Family Resources

Our Youth Program has proudly been creating safe spaces for LGBTQ+ youth for over 20 years, but we know parents, guardians, and caregivers of LGBTQ+ youth need additional resources to better support their youth. We are committed to helping connect families with the resources they need to help their queer and questioning youth live fulfilling and authentic lives. Whether you need help finding gender affirming care or you just need to talk to someone, we've got you covered.

Let's talk!

Struggling to understand how to best support your LGBTQ+ youth? Want help navigating resources? Connect with Erica, our Family Support Liaison, to see how we can help.

Is your child being supported in school?

The acceptance and support of the admin and teachers is a pivotal part of a child’s overall wellbeing and ability to access the education they deserve. 

  • How and why to start a GSA

    Provides guidance for students to organize their own GSA.
    Click here to access the resource

  • Name Change and Pronouns in school

    For many young people, socially transitioning from one gender to another may begin at school. To help those around you better understand how to address you, it’s worth taking some time to inform friends and teachers of your desire to be referred to by your new name.
    Click here to access the resource

  • School Advocacy Toolkit: Parent Checklist

    The purpose of this document is to create shared understandings of how the student’s authentic gender will be accounted for and supported at school. School staff should consider a student’s individual needs and circumstances, as well as applicable state and federal laws and their school’s own policies and practices, when determining how best to use this document.
    Click here to access the resource

  • Gender Expression & School Dress Codes

    Clothing, accessories, hair, and grooming are powerful forms of self-expression. Every
    student deserves to present themselves in ways that feel authentic and comfortable without being singled out, excluded, or punished at school.
    Click here to access the resource

  • NJ Statutes and Regulations: School Climate & Culture

    An enduring positive school climate and culture are essential conditions for fostering learning and positive youth development that results in productive and fulfilling lives. The NJDOE supports school efforts to assess, develop and maintain positive school climates and cultures and other conditions that affect student learning and growth.
    Click here to access the resource

  • Trans College Survival Guide

    College can be transformative, and for trans students it can also be isolating, bureaucratic, and exhausting. This guide exists to make that path less lonely.

    Developed through feedback and wisdom from Trans and Gender Diverse students, the Trans College Survival Guide gathers structural insight, hard-earned lessons, and affirming reminders for navigating higher education systems that weren’t built with us in mind. From daily survival to long-term planning, this resource centers lived experience, mutual care, and trans excellence.

    You deserve more than survival, but this is a place to start.
    Click here to access the resource

Need help supporting your child at home?

  • Parenting: Supportive vs. Rejection

    Parents have a very powerful role to play in a gender-expansive youth’s life. Research has shown that supportive parenting can significantly affect our children’s positive outlook on
    their lives, their mental health and their self-esteem. On the other hand, rejecting parenting behaviors are directly correlated to gender-expansive and transgender youth being more depressed and suicidal. Research studies show that the most crucial thing we as parents can do is to allow our children to be exactly who they are.
    Click here to access the resource

  • TransParenthood: HiTOPs Support Group

    TransParenthood is a weekly support group for parents and family members of trans, nonbinary, and gender questioning youth. We invite you to share your story, hear from others, and gain support for you and your child’s journey in the comfort of a judgment-free space.
    Click here to access the resource

  • Family Acceptance Project Videos

    Helping diverse families to learn how to support their lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBTQ) children takes resources that touch the heart – like this trailer for our new film, "Families Are Forever" or our earlier film, "Always My Son." We're raising funds to produce a series of these short documentaries that show the journey from struggle to support of ethnically and religiously diverse families with LGBTQ children.
    Click here to access the resource

  • Glossary of Terms

    Glossary of terms.
    Click here to access the resource

We can't do this work alone. Check out these other amazing groups supporting LGBTQ+ youth and families

Here's what parents are saying about us

Parent Testimonials

When my kiddo first told me he wanted to change his name, I shamefully revolted. However, this group gently guided and educated me as to what he was experiencing as a trans kid, and how I could help support him. I am forever grateful for this group not only because my son found belonging, but also because of the nonjudgemental support I received as a neophyte trans parent.

Anne

The Pride Center was there for our family. When our six-year-old came out as non-binary right before starting first grade in a new school, and was the only openly gender-expansive child in their entire school, we felt both proud and overwhelmed. The Pride Center gave us a supportive community. It became a place where we could ask questions, be supported, and watch our child simply be themselves among other kids and caring adults who understood. This support has truly meant the world to our family.

J