Abstract
This paper explains that Fr. R. Mattingly, in his 2004 article in "Momentum", stresses that sex scandals within the Roman Catholic Church have forced attention on matters of sexuality that the Church has rarely wished to discuss beyond firm moralizing positions. The author points out that, although the Church still discusses homosexual acts as sinful, Mattingly reminds the reader of the stronger discussion of how all human beings are created in the image of God. The paper relates that, rather than criticizing homosexuality or failing to discuss it, the Church school community should ensure that gay students receive the inclusion and support they need. The author stresses that Mattingly also feels strongly that Roman Catholic schools should be sure that students can discuss matters of sexuality, homosexuality and heterosexuality.

Table of Contents:
Introduction
The Hazards of Ignoring Homosexuality
Whose Child is it Anyway?
A Positive Environment and Acceptance
Concluding Remarks

From the Paper
"Accordingly to Mattingly, teachers and other adults must understand what happens when a homosexual youth is not included, not understood or denounced in different ways. When gay students are not given proper support they will experience self-destructive emotions and engage in self-destructive behaviors as what seems a usual set of results. He refers to social scientific research to explain that 40 percent or more of homeless youths in the United States are homosexuals, many of them engaged in substance abuse or confirmed addicts, and that many become HIV positive."

Tags:guidance, bibliography, scandals, parents, inclusion

Abstract
This paper reviews and addresses three strong arguments of Mattingly set forth in his article about gay Catholic youth in the Catholic school system. He primarily discusses the consequences of what happens if gay youth are not accepted and supported in their school settings and in their broader community. The paper focuses on the importance of a child being in an accepting environment, and how educators can create positive, accepting school atmospheres.

From the Paper
" Fr. R. Mattingly stresses that sex scandals within the Roman Catholic Church have forced attention to matters of sexuality that the Church has rarely wished to discuss beyond firm, moralizing positions. As he stresses, at intervals through this article, by avoiding the matter of adolescent homosexuality it definitely will not go away. (1) Mattingly explains what happens to gay young people who are not supported properly through their school years, reminds the reader of human difference and how this must be driven home in school settings, and explains how to create a..."

Tags:mattingly, rc education, school culture

From the Paper
"Once members of a silent, closeted minority, gay students in the '80s are seeking increased political power and expanded rights. And they are doing so at a time when the mood on college campuses across the country has shifted from a liberal to a distinctly conservative bias, spawning a spate of hard-nosed, conservative student newspapers and rallies held not to liberate the repressed but to push religious ideals and right-wing values. Only 47 universities bar discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation (as does only one state, Wisconsin). Admittedly, lesbian and gay studies are offered at about 30 schools, and there are nearly 300 lesbian and gay student ... "

Abstract
This paper discusses support for the gay student as a person to be accepted and helped to adjust to a divergent identity, at odds with much that is projected upon ideology and teachings by the misinformed. The paper mentions the lag in understanding, including teachers who may not fully appreciate their expected role concerning gay or lesbian students. Gay students are indeed disadvantaged and require special support within educational settings.

From the Paper
" A commitment to equity in education means a commitment to social justice, an important slogan of the Ontario Ministry of Education for more than 10 years. (in Varpalatoi:1995:242) While one is accustomed to such references applied to the advancement of women or visible minorities, the same general ideal is to apply to persons who are gays or lesbians during their experiences of education. This may be difficult for various schools and educators to assimilate with regard to students who are not heterosexual or espouse support for gay and lesbian fellow students, and notably in..."

Tags:gay students, rc education, acceptance

Abstract
This paper discuses issues relevant to the identification and counseling of gay and lesbian high school students. It looks at the importance of counselors and teachers understanding the unique stressors of gay and lesbian students and an often unsupportive, unacccepting, hostile school environment. The paper conducts a research study of high school gay or lesbian students who have been subject to harassment, violence and verbal abuse.

Tags:gay adolescents, counseling

Abstract
This paper examines the role of the Roman Catholic school teacher in the life of the young gay student by reviewing three books on this topic: "Educating for Life - a Spiritual Vision for Every Teacher and Parent" by Thomas Groome, "Fully Alive - a Family Life Education Program" by Ontario Conference of Catholic Bishops and " The Courage to Teach - Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher's Life" by Parker Palmer. The paper discusses how a teacher needs to appreciate a gay student as someone who may struggle with a sense of being different, help the child to speak openly about worries, and be able to answer questions a child may have concerning this special status and Church teachings. The writer notes that many teachers do not know that the Roman Catholic schools accept gay or lesbian students as people to be helped in their adjustments, understood for what may be greater depression or confusion as part of adolescence, and given the same message as other students to do with sexuality and chastity. The writer points out that there are prejudices about homosexuality in the minds of various people who believe they are good Catholics. The writer concludes that teachers and parents need to be educated about the Roman Catholic stand on homosexuality and be able to interpret this to the child.

From the Paper
"Parker J. Palmer's volume, The Courage to Teach - Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher's Life, directs an open heart as the way to effective teaching. (1998) Particularly interesting has been Palmer's view of the teacher as a person who must learn from others, the heart gaining from what may not conform with one's views. This seems important in a parochial school setting if one is to respond to students who do not fit with Roman Catholic ideas of normal childhood. For instance, the Roman Catholic view of homosexuality involves awareness of gay students that will be met in parochial schools. This issue will challenge some teachers to examine their opinions and biases to do with homosexuality, at large, because the teacher must be able to provide what a gay student needs within school settings."

Tags:child, sexuality, chastity, biases, school, student, childhood

Abstract
This paper details the various stressors gay youth encounter when they 'come out' from parents, friends, school, and society in general. The paper ties these variables together and makes the argument for increased suicidal ideation in gay youth, citing the aforementioned stressors as antecedents.

From the Paper
"Young people are particularly impressionable to the attitudes, ideologies, and norms of society, thus homosexual youth are affected by "negative attitudes and hostile reactions of our society to homosexuality" (Chauvin et al,. 2000:9). Furthermore, society offers little in ways to seek refuge from homophobia and the attitudes it places upon the oppressed youth, and many areas require minors to have permission from their parents before engaging in therapy or attending gay/lesbian programs at outreach centers. "The outcome of societal barriers along with negative responses to a homosexual orientation may facilitate a young gay or lesbian person to exhibit a low self-esteem, depression, and a generalized fear, consequently, resulting in a deteriorated and fragile identity on the part of a young homosexual person" (Chauvin et al., 2000:9-10)."

Tags:depression, homosexuality, homophobia

Abstract
In this article, the writer notes that a commitment to equity in education means a commitment to social justice, which has been an important slogan of the Ontario Ministry of Education for more than 10 years. While one is accustomed to such references applied to the advancement of women or visible minorities, the same general ideal is to apply to persons who are gays or lesbians during their experiences of education. The writer notes that this may be difficult for various schools and educators to assimilate with regard to students who are not heterosexual or espouse support for gay and lesbian fellow students, and notably in Roman Catholic settings that have not been influenced pervasively by contemporary Roman Catholic views on homosexuality, at large. However, the writer maintains that more Ontario Ministry statements on equity and social justice can be expected to refer to matters of gender and sexual orientation in the next years, part of a general social adjustment meant to fully include gay or lesbian persons. The writer concludes that with regard to Roman Catholic education in Ontario one recognizes the need to see equity as social justice realized in more schools' approaches to the gay student.

Outline:
Introduction
Promoting Gay-Accepting School Cultures
Cultural and Pedagogical Lag
Equity, Social Justice and the Gay-Lesbian Student
Skeletons in the Closet
Concluding Remarks

From the Paper
"The presence of a few gay or lesbian students should be accepted by those who work in Roman Catholic high schools, at the very least, and with teachers and guidance counselors prepared to counsel occasional students to report questions concerning homosexuality including those to state that they realize they are gay. A pastoral message of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops addressed the needs of the parents of gay or lesbian children in a manner demonstrating the hierarchy's acceptance of this phenomenon and the first reactions adults may have to the news that a child is not heterosexual. The general approach is one instructing adults to accept the person who is different, seeing that the person feels supported and does not succumb to depression, alienation or the dangers of these results, directing counseling so that the person does not feel rejected. The general suggestion is that homosexuality is not condemned as much as its lifestyle that may indeed take form if a child is ostracized. In the last years, the Roman Catholic Church has supported research into homosexuality as a human condition and in awareness of gay and lesbian persons who may become vagrant, addicted to drugs or an uncaring promiscuity, if they are rejected by their families and friends."

Tags:homosexuality, Roman, Catholic, schools, cultures

Abstract
At-risk youths may be defined by a variety of factors including students who face disabilities, impoverished conditions or are ethnic or racial minorities. This paper explores at-risk youth in an attempt to identify trends in education, best practices and curriculum or instruction suggestions for educators working with at-risk youths. It discusses how to develop a method for promoting the highest level of achievement for students at risk.

Outline
Introduction
Trends/Issues/Best Practices Curriculum and Instruction for At Risk Student
Summary
Conclusion

From the Paper
"Examination of trends in education and student behaviors, best practices and other aspects of education and curriculum development are vital to the success of students in the at risk population. There are many negative consequences associated with students who are deemed 'at risk.' Many of these students are more likely to experience negative outcomes as a result of their status than students who are otherwise deemed 'ordinary' with regard to the classroom setting. The section below will explore the trends, issues, best practices and other matters related to educating at risk students including instructional methods.
There are many issues at stake for at risk students, the most statistically relevant of which is student drop out rates, which statistics suggest are approximately 30 percent for at risk students (Druian & Butler, 2001). The drop at rates for students comprising the at risk population are much higher than the rates for other students. The statistic is alarming, and suggests that at risk students are not getting the support they need in order to excel and find satisfaction in the classroom environment.
Findings also suggest that there is not at this time a relevant definition of what at risk students are or why the number of at risk students dropping out is increasing, however there is evidence to suggest that society will bear the financial burden for educating and supporting at risk students in the future (Druian & Butler, 2001; Levin 1986). This suggests that the at risk population is likely very diverse in nature and comprised of students from multitudinous backgrounds and environments."

Tags:education, youth, school

Abstract
This paper describes peer-to-peer youth program, which is designed to provide disadvantaged youth with opportunities to acquire basic educational and life skills that will promote success at a difficult stage of life. The author points out that the program will pair a high school senior with an adolescent aged 13-16 for a 90-minute period every other week. The paper relates that the education component offers students basic study skills, test-taking strategies and tutoring if the peer leader is knowledgeable in the subject matter.

From the Paper
"Today's youth face many difficult challenges as they attempt to seek support for their problems. Peer-to-peer counseling has been known to provide an effective means by which young people may express any personal or academic concerns that they might have. The proposed program will provide peer-to-peer interaction for disadvantaged individuals aged 13-16 who are in need of additional support at a particularly vulnerable stage of life. High school seniors will serve as peer leaders, and they will also provide their younger counterparts with basic skills and training, divided into two primary components: Education and Life Skills. The education component offers students basic study skills, test-taking strategies, and tutoring if the peer leader is knowledgeable in the subject matter. "

Tags:youth, program, peers