Announcing: Menstrual Dignity for Students Toolkit  

The Oregon Department of Education is pleased to share the Menstrual Dignity for Students Toolkit which outlines requirements and recommendations for districts as they implement the Menstrual Dignity Act of 2021 in a way that centers student equity and menstrual dignity. 

The Toolkit, which was released last week, will be a companion to schools as they begin to provide menstrual products in all student bathrooms, providing best practices aligned with the core considerations of privacy, access, inclusivity, and education.

While the new law and the Toolkit create the opportunity to increase student attendance and engagement with school, now it’s up to all of us, including local districts, staff, students, and community partners, to work together towards menstrual dignity. 

Questions? Reach out to ode.menstrual-dignity@state.or.us. 

Cover image by Oregon Department of Education. 

Sex Ed Spotlight: Supporting Transgender Students 

November’s Transgender Awareness Week and the Transgender Day of Remembrance invites all Oregonians to uplift and affirm Oregon’s transgender, non-binary, gender-expansive, and two-spirit students. The Oregon Department of Education (ODE) acknowledges the need for education equity that affirms transgender students, and dismantles Oregon school climates that have shown to perpetuate identity-based bullying[1], suicidal ideation[1], increased sexual violence[2], and fear-based absences[2] for LGBTQ2SIA+ students. 

LGBTQ2SIA+ students in Oregon have been generous with their feedback in a number of statewide spaces, which we want to honor by centering and celebrating Oregon students’ own words—and examining how we can use these as call-to-actions as adults who support them: 

• “The complexity of my humanity cannot be defined in polar terms.” [3] 
• “When the teachers seem like they want to get to know me, that made me feel valued.” [4] 
• “When my health teacher said a homophobic joke, I tuned out.” [4] 
• When they were asked what their best day or best moment at school was, one student said, “The first day of school because I could give my chosen name and come out [as transgender].” [4] 
• “Spaces set aside for diverse students (Latino club, LGBTQ+ clubs) are the safest spaces, but feeling safe should not be limited to a meeting or room.” [4]  
• “[Even if a teacher] messes up my pronouns, I can tell they’re trying because they acknowledge it and apologize.” [4]  

Please see below for relevant K-12 resources to strengthen support for students of trans experience: 

ODE Gender-Affirming Resources

• LGBTQ2SIA+ Student Success Plan, ODE, June 2020 
• LGBTQ2SIA+ Inclusive Student-facing Menstruation Resources, Menstrual Dignity for Students Toolkit, ODE, November 2021 
• Supporting LGBTQ+ Student Mental Health: Safe and Affirming School Climates During Distance Learning Webinar, ODE & Oregon Health Authority (OHA), May 2020 
• Creating a Safe and Supportive School Environment for Transgender Students, ODE, March 2016 

Gender-Affirming Resources for Students

• The Coming Out Handbook, The Trevor Project, 2021 
• LGBTQ2SIA+ Youth Support Spaces 
• SMYRC PDX drop-in groups ages 13-23 (Portland) 
• Gender Spectrum groups ages 10-12 (online)
• Trevor Space ages 13-24 (online)
• Q Chat Space ages 13-19 (online)

Gender-Affirming Resources for Education Providers

• Creating Safer Spaces Toolkit for LGBTQ Youth: A Toolkit for Education, Healthcare, and Community-Based Organizations, Advocates for Youth, 2020 
• Principles for Gender Inclusive Puberty and Health Education, Gender Spectrum, 2019 
• Schools In Transition: A Guide for Supporting Transgender Students in K-12 Schools, Gender Spectrum, National Center for Lesbian Rights, Human Rights Campaign, ACLU, & National Education Association, 2015 

Gender-Affirming Resources for Families

• Youth and Family Support Groups, Transactive, Lewis & Clark College, Portland 
• Fierce Families Network, Basic Rights Oregon, Portland 
• Virtual Support Groups, Gender Spectrum, Online, Identity-specific groups available 
• The Family Acceptance Project, San Francisco State University 

Sources 

1. Oregon Healthy Teens Survey, 2019, OHA 
2. Oregon Safe Schools & Communities Coalition, 2020 Oregon Safe Schools Report, OSSCC 
3. Oregon Student Health Survey, 2020 Statewide Report, OHA 
4. LGBTQ2SIA+ Student Success Plan, June 2020, ODE 

A feature by ODE staff and partners that shines a spotlight on one aspect of K-12 comprehensive sexuality education. If you have a topic request for a future Spotlight, let us know at ode.sexed@state.or.us. 

Photo by Mercedes Mehling on Unsplash

Do you want to learn more about open educational resources (OER) and the Oregon Open Learning Hub? This Oregon Open Learning Workshop will be an interactive virtual professional learning event that will provide participants an opportunity to learn about open educational resources (OER) and the Oregon Open Learning Hub, Oregon’s K-12 repository for OER. 

Join the Oregon Open Learning team for this engaging, hands-on OER Workshop on Tuesday, February 15 from 4:00pm-5:30pm (PST). Register today!

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