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Pacific Grove schools spotlight Rainbow Connections program to expand LGBTQ+ supports
Summary
Pacific Grove Unified School District trustees heard a presentation on Rainbow Connections, a state‑funded program delivering training, expressive‑arts workshops and bullying prevention support at multiple sites; district staff said they plan to expand offerings where schools request them.
Casey Rodenbush, services manager for Monterey County Behavioral Health, told the Pacific Grove Unified School District Board of Education that Rainbow Connections delivered trainings, a bullying prevention specialist and expressive‑arts workshops at several PGUSD sites this year.
The program, Rodenbush said, began after a principal asked for help responding to student reports and produced a state grant: “I had just received funding for a project called Rainbow Connections that is a $7,800,000 5 year project that was granted through the state of California to support LGBTQ plus youth and the adults who care for them,” she said.
District staff and a middle‑school principal described how the program has been used. In a short video introduced by the board, Pacific Grove Middle School Principal Sean Roach said Rainbow Connections helped leaders develop advisory lessons on kindness and provided a “safe place” many students requested. Roach told the board the site merged an anti‑bullying club with Prism Club and ran four expressive‑arts workshops focused on school‑based bullying.
The presentation listed district activities this school year: two “Welcoming Schools” modules (an evidence‑based Human Rights Campaign Foundation program) at the middle school, a weekly bullying‑prevention specialist placed by a partner organization (Harmony at Home), 1:1 student support, and four expressive‑arts workshops that staff said students at middle and elementary sites enjoyed. Rodenbush said the expressive arts help students “access different parts of their brain” and can be an outlet for trauma responses.
Trustees asked about evaluation and scale. Trustee Schamas said she wants “evaluations of these programs” so the district can measure results and preserve effective efforts beyond staff turnover. Several trustees and presenters described the project as a multi‑dimensional pilot that the district could expand “where that’s welcomed.” Rodenbush said the team hopes to offer the project at any site that requests it and called the plan “a very multidimensional project.”
Superintendent and cabinet comments stressed the program’s alignment with district goals. Dr. Adamson (Superintendent) noted the partnership’s role in the district’s broader equity and belonging work and said more communication will be provided if the board requests further review or a return presentation.
District clarifying details from the presentation: the Rainbow Connections grant amount was described as $7,800,000 over five years (state grant); the program model requires multiple modules of Welcoming Schools training (six modules total; district received two this year); a bullying‑prevention specialist currently visits the middle school once weekly; expressive‑arts workshops were delivered in four‑week series at multiple sites. Trustees asked staff to present evaluation approaches for the program’s effectiveness and potential sustainability.
The board did not take any formal action on Rainbow Connections at the meeting; the presentation was informational. Rodenbush said the team will continue district partnerships and expand offerings at interested sites.
