As of Nov. 27, the  Gay Straight Alliance club has begun to ask teachers throughout the school to make their classrooms “safe rooms” for homosexual students. These safe rooms will become a safe haven where a lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) student can go to get support for any issue or problem involving their sexual preferences or gender issues.

“The signs show that teachers inside will protect students and make sure that words like ‘gay’ aren’t used as  insults,” said  Gay Straight Alliance club sponsor Melissa Schumacher.

All of the safe classroom teachers pledge to help LGBT students through their issues and to help nurture and support the students.

“They have to say that they value diversity and if [LGBT students] were to come to them in confidence, that they wouldn’t share that information unless the student planned on hurting themselves or others and to give them equal treatment regardless of their gender or sexual orientation,” Schumacer said.

Though only 15 teachers have made their rooms safe so far, the  Gay Straight Alliance club is planning on expanding more in the future.

“The students sent personal letters to teachers asking if they would be willing to post the signs in their rooms and I had also sent an email to the Language Arts department to see if any of them would like to put them up. We haven’t sent out a staff-wide email but we don’t want to create the idea that those who haven’t posted signs aren’t supportive,” Schumacer said.

For any student who is intrested in learning more about the safe rooms, the 15 that have pledged to become one are:

Jeff Landow, rm 144

Meghan Finely, rm 154

Jennifer Pautz, rm 149

Lisa Donovan, writing center

Amy White, rm 160

Jennifer Ingram, rm 158

Cheryl Hermach, rm 90

Nathan Willard, rm 285

Margaret Bargeon, rm 91

Paul Jaycox, rm 146

Tracy Gladden, rm 92

Dawn I-F, rm 150

Crystal Gray, rm 153

David Choate, rm 187

Jean Peters, rm 183