Principals’ Perceptions of Community Resilience and Their LGBTQ+ Students

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 5:10 pm Four Seasons Ballroom 1
  In Roundtable Session: Navigating the Political Landscape: LGBTQIA+ Youth and Educators' Experiences and Perceptions Amidst Anti-LGBTQIA+ Policies (Table 4)

Abstract

With school being a place where students spend most of their time, it is disheartening to see how dangerous these spaces can be for LGBTQ+ students. The Trevor Project’s 2023 U.S. National Survey on the mental health of LGBTQ+ amplifies the experiences of more than 28,000 LGBTQ+ young people from ages 13-24 across the United States. According to their estimates more than 1.8 million LGBTQ+ young people (ages 13-24) seriously consider suicide each year in the U.S. and at least one attempts suicide every 45 seconds (2020). Given these statistics, how do middle school principals perceive LGBTQ+ students and their ability to adapt and be resilient in middle schools?

Authors

• Jean Madsen, Texas A&M University

• Christian Rauch, Texas A&M University