Family Acceptance Project

The Family Acceptance Project™ (FAP) is directed by Caitlin Ryan at the Marian Wright Edelman Institute at San Francisco State University, and was developed by both Ryan and Rafael Dìaz in 2002. It includes the first major study of the families of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth.

The project is designed to:

1) study parents’, families’ and caregivers’ reactions and adjustment to an adolescent’s coming out and LGBT identity;

2) 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;

3) develop resources to strengthen families to support LGBT children and adolescents ;&

4) develop a new model of family-related care to improve health and mental health outcomes for LGBT adolescents.

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 project is being carried out in collaboration with key community groups and representatives from community organizations that work with youth in schools, health care settings and families, including PFLAG, the GSA Network and the Adolescent Health Working Group.

Link to site:

http://familyproject.sfsu.edu/