• Be aware of gay students' high risk for violent harassment. Those perceived to be gay and those with gay family members or friends are also at risk. Although some teachers feel they cannot support "the gay lifestyle," personal attitudes about identity, lifestyle or behavior can never excuse educators from providing a safe school environment for all students. Gay students may lack support from their own families. Fearing that they will find no support at school, either, they may never report hateful acts or may skip classes or drop out altogether.

• Ensure respect for students' home language. Studies by multicultural scholar Sonia Nieto (1992) and others have shown that, whether or not a school offers bilingual instruction, teachers' attitudes toward students' native language can positively or negatively affect those students' academic and social success. Casual criticism of bilingual or esl programs by teachers in front of students, for example, sends a negative message about non-English-speaking students. By contrast, providing opportunities for esl students to use and share their home language at school sends a message of respect.

• Designate "safe contacts." Identify and provide training for one or more counselors or teachers, preferably in male/female pairs, to serve as safe contact persons for matters related to particular targets of harassment. For example, a school might have two safe contacts to whom students could report bias incidents related to sexual orientation, gender, appearance and ability, and two others for matters of race or ethnicity, country of origin and religion. If each safe contact or pair of contacts handles several different types of harassment, students might feel less worried about being seen talking to those teachers.

Introduce the designated contacts at the beginning of each school year and review the procedure with new students. A copy of the policy could be posted on classroom bulletin boards and sent home to parents. If the contact persons are willing, include their home phone numbers. (see also Safe Contact Policy)