The Family Acceptance Project™ is directed by Caitlin Ryan at San Francisco State University and was developed by Caitlin Ryan and Rafael Dìaz at the César Chávez Institute from 2002 to 2009. It includes the first major study of the families of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth. The project is designed to:
-
Study parents’, families', and caregivers’ reactions and adjustment to an adolescent's coming out and LGBT identity.
-
Develop training and assessment materials for health, mental health, and school-based providers, child welfare, juvenile justice, family service workers, and community service providers on working with LGBT youth and families.
-
Develop resources to strengthen families to support LGBT children and adolescents.
-
Develop a new model of family-related care to improve health and mental health outcomes for LGBT adolescents.
Impact:
- 1st comprehensive research on LGBTQ youth and families.
- 1st research-based Family Support Model for LGBTQ.
- 85,000 providers, families, and religious leaders trained on FAP's Family Support Model.
- 530,000 Family Education booklets distributed.
- 320,000 providers, families, and religious leaders viewed Best Practice videos that show how families learn to support their LGBTQ children.
Findings will be used to inform policy and practice and to change the way that systems of care address the needs of LGBT adolescents.
The Family Acceptance Project® is the only project of its kind to study how families affect their lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) children’s health and well-being, and to develop a new family-based approach to help ethnically and religiously diverse families to support their LGBT children in the context of their families, cultures and faith communities.
We're very resourceful in finding volunteers and donated services to make the best use of our limited resources. However, your individual or organizational contribution can make a significant difference in saving lives, helping us train health and mental health providers, clergy, and families, and building healthy futures for LGBT children and youth.
College of Health & Social Sciences Funding Initiatives
Scholarships
Scholarships provide much-needed support to students to defray the cost of attending the University.
School of Nursing Simulation Program
The School of Nursing is committed to meeting the need for more qualified nurses by offering high-quality, experiential instruction.
Lewenstein Scholarship
The late Morris R. Lewenstein, an SF State professor and founder of the University’s first social science program, was a passionate, lifelong learner.
Willie L. Brown, Jr.
Fellowship Program
The Fellowship program provides SF State students who have faced barriers to pursuing a college education with professional experience in the public sector.
