Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) students face a unique set of safety concerns each day. Over 85% report being harassed because of their sexual or gender identity, and over 20% report being physically attacked. Far too often teachers and administrators do nothing in response. In part because of this, the suicide rate for LGBT students continues to be 3-4 times higher than that of their straight counterparts, and in some parts of the country LGBT runaways may comprise up to 40% of the entire teen homeless population. This brief describes those issues, presents concrete policy recommendations, and then offers model statutory code language to implement many of those recommendations.
