November 1, 2022
Principal Jennifer Fong is new to Burlingame, but she is already impressed by the level of warmth and inclusion from students and staff, especially during October’s LGBTQ celebrations.
“I think it’s great that [LGBTQ+ History Month] is early. So this is the second full month of the year, and it’s a great tone setting,” Fong said.
Fong and her administration are working tirelessly to encourage students to stand up against discrimination and be an ally for any LGBTQ peers.
“The idea that we’re trying to come out against discrimination in any form…I felt like a lot of students really rallied behind that,” Fong said. “For a variety of communities, I thought that was a really great way of having people feel included.”
While Fong did not do much individually to commemorate this month, she understands and stresses the importance of it for both students and the broader community. Leadership class, as well as the Gender and Sexuality Alliance (GSA) club, helped promote and celebrate LGBTQ+ History month and National Coming Out Day across campus. Fong was honored to see students so involved with the anti-bullying statements.
“So I think if students maybe felt like they didn’t fit in, I would hope that at least on [National Coming Out Day], they felt like they could identify people who were willing to wear an ally sticker,” Fong said.
While some students may have offered their support as allies, Fong does admit that she sees and hears anti-LGBTQ sentiment on a regular basis across campus..
“I do hear students casually throwing out the word gay slur,” Fong said. “And when I hear it, and I know there’s many staff when they hear it, we immediately go up to students and correct behavior on that. But it’s frequent enough that it’s a little painful. I would hope that people would stop using that.”
Given the significant amount of October activities, Fong hopes that students will internalize the value of this month.
“There’s so much here to give students an opportunity to get to know people outside of the classroom, and to value them for their uniqueness,” Fong said.
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Natalie Gyde is a junior at Burlingame High school and is a second year Journalism student as well as the Social Coordinator! This year, she is looking...
