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Welcoming Schools offers tools, lessons and resources to help educators embrace family diversity, avoid gender stereotypes, and end bullying and name-calling in elementary schools. The organization also offers resources for school administrators and educators to support students who don't conform to gender norms. It was initiated by a group of parents and educators to meet the needs of students whose family structures are not well represented or included in school environments.

Ann Lindsey is a curriculum integrator for Jackson Middle School, a science and math specialty school in the Anoka Hennepin district in Minnesota. She is currently on sabbatical, living in Kolkata, West Bengal, India focusing on international collaboration and inquiry-based learning with secondary students in several countries. She represents the Urban Sites Project as a teaching consultant with the Minnesota Writing Project and finds every way possible to travel whenever she can.

Henry “Cody” Miller is an assistant professor of English education at SUNY Brockport. During his seven years as a high school English teacher and in his current role, he positions texts as vehicles to discuss broader socio-political issues in students’ lives and worlds. He leads professional development focused on creating affirming classrooms for LBGTQ youth and supporting teachers in publishing blogs and articles. Cody currently acts as the chair of the National Council of Teachers of English LGBTQ advisory board. He was awarded the Teaching Tolerance Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2016

Michael Arnold is a 19-year-old Oklahoma City high school student with Down Syndrome. His mother, Linda Arnold, helped him compose this report to share with classmates and teachers.

Norma E. Cantú, a native of the borderlands, is a professor of English at the University of Texas at San Antonio.