Message from:
The Coalition for Safer Schools of NYS, PO Box 2345, Malta, NY 12020
Email to: SARATOGANY@aol.com
The Real or Perceived Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered Student Protection Project

SUPPORT.......NYS Legislation..The Dignity for All Students Act of 2001

FYI
SAN RAMON VALLEY UNIFIED NCES ID: 0635130

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Location/Contact
Address: 699 OLD ORCHARD DR.
DANVILLE, CA 94526-4331
County Name: CONTRA COSTA County FIPS Code: 06013
Phone: (510)552-5500
Fax: (510) 838-7802

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San Ramon Valley Times, April 24, 2001
524 Hartz Avenue, Danville, CA, 94526
(Fax: 925-837-4334 )
(Online Mailer: http://www.contracostatimes.com/contact_us/letters.htm )
( http://www.contracostatimes.com/community/srvt )
http://www.contracostatimes.com/community/srvt/stories/task_20010424.htm

Conservative voice wants place on diversity panel
San Ramon Valley officials are considering a task force to study how gay, lesbian issues should be handled, taught

By Kyra Kitlowski, Times Staff Writer

DANVILLE -- As San Ramon school officials prepare for a voluntary staff workshop about issues that gay and lesbian students face, talk of a separate task force to tackle these same issues is creating controversy.

If members of the gay and lesbian community are on that task force, conservatives want to be part of it, too.

Earlier this month, district officials said they were considering creating a task force to examine how diversity issues should be handled and taught in the district.

Terry Koehne, the district's public information coordinator, couldn't say Monday when this task force will be formed or who will be on it.

"We don't have the time or resources to put together a task force prior to the end of the school year," Koehne said. "How such a committee will come together is not yet determined."

Superintendent Rob Kessler said he expects to create such a task force this fall.

Merrie Dillow and her husband Bob don't want gay and lesbian issues talked about in schools. If such a diversity task force is created, they said, they will demand more conservative ideals also be represented.

Merrie Dillow said that after speaking to many parents in the district, she has found much concern that the group will try to promote gay and lesbian issues.

Koehne stressed that the task force has never been about making such issues part of the district's curriculum, but rather about tolerance and respect for all people.

An official from the Gay Lesbian and Straight Education Network said she understood her group will have a seat on the task force.

"As far as I know, that's the last official word I have," said Ann Acrey, co-founder of the San Francisco East Bay chapter.

Acrey stressed she will not be disappointed if the group is not represented. "It's not important if (our group) specifically is on the task force," she said. "It's important to me that while they are talking about diversity issues, they cover gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender issues and it's not just racial diversity. That's the bottom line."

The workshop Wednesday is a voluntary session to focus on issues surrounding gay and lesbian students.

Titled "Gay and Lesbian Youth: Breaking the Silence," the workshop is sponsored by the San Ramon Valley Education Association and will be presented by the California Teachers Association.

Janet Terranova, education association president, said that when she heard the district was trying to tackle diversity issues after a gay Charlotte Wood Middle School teacher was criticized on a student's Web site, she immediately thought of the program CTA provides.

Terranova said the workshop will provide tools for staff and teachers to correct misinformation about homosexuality and give participants ways to reduce hostility towards gay and lesbian students.

Terranova stressed the workshop is intended for district staff and teachers.

· Kyra Kitlowski covers San Ramon Valley schools. Reach her at 925-743-2219 or kkitlowski@cctimes.com.
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This message has been distributed as a free informational service for the expressed interest of non-profit research and educational purposes only.
PRIMER WEBSITES
GLSEN --- Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network
www.glsen.org
Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund
www.lambdalegal.org
Safe Schools Coalition of Washington
www.safeschools-wa.org

The P.E.R.S.O.N. Project Home Page
www.youth.org/loco/PERSONProject/

Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays
www.pflag.org
Empire State (NY) Pride Agenda
www.prideagenda.org
GLAAD
Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation
www.glaad.org
LIGALY Long Island Gay and Lesbian Youth
http://www.ligaly.com/
Unity Through Diversity
http://www.geocities.com/WestHollywood/Castro/3212/

"The Real or Perceived Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgendered Student Protection Project"
("Being safe at school should not be a radical concept".. Jamie Nabozny)

A project of:
Coalition for Safer Schools of New York State

John Myers

Director of Operations and Programs
PO Box 2345
Malta, NY 12020
(518) 587-0176

Email: saratogany@aol.com

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