NC: gay students feel school's not handling GSA complaints; TX: Corpus Christi school allows GSA

We have a comprehensive, enumerated anti-bullying law on the books in NC, but that's only the first step - educating parents and administrators, and ensuring it's enforced. (Fox News Charlotte)

Some students at Central Cabarrus High School say their association with the Gay-Straight Alliance campus club has led to harassment and bullying for most of the school year. But recently, club members and other male students who have a strong dislike for one another, took their conflicts and disagreements to another level when sophomore student and GSA club president Jessyca Blair says she was physically attacked by a male student during school hours.

...Parents of another club member, freshman student Mercedes Torres, feel like the school hasn't taken their concerns seriously. Prior to the physical attack that took place on Friday, Janny Molina-Zambrano talked to school officials about club posters being ripped from the wall and physical threats being made to the girls. "They said, OK, we'll take it from here," said Molina-Zambrano, "and we can't tell you what's going to happen but we can tell you that we will fix it today."

The Cabarrus County School public information officer, Ronnye Boone, says they take bullying and harassment allegations seriously. "Cabarrus County schools is committed to making sure that all of our students have a safe learning environment that encourages diversity and tolerance and respect." Boone says that if parents feel the school is not taking the harassment, threats and now physical attack seriously, there is further help for them. "We want to know where there are concerns and we want to be able to resolve them."

***

There's good news to report in Corpus Christi, Texas. A Gay-Straight Alliance finally receives the thumb's up after an uphill battle.

Late last night, school board members in Corpus Christi, Texas reversed their decision to deny high school senior Bianca "Nikki" Peet's request to start a Gay-Straight Alliance at her school. Nikki Peet can now start a GSA and meet on campus. The long-term future of the club is still not certain, however, so our support is still needed.

The Flour Bluff Independent School District's board of trustees held a four-hour emergency meeting last night at the administration building in Corpus Christi to talk about the legal consequences of denying a gay-straight alliance on campus. Their discriminatory decision to block a GSA had been threatened with litigation by American Civil Liberties Union and the Anti- Defamation League, and had become a national phenomenon: more than 55,000 supporters signed a petition at Change.org on behalf of Peet and supporters held an all-day rally last Friday at Flour Bluff High.

Local residents and GSA supporters wore white T-shirts at the board meeting, while three community members addressed the board about the need to have diversity and equality at Flour Bluff. After the community spoke, the board members went into a closed door quorum for the next four hours to vote on allowing a GSA on campus.

...Paul Rodriguez, president of the Gay-Straight Alliance at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, was thrilled with the board's 4-2 decision, he told Change.org.

"...I applaud the school board in this decision and hope that this will continue from this date forward. We (TAMUCC GSA) are very proud of the advocates who came forward and supported the cause for equality, not only for the FB GSA, but for ALL students who had non-curricular clubs."