1. #educatewithpride board@safeschoolsnc.org SafeSchoolsNC
Courageous Leadership
Dr. Jen Benkovitz, SafeSchoolsNC Board Member
jenb@alumni.unc.edu
@jbenkovitz
Susan Wells, Founder, TechTerraTM Training
wellssusans@gmail.com
@wellssusan
Making a Plan -- strategies and resources to directly
identify and address inequitable practices and to promote
positive, inclusive and safe school communities

2. #educatewithpride board@safeschoolsnc.org SafeSchoolsNC
Courageous Leadership
Dr. Jen Benkovitz, SafeSchoolsNC Board Member
jenb@alumni.unc.edu
@jbenkovitz
Susan Wells, Founder, TechTerraTM Training
wellssusans@gmail.com
@wellssusan
Making a Plan -- strategies and resources to directly
identify and address inequitable practices and to promote
positive, inclusive and safe school communities

3. Courageous Leadership
Guiding Questions
Why is this work important?
What implications does the research have for our leadership in
schools/school systems?
How can we directly identify and address inequitable practices?
How can we promote positive, inclusive and safe school communities?
What steps can we take when we return to our schools/school systems?

4. Courageous Leadership
Introductions
Name
Role
What brings you here today?
What are your hopes for our time together?

5. What’s difficult or scary for you about discussing LGBT topics in your
school community/classrooms?
Courageous Leadership
Sharing Our Stories (Microlab)
Why is it important to talk about LGBT topics in your school
community/classrooms?
How do you think your students and staff know what they know about
LGBT people?
Why is this work important to you?

6. Consider the following while watching the video clips and discuss with
your table group.
What surprises you or stands out for you?
What are the implications for your own work with staff and students?
What can we learn from these children?
Video 1: What Do You Know? 6-12 Year Olds Talk About Gays and
Lesbians
Video 2: LGBT HS Students Share Their Experiences
Courageous Leadership
Understanding the Issues - Student Perspectives (Making Meaning)

7. Consider the following while reviewing the Research handouts and discuss
with your table group.
What do you see?
What questions does this text raise for you?
What is significant about this text?
How might this text influence your work as an administrator?
Courageous Leadership
Understanding the Issues - Reviewing the Research (Making Meaning)

8. After reading your resource handouts:
Summarize
Provide 2-3 examples
Conduct a “gallery rotation.”
What do you notice?
Courageous Leadership
Resource Dive (Gallery Rotation)

9. Project into the future and thoroughly describe what it looks, sounds and
feels like having accomplished your goals and vision. Speak in present
tense as this has already happened.
Courageous Leadership
Making a Plan (Back to the Future)
Look back from your projected future and describe how it looked when
you started? Speak in past tense.
Connect your projected future to the past by explicitly answering “how”
you moved your organization from the past to the projected future. Speak
in past tense.

10. Gallery Rotation
With your table group, brainstorm some challenges that existed in
accomplishing your vision (projected future)? Choose one and write it
at the top of your chart paper.
As you move around the room and read the challenges, list suggestions
in the remaining space.
Return to your original chart paper and review solutions.
Debrief
Courageous Leadership
Making a Plan, continued: Challenges and Solutions

11. Connections Guidelines: Speak if you want. Don’t speak if you don’t want to.
Speak only once until everyone who wants to has had a chance to speak. Listen
and note what people say, but do not respond.
Questions for consideration:
What was comforting/comfortable?
What did you find challenging?
What are you wondering about?
What do you want to remember?
What one step can you commit to upon returning your school/school community?
Courageous Leadership
Reflections (Connections)

12. Courageous Leadership
Links to Session Resources
Videos Protocols Handouts & Protocols
1. What Do You Know?
6-12 Year Olds Talk
About Gays and
Lesbians
1. LGBT HS Students
Share their
Experiences
1. Microlab
1. Making
Meaning
1. Back to the
Future
1. Connections
1. http://tinyurl.com/cl-research
1. http://tinyurl.com/cl-resourcedoc
1. http://tinyurl.com/cl-protocols

13. #educatewithpride contact@safeschoolsnc.org SafeSchoolsNC
Courageous Leadership
Contact Us
Dr. Jen Benkovitz, SafeSchools Board Member jenb@alumni.unc.edu @jbenkovitz
Susan Wells, Founder, TechTerraTM Training wellssusans@gmail.com
@wellssusan