From the School Psychologists

Celebrating diversity

World Pride is an LGBTQIA+ festival celebrated each year around the world. Sydney was chosen to host World Pride in 2023, the first time a city in the Southern Hemisphere has been chosen. The festival included Sydney’s annual Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade. 

Embracing and celebrating the diversity of Kinross Wolaroi students is crucial to the wellbeing of all students in our community. Results from the Black Dog Institute’s Future Proofing survey, in which our Year 10 students participate, showed that 12.5% of students surveyed in this age group across Australia were sexuality diverse while 3.2% of students surveyed identified as gender diverse.

As a Uniting Church school, it is important that we recognise that the Uniting Church welcomes and celebrates LGBTQIA+ people. In a recent media release, the Moderator of the Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of NSW and the ACT, Rev. Simon Hansford said: 

“As a Church we are proud of our long-standing commitment to promoting the rights of LGBTQIA+ communities and welcoming people of all backgrounds to our communities and places of worship”. 

Students who identify as gender or sexuality diverse experience higher levels of mental health issues, such as anxiety and depression. These mental health difficulties often come about due to lack of acceptance and inclusion by their community, and higher rates of discrimination. We have a responsibility to acknowledge and celebrate students of all identities and preferences, to welcome those who may be different to ourselves and take a curious approach to issues which may challenge our pre-existing ideas. Inclusion, acknowledgement and acceptance of whoever young people are, can protect them against the risk of developing mental health issues. 

Recently at Kinross Wolaroi, we have celebrated diversity on Wellbeing Day with:

• Year 10 and 11 girls – brainstorming ideas for celebrating diversity to encourage connection and friendship
• Year 9 boys – Good Fellas discussion about challenging stereotypes of masculinity
• Year 10 boys – Man Cave experience which encouraged students to recognise gender stereotypes and build respectful relationships 

Whilst these learning opportunities are valuable for our students, it is clear that we still have a way to go to truly embrace our School values of respect and inclusiveness, and that these topics need to be part of ongoing conversations both at school and at home.

The Butterfly Foundation have recently published their Body Pride resources, which include the following tips for young people online:

• Mute or unfollow accounts that make you feel bad about your body or identity
• Diversify your feed to follow varied bodies and appearance 
• Make connections, not comparisons
• Share your authentic self 
• Know that you are worthy just as you are
• Resist pressures to alter your unique appearance, body shape or size
• Use your social media platforms to celebrate diversity and promote body kindness
• Reach out for help if you’re struggling with eating and/or your body image

At Kinross Wolaroi, we embrace and strive to celebrate our diverse range of students. After all, the world would be quite a boring place if we were all the same!