So, I started a GSA in my high school... :D

[Izumi]

I actually thought it would be a hard task to start one.
Seeing as the people in my school... are very judgemental of this topic. But my principle Mr. Abell really liked the idea and aproved it! : D

Also, since i work for the school newspaper i'm publishing an article about the GSA club, which is now called People to People in my school.

I thought of combining anti-bullying, racism, and sexism in with GSA. and it's turing out to be great. Alot of people are already going to join the club next year. ^_^
I'm really proud of myself.

tips for meetings are welcome~ <3

[TheEdend]

That's amazing! Congrats on having the drive to go ahead and start one You are helping to create a place that many people will be looking for as they try to come out.

The meetings are tricky to plan. The tip that I can give you is to give each meeting a focus, whatever that might be. Talk about things that people want to listen to and some that they should learn about. You could also bring speakers to some meetings and things like that.

GLESEN has a pretty awesome guide for GSAs that can give you some ideas and you can also register your GSA and they will help you with free things for events such as the Day of Silence or Ally Week.

And ALWAYS keep in mind that its suppose to be fun for you! Don't let the stress stop you from enjoying yourself. Let yourself make mistakes and learn from them

You are doing an awesome thing here. Best of luck

[roborama]

our gsa is really great well at least in my opinion hahaha. its awsome you started one in your school! theres a ton of things you can do...

ours we try to show a movie once a month (however sometimes we have so much to do we have to skip it!),

theres awareness days you can partake in like day of silence but also ones you can plan in your school independently.

talking at a staff meeting to all the teachers has been really productive in trying to curb bulyying at our school.

and trying to meet up with other simular groups throughout the area is reallyyyyy beneficial. actually next week our gsa is having a joint meeting with the gsa in the other high school!

we start our meetings with a high/low where we talk about the best and worst part of our week or just ask an ice breaker type question (this helps cut down on talking and get us focused and everyone seems to like to talk about themselves sooo)

we even have educated debates on things like sterotypes or roles ect.

hopefully something in that rambling mess was helpful. good luck!

[Izumi]

Thanks to both of you ^_^
Your advice and comments were very flattering and useful~
I'm super pumped about the new GSA.
Perhaps I'll post pictures when its up and running

[polysemiology]

Awesome on starting a GSA! And, it's great that your principal was on board! Sometimes, the administrative bureaucracy can be the hardest part of the whole process.

Linking all the different kinds of discrimination and promoting awareness around the ways they intersect sounds like a great idea!

I would suggest (like TheEdend) to reach out and try to link up with other groups. Find nearby-ish GSAs, or an LGBTQ community centre at close cities or information/resources from reputable websites. (I don't know anything specifically that might be in Kentucky/The States 'cause I'm in Canada, but good luck!)

[bbm2k]

Congratulations!!!!

I encountered many problems at my high school when I attempted to start a GSA a few years ago. I went as far as to contact the ACLU and they were pursuing the situation throughout my senior year and after my graduation.

I'm glad you didn't have any problems!

[Izumi]

Thanks for the congrats ^_^
I'm super pumped about next year.. though i am stressing to some of the freshmen that it is NOT a dating service.
Some of them seemed to get the wrong idea...