Saving Lives Now Project (SLNP)
Mission: To make our schools and communities more gender and LGBTQIA+ inclusive, with an intersectional approach; To reduce mental health disparities, improve wellness & strengthen social connections for LGBTQIA+ folks, especially youth.
Goal: For each school district/community to carry out all or some of the below projects. Along with each school/district and or community to have a point person to carry out the SLNP who can get support from APT.
The 5 Saving Lives Now Projects
1) Gender/LGBTQIA+ Inclusive/Anti-bias Advocacy Professional Development Trainings and consultations for schools/communities via Welcoming Schools and or through other like trainings.
2) APT Student Clubs (similar to GSA's, though also different) in elementary schools and beyond.
3) All Gender Restroom Signage & Availability for all single stall restrooms in schools and communities.
4) School district adoption of a Gender & LGBTQIA+ Inclusive Comprehensive Sexual Health Education curriculum in compliance with the California Healthy Youth Act (CHYA).
5) School district adoption of a general TK-12th grade gender/LGBTQIA+ inclusive curriculum.
Goal: For each school district/community to carry out all or some of the below projects. Along with each school/district and or community to have a point person to carry out the SLNP who can get support from APT.
The 5 Saving Lives Now Projects
1) Gender/LGBTQIA+ Inclusive/Anti-bias Advocacy Professional Development Trainings and consultations for schools/communities via Welcoming Schools and or through other like trainings.
- Help schools build foundations on how to teach LGBTQIA+ students and foster allies.
- AB-493 Teacher Training Bill: Schools, grades 7-12, provide teachers and certified employees with LGBTQIA+/Gender trainings at least once every 2 years. Elementary schools are recommended to be in alignment with this bill as well.
- 2021 CA Gov. Newsom, approved a final state budget that includes $3 million for LGBTQ cultural competency training for public school teachers.
2) APT Student Clubs (similar to GSA's, though also different) in elementary schools and beyond.
- APT, student led clubs, create a safe, welcoming, respectful, supportive space for every student where they feel comfortable to be their true authentic self; while making new friends and fostering allies.
- Several age groups depending on each school’s needs: K-2nd and 3rd-4th, 5th-6th.
- Sonoma County elementary and junior high schools APT Student Clubs are running in the following districts: Old Adobe Union Petaluma City, Rohnert Park Cotati Unified and Santa Rosa Unified.
- State bills that support APT Student Clubs:
3) All Gender Restroom Signage & Availability for all single stall restrooms in schools and communities.
- 61% of transgender and nonbinary youth reported being prevented or discouraged from using a bathroom that corresponds with their gender identity.
- APT has secured an official sign vendor partner: H. Toji & Company.
- H. Toji & Company agreed to give back to APT, 10% of all proceeds from our referral customer's orders, to support the LGBTQIA+ community.
- APT has created custom intersectional all-gender restroom signage.
- APT wants all schools & businesses in town and beyond to be in compliance, with all gender restroom signage.
- State bills that support the implementation of all-gender restrooms in schools:
- AB 1732 states all single stall restrooms in CA, by law, must have all gender signage. This legislation is from 2016 and the bill came into effect in 2017, though, a great majority of single stall restrooms do not have signage and are not in compliance.
- AB 760, requires that, on or before July 1, 2025, every school district, county office of education, and charter school provide at least one all-gender restroom for pupil use at all of its school sites. Each all-gender restroom is required to:
- Post appropriate signage identifying the bathroom facility as being open to all genders.
- Be unlocked, unobstructed, and easily accessible to any pupil; students will not have to request teachers, faculty, or school staff for access to the all-gender restroom.
- Be stocked with menstrual products.
4) School district adoption of a Gender & LGBTQIA+ Inclusive Comprehensive Sexual Health Education curriculum in compliance with the California Healthy Youth Act (CHYA).
- CHYA legislation requires that comprehensive sexual health education be gender/LGBTQIA+ inclusive; the majority of schools are not in compliance.
- APT is working with school districts to adopt a gender/LGBTQIA+ inclusive comprehensive sexual health curriculum that is in compliance with CHYA and state standards.
- The California Health Education website (state funded) is a tool schools can use to get in compliance with CHYA.
5) School district adoption of a general TK-12th grade gender/LGBTQIA+ inclusive curriculum.
- CA Ed code 233.5, which is under the Hate Violence Prevention Act (more detailed definitions in alignment with what a hate crime is and can be, here) and other CA laws such as the FAIR Act state that CA schools should be teaching about gender and the LGBTQIA+ community in schools as a general curriculum, which is different from gender and LGBTQIA+ inclusive comprehensive sexual health education.
- There is a distinct difference between LGBTQIA+ general curriculum and LGBTQIA+ sexual health curriculum; sometimes guardians do not know about and/or try to opt their kiddos out of learning this general curriculum, however, by law they cannot.
- The California Healthy Youth Act (CHYA) describes instruction or materials that discuss human reproductive organs and their functions as "sexual health education." Anti-bias trainings covering gender, sexual orientation or family life is not sexual health education, therefore, schools are not required to notify parents of gender/LGBTQI+ general curriculum instruction and parents may not opt their child(ren) out.
- The San Francisco Unified School District implements a general gender/LGBTQIA+ curriculum in their elementary schools and APT plans to advocate for this curriculum in other local school districts.
- If you would like to be a point person: