QYTF

Safe Schools Project of Santa Cruz County

A Project of the Santa Cruz County Queer Youth Task Force (QYTF)

Mission Statement:

The mission of the Santa Cruz County Safe Schools Project is to raise awareness of the harsh atmosphere queer youth face on school campuses in Santa Cruz County, advocate for the enforcement of AB 537, The California Student Safety & Violence Prevention Act of 2000, and be a catalyst for action in each Santa Cruz County school district to make schools safer for all youth.

Overview:

Under the California Student Safety and Violence Prevention Act of 2000 (AB 537), all California public schools have a duty to protect students from discrimination and/or harassment on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. The California Safe Schools Coalition authored a report in 2004, The Safe Place To Learn Report, highlighting that when students are empowered with the knowledge of their safety rights and when school administrators enforce AB 537, schools have proven to be safer for all students.

The Safe Schools Project of Santa Cruz County (SSP) works in collaboration with local schools and local and state-wide community organizations to help guarantee the enforcement AB 537 locally, avoid duplication in resources and services, and utilize successful models where they may exist to support safer schools for LGBTIQ youth and their allies.

The overall goal of SSP is for every queer and queer-friendly student, parent, and staff person in the K-12 system within Santa Cruz County to be knowledgeable of AB 537 and the rights that each has to be safe on campus without bullying or harassment.

Objectives:

• Create a “Safe Schools Evaluation Report” on the status of safety for queer youth in each school district.
• Identify “safe persons” (faculty and staff) within each school district regarding AB 537 enforcement.
• Work with school administrators to create a “safe schools campaign” within each school district.
• Work with PTAʼs, Site Councilʼs, adult allies, and “community teams” within each school district.
• Raise awareness of each school districtʼs enforcement of AB537.
• Maintain a resource website for the Safe Schools Project in English and Spanish.

Safe Schools Projectʼs Organizational Partners:

• United Way/Together for Youth
• Temple Beth El
• Triangle Speakers
• STRANGE, a program of Youth Services, Santa Cruz County Counseling Centers, Inc.
• The Diversity Center
• Gay/Straight Alliances (GSAʼs)
• UCSC Lionel Cantú GLBTI Resource Center
• Friday Night Life Partnership, a program of Santa Cruz County Health Services Agency

Contact: