Heather Latter
The Rainy River District School Board celebrated inclusive schools last Thursday during a student symposium of LGBTQ-Straight Alliance school-based programs.
More than 60 students in Grades 8-12, from four different school boards, gathered at La Place Rendez-Vous for a day of keynote speakers and workshops.
“We had an outstanding selection of speakers and great student representation,” enthused Superintendent of Education Casey Slack.
“Some very important messaging took place, particularly with the purpose of building inclusive schools,” he noted.
“But also having provided an opportunity for young people to develop self-confidence in themselves and what they are about.”
The first keynote speaker was human rights activist Jenna Tenn-Yuk, who is a spoken word artist from Toronto.
“As a Chinese-Jamaican woman who is gay and Christian, I have been an insider and outsider in many communities,” she noted.
“These experiences have given me the perspective to speak on many issues and themes, and encourage audiences to embrace their multi-layered stories.”
Tenn-Yuk taught the students about the power of their voices and their stories.
“I know what it’s like to be silent in my own story,” she remarked, telling the students there is power in “living our truths and the ways which we can connect with people, educate, and combat stigma through our own stories.”
“LGBTQ issues might be really overwhelming for people or they may not understand or have met someone with those experiences,” Tenn-Yuk added.
“So talking to people about their experiences can help them understand and get that perspective,” she suggested.
“So I really want to help students recognize their value and worth, and encourage them to share their stories and connect with those around them where it feels safe.”
Tenn-Yuk also hosted a workshop entitled “Power of Your Voice,” where one of the activities saw the students write down one of their fears.
“Then we read them out loud,” she noted.
“They can be so scary when it’s stuck in our head. But when we can release it and say it out loud, it can have power,” she reasoned.
“And then we burned the fears outside just to kind of release them.
“I think they felt really empowered hearing them and knowing they are not alone in their experiences,” she added.
Tenn-Yuk conceded students are not always going to connect with everyone in the room.
“But if there’s one person in the room who really resonates with what you have to say, or dealing with race and sexuality and how these different parts of our identity intersect, it can really challenge how we exist in this world,” she remarked.
She added she does a lot of work with Catholic schools in Toronto and enjoys being able to “talk about the complexities and nuances of how it’s not black and white—there is so much gray.”
“I hope I’ve helped the students realize they are not alone in their experiences.”
Slack called Tenn-Yuk’s message “very compelling.”
“It was about discovering oneself and articulating confidence in who they are and becoming a compassionate human being,” he noted.
“About being an agent of change so that it resonates throughout society and makes communities safer for LGBTQ, their allies, and people in general.”
The other keynote speaker was 2012 Olympic gymnast Rosie Cossar, who was the first openly “out” competing rhythmic gymnast in the world and has been advocating for LGBTQ inclusion in sport.
Workshops also were hosted by the board’s Mental Health Leader, Sarah Irwin-Gardner, student leader John King of Atikokan High School, and Ma-Nee Chacaby, who is a Two-Spirit Ojibwa-Cree elder.
Meanwhile, Alyx Duffy (youth program co-ordinator and facilitator) and Kevin Welbes Godin (OECTA–Special Project Co-ordinator: Equity and Inclusion) from Egale Canada led a “community cafe” focus group during lunch about what the students want to see happen in their schools and communities.
Slack was thrilled with how the symposium went and feels it made a difference.
“We found that when we provide leadership opportunities for students that they develop in themselves a sense of confidence about moving forward as agents of change when they return to their own school communities,” he noted.
“And I think what this provides today is an opportunity for them to network support.
“I think people made connections today that will be firmed up moving forward.”
Slack added he expects there will be a greater sense of community in the schools.
“When we had our LGBTQ symposium two years ago, we now have GSAs in all three high schools and two of our elementary schools,” he said.
“It’s messaging around developing a sense of community and, at the same time, removing stereotypes, bullying, alienation.”
Slack said with the compelling message woven throughout the day, he didn’t see any students bored or disappointed.
“There was a positive energy and a sense of pride,” he enthused, noting they are planning to host the event again next year.
“I’d like to challenge the student leaders here today to move forward with increased courage and conviction about building more inclusive schools and wider communities to support LGBTQ youth,” Slack told the students at the end of the symposium.
“It’s needed, and I hope you connected and made significant allies here through the course of the day.”
“I hope you learned something today, something that you can take back to your schools to really influence the culture at you school to really make it more inclusive for everyone—no matter where they come from, who they are, or how they identify,” added student leader McKenna Begin.
