The next school board meeting will take place on September 6th and Lucia Baez Geller has introduced LGBTQ history month to the agenda. This item was introduced last year as well, and it did not do well. Lucia was the only one who voted Yes for it. This year, she is trying again, but she changed the wording on it some in hopes that the other school board members will get on board.

If you’re short on time, watch this TikTok I made. All resources and links are in this blog post for you to use.

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP812a2gG/

We absolutely support this item, but it’s going to take some work, hard work. There are a few members we would like to target, but we would like you to start by writing them and letting them know you support this item. Prism Florida has helped by creating this great Action Network letter. You can customize the letter (if you like), input your information, and it will automatically send it to all school board members.

Beyond this letter, we would like you to actually call your member and ask them to please support this. If you go to our School Board Resources page, we’ve made it easy for you to find their contact information, but I’ll list it all out below. These are the members we would like you to specifically call because there is more of a chance to sway them than the last three. If we can get the five above, along with Lucia Baez-Geller as the sponsor to vote Yes on H11, it passes.

  • Dr. Dorothy Bendross-Mindingall (305) 995-2311
  • Dr. Steven Gallon III (305) 995-1334
  • Mari Tere Rojas (305) 995-1334
  • Luisa Santos (305) 995-1334
  • Mary Blanco (305) 995-1334

When calling them, be sure to mention that if they intend Miami-Dade Public Schools to be considered an inclusive environment, they need to include all types of children to represent. Hispanic Heritage month was just passed during the August 16th School Board meeting to take place September 15, 2023 through October 15, 2023. Black History month was also approved last school year. It would not be inclusive of Miami-Dade Public Schools to not allow the accomplishments of the LGBTQ+ community to not be recognized.

We KNOW how important it is for students to feel seen and represented in their schools. We KNOW how important visible support for the LGBTQ+ community and our rights is, especially this year. Students need to know that their educators have their back.
- Prism Florida

More Resources

Also, if you have never spoken at the school board before, Prism will also have speaker trainings onAugust 31standSeptember 1stat 6:30 PM via Zoom. I personally will be at the September 1st meeting to be able to get any talking points they may share, so I can write my speech where it will make the most impact for this community. But I’m sure they will share plenty more tips and tricks for how to navigate school board meetings, including arrival times and how to best fill out the form.

We need to tell the Miami-Dade school board that:

  • All students should feel valued by our public school system. A proclamation valuing their identities and the historical contributions that LGBTQ people have provided to the United States and to Miami-Dade County is the least we should be doing.
  • The acknowledgment of LGBTQ+ History Month benefits all students by showing that anyone can positively impact society.
    Many other school districts in Florida currently recognize LGBTQ+ History Month, including our neighbors in Palm Beach and Broward counties. It is important that MDCPS also remain steadfast in supporting and affirming all students, families, and educators.
  • Miami Dade County Public Schools must continue to foster an inclusive, safe, and high-quality education for all students.

We need to make sure that THIS year, we’re the loudest voices in this fight.

Lissette Fernandez

About

Lissette is a Co-Founder and concerned parent of 2 young children. She decided to fight back against the attacks on education freedom by helping to started Moms for Libros. Her work aims to address these attacks by raising awareness about the issues publi