Almost out

[Shana A]

Almost out

Many gay and lesbian students feel unsafe and may be harassed, assaulted, discriminated against, shunned

By Jacqueline Reis TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

http://www.telegram.com/article/20081202/NEWS/812020648/1006/NEWS07

When Rodney M. Glasgow was a high school student at an all-boys private school in Baltimore, he didn't tell anyone he was gay.

"I didn't feel safe enough to even process" those thoughts, he said. He didn't come out until he was a senior in college. Now, as director of diversity at Worcester Academy and adviser to the school's Gay-Straight Alliance, he wants to make sure the campus is welcoming to students of any sexual orientation.

He and members of other gay-straight alliances around Worcester County are important agents for improving school climates for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students, according to a national study released this fall.