OCEANSIDE — Oceanside Unified has been recognized as one of the state’s top supportive school districts for LGBTQ students, according to a new report.
The Equality California Institute, the nation’s largest LGBTQ civil rights organization, recently released its 2022 Safe and Supportive Schools Report Card, which collects and shares school districts’ efforts to implement and follow legal requirements and best practices around school climate issues in California.
School districts across the state were included in the report card’s findings and rated based on how well they provide support and affirming spaces to LGBTQ students. Oceanside Unified was one of the top 19 districts to receive the “Spotlight” designation, the highest designation a district could receive from the report.
The district was recognized for its efforts around five factors: school climate, cultural competency training, transgender and gender-nonconforming student supports, curriculum and suicide prevention.
“The principle underlying all of this is that these policies affect students’ real experiences in schools,” said Chris Negri, program co-director at Equality California. “When districts do not implement these policies, that experience is worse.”
The report was released on National Coming Out Day on Oct. 11, the same day State Superintendent Tony Thurmond visited Oceanside High School to honor the district for its efforts.
Thurmond also helped mediate mediate a panel of school administrators, board members and students who discussed how far the district has come in the last four years when it comes to protecting and supporting LGBTQ+ students.
The report also recognized San Diego Unified as a Spotlight district. Meanwhile, Carlsbad and Poway were recognized at the second tier as “Foundational,” and Vista Unified was recognized as a “Priority.”
The Equality California Institute reached out to all of the state’s 343 unified school districts to participate in the report card, of which only 118 responded. Local districts that did not respond include San Marcos, Bonsall, Coronado, Alpine, Ramona and Valley Center-Pauma Unified.
The report recognizes how far districts have come over the last several years with implementing welcoming and supportive policies, including anti-bullying efforts and suicide prevention. It also acknowledges that there is still more work to be done in many of these schools, including providing safe access to bathrooms for transgender and gender non-conforming students.
Thurmond acknowledged California’s progressive efforts in supporting the LGBTQ community come at a time in the nation’s history when other states are banning books and refusing to talk about LGBTQ issues.
Equality California backed Assembly Bill 1732, which requires single-occupancy restrooms in California businesses, government buildings and places of public accommodation to be universally accessible to all genders. The law, signed by Gov. Jerry Brown in 2016, became the nation’s most progressive restroom access law.
Thurmond and Equality California also backed AB 493, known as the Safe and Supportive Schools Act of 2019, authored by former Assemblymember Todd Gloria (D-San Diego), which requires educational staff to receive training on school sites and community resources to be available to support LGBTQ students.
Districts like Oceanside and San Diego have also implemented an “OUT for Safe Schools” program that provides further training to teachers and staff. According to Jordy Sparks, director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Oceanside Unified, staff who go through the program wear badges that indicate they will provide a safe, allied space for LGBTQ students and a willingness to intervene in harmful student situations.
“We ask people to walk out with commitment,” Sparks said about the program.
Superintendent Julie Vitale applauded the district’s teachers and administrators, who engage in conversations with community members when school materials like books or other content are questioned.
Vitale also recognized how things have changed for herself as a superintendent and a fellow member of the LGBTQ community.
“I’m a proud, gay superintendent of the Oceanside Unified School District, and I’m able to say that because of this board of education and this community who believes that everyone belongs and everyone deserves to be loved,” Vitale said. “I couldn’t have said that 12 years ago, but I can say that today.”
While progress has undoubtedly happened in supportive districts like Oceanside, some students believe more work needs to be done. Marius Montoya, a junior at Oceanside High School, noted that while the district has a good foundation with a policy that supports LGBTQ students, enforcement efforts are still sometimes lacking.
Mio Holguin, a senior at Oceanside High School, noted that their history classes have not fully integrated LGBTQ history into the school’s curriculum.
“Maybe having more curriculum in history or English would be beneficial for students trying to unlearn hate,” Holguin said.
