Whole Human Schools
are dedicated to educating the whole human -
the heart, the mind,
the social and
the emotional.
The Whole Human Project is a year long social, emotional, and sexuality education curriculum for teenagers. We aim to serve low-income and at-risk students who don't otherwise have access to progressive and holistic SEL and sex ed programs such as ours.
THE NEED
WHEN ASKED IF SCHOOL WAS A SAFE PLACE FOR LGBT STUDENTS, 50% DISAGREED
100% OF STUDENTS SURVEYED FEEL SELF CONSCIOUS ABOUT THEIR BODIES
ONLY 2% OF STUDENTS SURVEYED
FEEL TOTALLY RESPECTED BY THEIR PEERS
50% OF TEENS ARE SEXUALLY ACTIVE AND NEARLY HALF AREN'T USING PROTECTION
OUR MISSION
All life skills are learned through experience. It’s trial and error. It’s heartbreak and broken bones. Human development and growth is almost fully dependent on other people. Because so much of that growth happens in adolescence, Whole Human exists to provide youth the vital life skills needed to both survive and thrive during those formative years.
Teenagers across the country crave authentic conversations about identity, sexuality, and boundaries. They want to learn how to communicate--how to listen and how to be heard. Most importantly, youth want to know that what they are feeling and thinking is normal. They want to be accepted. They want community.
Youth who feel marginalized or lack the language to describe their feelings and experiences are all too often left without the resources needed to thrive, and as such we see disproportionately large numbers of homeless LGBT youth as well as an increase in self-injurious behavior among the same population. Male identified youth are positioned to repeat dangerous patterns of misogyny, sexual objectification, and sexual violence unless programs like Whole Human intervene and promote positive definitions of masculinity. Each social and emotional issue explored as part of The Whole Human Project can be a significant hurdle in the way of a person’s academic and social success and the organization exists to change that.