BILL 13 (THE ACCEPTING SCHOOLS ACT): ONTARIO LEGISLATION MANDATING SUPPORT FOR LGBT STUDENTS IN PUBLICLY-FUNDED SCHOOLS

Twenty-six key stakeholders from schools in Waterloo Region, Ontario, participated in semi-structured, open-ended interviews for this dissertation. They included students, teachers, school board representatives in administrator and superintendent roles, trustees, and community service providers. This study explored the experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth in publicly-funded schools, the effect of those experiences on their mental health and well-being, and the success of strategies, programs, and policies implemented by schools to address LGBT youth issues. It also examined the perspectives of participants on Bill 13, Ontario’s Accepting Schools Act, particularly strengths and weaknesses of the bill in terms of mandating initiatives that would promote positive school climates that are accepting and inclusive of all students, as well as potential benefits and challenges of the legislation. Findings revealed a dichotomy in the perspectives of participants that led to the proposal of a specificity-flexibility dialectical framework in this dissertation. Applying the framework to initiatives that could be readily interpreted as adherence to the mandates of Bill 13 in Waterloo Region school boards, a theoretical interpretation of how the actual positive outcomes resulted from the legislation of Bill 13 was posited. It became apparent from the theoretical interpretation that the participants’ perspectives over two and a half years ago were considerably foretelling of the benefits and positive outcomes that would transpire from the legislation of Bill 13. There were positive outcomes that resulted from sections of the bill that exercised specificity by explicitly mandating the implementation of strategies, programs, and policies in publicly funded schools that have been empirically and historically proven to support LGBT students. There were also positive outcomes that LEGISLATION MANDATING SUPPORT FOR LGBT STUDENTS ii resulted from sections of the bill that allowed for flexibility so that stakeholders could implement new, creative, and customized initiatives to navigate challenges distinct to each of their schools, as well as address LGBT youth issues that were neglected or left unresolved by previous interventions. Researchers who collaborate closely with policymakers could potentially utilize the specificity-flexibility dialectical framework in the future in order to maximize the benefits that could result from a proposed bill advocating for marginalized minority populations. An Integrated Theoretical Model for Supporting LGBT Student Mental Health and Well-Being that was constructed at the end of this dissertation also holds promise for future use in advocacy research. LEGISLATION MANDATING SUPPORT FOR LGBT STUDENTS iii Acknowledgements There are a lot of people that I would like to express my sincerest gratitude for their guidance and incredible support I received. First, I would like to thank the members of my Doctoral Dissertation Committee – Dr. Robb Travers (advisor), Dr. Todd Coleman, Dr. Felix Munger, Dr. Michael Woodford (internal-external), and Dr. Shelley Craig (external) – for agreeing to be part of my committee, and for all the amazing feedback and input you provided to make this dissertation the best it could possibly be. Second, I would like to thank all the great people who volunteered to participate in this study. I will never forget the students, teachers, school board representatives, and service providers who devoted so much time and energy into immersing themselves in our interviews. Your generosity and willingness to share your stories, experiences, and perspectives were invaluable to my research. Third, I would like to express my appreciation to all the great people who supported and collaborated with me in this study. Thanks to the past and current researchers of the Equity, Sexual Health, and HIV Research Group of Wilfrid Laurier University, the Waterloo Region District School Board Equity and Inclusion Office, Carrie Greig (formerly of KW Counselling’s OK2BME), the founding members of Spectrum (Waterloo Region’s Rainbow Community Space), and my allies at Waterloo Catholic District School Board’s PRISM. Without your help, I would not have been able to gain the lessons and memorable experiences I had in the last three years. Also, I would like to thank my professors (Dr. Chris Alksnis, Dr. Colleen Loomis, Dr. Terry Mitchell, Dr. Geoff Nelson, Dr. Manuel Riemer, Dr. Mark Pancer, Dr. Ketan Shankardass, and Dr. Richard Walsh) and colleagues (Allison, Courtney, Darren, Emily, LEGISLATION MANDATING SUPPORT FOR LGBT STUDENTS iv Felix, Janna, Jessica, Johanna, Kathleen, Lauren, Livia, Rachel, Ravi, Rebecca, Shaan, Tim, and Rita) from the Community Psychology program at Wilfrid Laurier University. I learned so much from all of you in what seemed like so little time. Thanks too to the Ontario Graduate Scholarship program for the support I received on my last academic year in the Community Psychology graduate program. A special thanks goes to my advisor/supervisor/mentor, Dr. Robb Travers. For your advice, direction, patience, concern, understanding, and continued support, not just during the writing of this dissertation, but also throughout the entire time I was completing my graduate education. Lastly, to the person who has encouraged, guided, supported, and loved me the most all these years, my biggest thanks goes to my husband, Dr. Colin Andrew Lee. Your wit, humor, wisdom, compassion, gentleness, and kindness made my return to university a lot less difficult and a lot more fun. I would not have dreamed of pursuing this PhD without you. LEGISLATION MANDATING SUPPORT FOR LGBT STUDENTS v

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