LGBTQ+ Equity Measures for Evaluating Technical Assistance Centers
GLSEN urged the U.S. Department of Education to include measures related to advancing LGBTQ+ equity in K-12 education systems in its proposed evaluation of Comprehensive Centers (see 86 Federal Register §51878). Comprehensive Centers provide technical assistance to state and local education agencies. The Department’s proposed evaluation included measures related to advancing equity and addressing the needs of students disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, however, no measures were included related to equity for LGBTQ+ students. GLSEN's comment recommends the addition of measures that will enable the Department to evaluate how Comprehensive Centers supported states and school districts in identifying and addressing the needs of all students who experience marginalization, including LGBTQ+ students and particularly those who are students of color, students with disabilities, students experiencing homelessness, or otherwise at the intersection of two communities that experience marginalization.
Update: The U.S. Department of Education adopted our recommendations to strengthen its evaluation of Comprehensive Centers. “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Non-binary, and Intersex [LGBTQ+] students” are now enumerated among “diverse learners." Furthermore, the Technical Assistance (TA) Recipient Survey now enables respondents to separately indicate whether they obtained technical assistance in supporting all student groups disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. Previously, no measures were available for LGBTQ+ students and students of color and only an aggregate measure was available for students experiencing homelessness, students in migrant families, and students in foster care.