the teaching of history of the United States shall include a study of the roles and contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in the history of this country and this State. |
| New Jersey | S1569; A1335 | Assemblyman (Asm) Reed Gusciora, Tim Eustace, Asw Valerie Vanieri-Huttle, Mila Jasey, & Joann Downey | 7/1/2020 |
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed a law requiring Boards of Education to include instruction, and adopt instructional materials, that accurately portray political, economic, and social contributions of persons with disabilities and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals. |
| Oregon | House Bill 2023 | Rep. Frederick, Gallegos, & Keny-Guyer (Chief Sponsors) | 1/1/2020 |
"A school district must first offer instruction that meets the academic content standards...no later than the 2026-27 school year" (Section 2.3.a); "Every district school board...are responsible for the adoption of textbooks and other instructional materials...[which] shall adequately address the roles in and contributions to the economic, political and social development of Oregon and the U.S. by men and women who: (5) Are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. (Section 3.1-5) |
| Nevada | A.B 261 | Assemblywomen Anderson, Brittney Miller, and Considine Joint Sponsor: Senator D. Harris | 7/1/2022 |
Section 1. Chapter 389 of NRS is hereby amended by adding thereto a new section to read as follows: 1. The board of trustees of each school district and the governing body of each charter school shall ensure that instruction is provided to pupils enrolled in kindergarten through grade 12 in each public school within the school district or in the charter school, as applicable, on the history and contributions to science, the arts and humanities of: (a) Native Americans and Native American tribes;(b) Persons of marginalized sexual orientation or gender identity; (c) Persons with disabilities; (d) Persons from various racial and ethnic backgrounds, including, without limitation, persons who are African-American, Basque, Hispanic or Asian or Pacific Islander; (e) Persons from various socioeconomic statuses; (f) Immigrants or refugees; (g) Persons from various religious backgrounds; and (h) Any other group of persons the board of trustees of a school district or the governing body of a charter school deems appropriate. 2. The standards of content and performance for the instruction required by subsection 1 must be included in the standards of content and performance established by the Council to Establish Academic Standards for Public Schools pursuant to NRS 389.520. The instruction required by subsection 1 must be: (a) Age-appropriate; and (b) Included within one or more courses of study for which the Council has established the relevant standards of content and performance. |
| Is your state next? | Which state policy looks the strongest to you? |
You can reach out to your State Representatives and Senators, as well as your School Committee, requesting they author/sponsor similar bills. You can find all of your political representatives here. |