LGBTQ+ Data Inclusion: Advancing Intersectional Equity in K-12 Education Systems - Issue Brief

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Damian

This issue brief argues that collecting LGBTQ+ data in K-12 education is essential to enforce civil rights protections and improve educational, health, and wellbeing outcomes for LGBTQ+ students and students with LGBTQ+ families. It details how the absence of such data blocks nondiscrimination implementation, hides disparities, limits teachers’ ability to evaluate programming impact, and constrains assessment of laws and initiatives. It also cites national research recommending measures for sexual orientation, gender identity, and intersex status, and explains how student surveys and administrative data systems should incorporate inclusive identity options and question modules.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages23

Reading Time58 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction: Why LGBTQ+ Data Inclusion is Necessary for Safe, Inclusive K-12 Schools

Recommendations to Federal, State, and Local Agencies

Additional Federal Recommendations on Surveys

Additional State and Local Recommendations on Surveys

LGBTQ+ Inclusion in K-12 Administrative Data Collection

Federal Recommendations on Administrative Data Collection

State and Local Recommendations on Administrative Data Collection

Conclusion

GLSEN Resources

Notes

LGBTQ+ DATA INCLUSION: ADVANCING INTERSECTIONAL EQUITY IN K-12 EDUCATION SYSTEMS ISSUE BRIEF [glsen.org/Policy](glsen.org/Policy) Contents Introduction: Why LGBTQ+ Data Inclusion is Necessary for Safe, Inclusive K-12 Schools ..............................2 Recommendations to Federal, State, and Local Agencies on LGBTQ+ Inclusion in Surveys of Young People and Educators in K-12 Schools ...............................................................................4 • Additional Federal Recommendations on Surveys .............................................................................................. 7 • Additional State and Local Recommendations on Surveys............................................................................... 10 LGBTQ+ Inclusion in K-12 Administrative Data Collection ............................................................................... 12 • Federal Recommendations on Administrative Data Collection ........................................................................ 13 • State and Local Recommendations on Administrative Data Collection .......................................................... 14 Conclusion .......................................................................................................................................................... 16 • GLSEN Resources .................................................................................................................................................. 16 Notes.................................................................................................................................................................... 17 [glsen.org/Policy](glsen.org/Policy) Introduction: Why LGBTQ+ Data Inclusion is Necessary for Safe, Inclusive K-12 Schools Collecting data on LGBTQ+ issues and the experiences of LGBTQ+ young people—including those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, nonbinary, Two-Spirit1, and intersex2—is essential both for enforcing civil rights protections and advancing racial, gender, and disability justice outcomes in K-12 education systems across the country. The absence of this data: • Is a barrier to full implementation of nondiscrimination protections; • Obscures disparities impacting LGBTQ+ young people in K-12 schools; • Prevents educators from accessing the information they need to develop and evaluate the impact of programming on LGBTQ+ students and their non-LGBTQ+ peers; and • Limits the ability to assess the impact of laws, policies, and initiatives on the health and wellbeing of LGBTQ+ young people and young people with an LGBTQ+ parent, guardian, or family member. Leading scientists, researchers, and educators agree on the need for LGBTQ+ data inclusion: in 2020, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) recommended that federal, state, local, and tribal government agencies “should consider adding measures of sexual orientation, gender identity, and intersex status to all data collection efforts and instruments,” including in education.3 In 2022, NASEM issued a consensus study with guiding principles for the collection of LGBTQ+ demographic data and recommended measures for collecting such data, primarily with adults.4 Young People and LGBTQ+ Data Inclusion GLSEN uses the term “young people” to refer to all students in K-12 schools. LGBTQ+ data inclusion encompasses measures of LGBTQ+ issues, such as the availability of curriculum that is inclusive of LGBTQ+ communities and experiences with victimization related to LGBTQ+ bias, and measures of LGBTQ+ identity. Measures of LGBTQ+ issues are recommended for use in surveys of all K-12 students. For example, it is important to assess whether students experience bullying at school or barriers to full participation in educational programming because a parent or guardian is LGBTQ+. Measures of LGTBQ+ identity, or LGBTQ+ demographic measures, are

FAQs

Why is LGBTQ+ data inclusion considered necessary in K-12 education systems?

It supports civil rights enforcement, reveals disparities affecting LGBTQ+ students, helps educators evaluate programming impact, and enables assessment of laws and initiatives on students’ health and wellbeing.

What does the brief recommend regarding LGBTQ+ data collection in student surveys?

It recommends including measures of LGBTQ+ issues for surveys of all K-12 students, and using LGBTQ+ identity (demographic) measures specifically for secondary students, including survey items that assess victimization and participation barriers.

How should K-12 administrative data systems support LGBTQ+ inclusion?

The brief recommends that student information systems provide inclusive options for students’ self-reported names and gender identities, aligning administrative records with inclusive data collection practices.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Damian