Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Safe Schools Seminar Series

Hi everyone,

Here's the schedule for the MSU Safe Schools Series. If you aren't familiar with Safe Schools, it is an organization that promotes education and discussion in the teacher education department around issues of sexual orientation and gender identity. The group and the sessions welcome anyone who would like to learn more! (And there's always free pizza!)

Seminars for Spring, 2008

Transgender Issues in Education

Award-winning author, performer, and educator S. Bear Bergman will visit share insights, stories and perspectives on the experiences of transgender people in schools. This event will be entertaining and informative.

Wednesday, February 6, 2008, 5:00-7:00 p.m. Erickson Kiva


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Legal Rights & Responsibilities

Attorney Jay Kaplan from the ACLU will return to provide an overview of the teachers’ and schools legal rights and responsibilities towards GLBT students, teachers, and parents. He will also give us an update on the current legislation affecting Michigan schools, including the school bullying bill.

Thursday, March 13, 2008, 5:00 – 6:30 252 EH Erickson Hall


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Identity in the Classroom: Traversing Teacher's Multiple Identities

What issues arise as a teacher enters the classroom? How does a teacher's "identity(s)," be it related to race, gender, sexual orientation, etc., impact his/her/hir interactions with not only students, but with parents, colleagues, and administrators? This seminar will allow participants to think through the complexity of their own identities and ask questions perhaps left un-asked in their curriculum.

Wednesday, April 2, 5:00-6:30, 252 EH Erickson Hall

4 comments:

stewa307 said...

I believe that having safe school seminar series will really help the children see and understand what is going on in society today. The seminar will probably help some of these issues not be such of a shock to the children when they really see and experience these things. I also believe that having the seminar series will probably help the children not pre judge others.

Valerie W. said...

I would add that it isn't just the adults who need education on these issues!

Eboni C. said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Eboni C. said...

I agree these are such great seminars that I wasn't aware that MSU had I will definitly try to make it to the seminar thursday because I believe that we do need to educate parents as well as teachers and students about these issuses in which is now such a huge part of our society today.

I recently saw an article on how a young boy i think in 8th grade was killed because he said he was gay....just some recent info I found. Its sad that people can't be accepted for the way they are