Research and Evaluation
Chicago Public Schools, Youth Risk Behavior Survey
Data recently released by Chicago Public Schools (CPS) from the 2003 Youth Risk Behavior Survey finds lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) students experiencing higher rates of violence as compared to their heterosexual peers. Among other elevated risk factors, LGB youth are three times more likely to skip school due to feeling unsafe than their heterosexual peers, almost two times more likely to have been in a fight at school and almost three times more likely to have attempted suicide in the past year. LGB students report higher rates of depression and sexual assault. LGB students make up 6.5% of the student body and 8.5% of students report same-sex sexual behavior, accounting for over 9,000 high school students in the district.
The Chicago data is the first large data set in the country of urban LGB students in which a majority identifies as people of color. In Massachusetts, where similar data has been collected for over 10 years, the state implemented the Safe Schools Program for Gay and Lesbian Students and was able to cut in half, over 4 years, the number of LGB students reporting being in a physical fight on school grounds. “Realistically, we expected to see these results because we’re very familiar with the data nationwide, but it’s still shocking to see such differential risk factors for LGB youth as compared to their peers,� said Dr. Stacey Horn, Assistant Professor of Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago and lead evaluator on the project, “We will continue to work in partnership with the Chicago Public Schools to improve overall school climate through annual professional development for school personnel on these issues.�
For more information, please see our Resources section.
Evaluation
Evaluation of processes and outcomes is also a large part of the project. The Alliance has two qualified evaluators to design assessment tools, document processes, administer surveys and interviews and analyze data. Evaluation results of this project will add to the growing body of literature that both documents violence against GLBT youth and recommends interventions to combat it.
Assessing School Climates
Funding received from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has allowed us to develop evaluation instruments we can now utilize in our work. These include two tools that help us assess school climate: an interview with key school personnel and a survey for students that addresses bullying, harassment and violence on the basis of ethnicity, religion, gender and sexual orientation. Another instrument is a pre- and post-survey for participants of our trainings to gauge short-term attitudinal changes and knowledge gained and long-term, sustainable changes in knowledge, attitudes and behaviors. The Alliance firmly believes in supplementing any purely quantitative work with qualitative pieces so that the voices of youth and adult participants can be heard and shared. The Alliance distributes all findings to its stakeholders, to the funder, to the participants and their school/organizational affiliations, and for publication through mainstream and scholarly press.