History of gay straight alliance

A gay–straight alliance, gender–sexuality alliance (GSA) or queer–straight alliance (QSA) is a student-led or community-based organization, found in middle schools, high schools, colleges, and universities. Our club was first recognized by the University on December 18, under the Office of Student Activities. Each club would function under different fundamental ideas: the idea of activism Spectrum and community support Unity. The club historically joined Spring Hill College P.

A Gay-Straight Alliance, or GSA, is a youth-led school or community group organized for the purpose of supporting LGBTQ youth and straight allies through discussion, action, friendship, and advocacy. Our privacy statement is changing. Changes will be in effect July 31, Gender and Sexuality Alliances or Gay-Straight Alliances GSAs are student-organized clubs that aim to create a safe and welcoming school environment for all youth regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.

Though most histories trace the first gay-straight alliance to the elite private Concord Academy in Massachusetts in , with Phillips Academy soon following, the George Washington High School. That startling question, asked by a senior in Ernest Van Seasholes' current affairs class, is how Seasholes recalls the beginning of a new era at Newton South High School, in Newton, Massachusetts. What should I say? That is how, in the fall of , Bob Parlin came out to the students at Newton South, and in the process, helped spark a dialogue that continues in high schools across America today.

In , we formally changed our name to Genders & Sexualities Alliance Network (formerly Gay-Straight Alliance Network) after hearing from countless youth leaders who understand their genders and sexualities to be uniquely theirs and have moved beyond the labels of gay and straight, and the limits of a binary gender system. After becoming a highly independent organization, we amicably left GLSEN and became a self-governing c 3 organization in - when we became known as Gay Straight Alliance for Safe Schools. In we announced that we were officially changing our name to "GSAFE', a long-time organizational nickname, recognizing that the phrase "Gay-Straight Alliance" is not representative of the many identities that make up our community. With intentional planning and a commitment to cultivating steady streams of revenue and sources of support, GSAFE has grown from an all-volunteer organization operating under a larger national body to an independent c 3 with three full-time staff and one half-time staff.