1. Dr. Tim Brauch & Wes Heath 16 th Annual Fort Wayne Teaching Conference IPFW February 22, 2013

2. How would you respond to a student? Safe Zone training is a way to learn how to respond.

3. Safe Zone is a student run training program. It has two objectives:  To make it easier to identify individuals who are empathetic and informed about queer issues, as well as the struggle of those moving towards allyship, and who are willing and able to provide support, information and confidentiality  To visibly demonstrate that Manchester University supports queer people and those who wish to become allies, and is working to educate and raise awareness within the University community

4. Important things to remember:  It is student run. It is not a top-down approach developed by HR or the administration.  It is voluntary.  It is about allyship.  It provides training but the most important part of the training is recognizing when you aren’t prepared to handle a situation.

5. People whose jobs involve “counseling” students:  RAs, HDs, Residential Life, Health Services, Campus Safety Other people choose to participate:  Faculty, staff, students, anyone else who wants to be an ally.

6. Many people get trained because their jobs require them to interact with LGBT people in ways in which the “LGBTness” is relevant to the job.  An RA needs to be able to interact with a gay student who lives on the floor. Other people participate because they are allies (or want to be allies) and make people feel comfortable. Some people participate because they are a member of the LGBT community and want to show that they offer a safe place.

7. Allyship and ally have been mentioned a few times. Allyship is one of major goals of the program. Allyship means a person who is not part of a group or class who supports the people who are part of the group or class.  For example, a straight person who supports LGBT people.  Other examples include lesbian and gay people who support transgendered people.

8. It is not meant to handle all possible situations. There are a few major modules or units that get covered:  Guidelines, vocabulary, myths & facts  Coming out  Sexuality  Gender  Allyship  Referrals

9. One of the biggest things to take away from Safe Zone training, especially for faculty, is the use of vocabulary. We know that certain words can hurt. There is a lot of confusing terminology within the LGBT community. It is important to note that everyone is an individual. Just because one person prefers to be called gay or queer doesn’t mean all LGBT people will prefer those terms.

10. LGBTQQIAA…  Lesbian  Gay  Bisexual  Transgender (as opposed to cisgender)  Queer (isn’t it bad to call someone queer?)  Questioning  Intersex  Asexual  Ally LGBTQIA seems to be picking up academic credibility  UMKC, Vassar, Lehigh, Amherst & Penn use LGBTQIA

11. There is some debate about the terms sex and gender. Sex refers to biological make-up, whether a person has XY or XX chromosomes. Gender refers to societal norms associated with a sex. Not everyone agrees with these distinctions.

12. Many languages have a gender neutral pronoun. English has one in the plural, “they,” but not in the singular. Some people, but not all people, use or prefer certain gender neutral singular pronouns. SubjectObjectPossessive AdjectivePossessive NounReflexive He ran.I hugged him.His brain hurts.That is his.He dresses himself. Ze ran.I hugged hir.Hir brain hurts.That is hirs.He dresses hirself. Per ran.I hugged per.Per brain hurts.That is pers.He dresses perself. Ey ran.I hugged em.Eir brain hurts.That is eirs.He dresses enself. Zie ran.I hugged zir.Zir brain hurts.That is zirs.He dresses zirself.

13. One of the biggest problems faced in Safe Zone training is scheduling.  It is a 2 or 4 hour training. There is some fear about “guilty by association.” The trainers have to be trained to train.

14. Use inclusive language where possible and be consistent.  Such as in syllabi or in exam questions.  Don’t ask one student about a boyfriend/girlfriend and another student about a partner. Jokes from other students (surely not you…) Someone in class says, “That’s gay,” or “He’s such a fag.” Don’t point someone out.  Most people would find it offensive if you asked a person of color to speak for all people of color. Don’t ask a gay student to speak for all LGBT students.  Just because a student is out to you doesn’t mean he or she is out to everyone.

15. Real life scenarios that students at Manchester University have had happen in the classroom.

16. Questions?