Vision: Routt won’t STAND for Hate
Mission: STAND works to disrupt hate and promote anti-discrimination through education, policy change, partnerships, and positively influencing the next generation.
We have 3 new special projects we're looking for community help, your help!, to bring to life. Read more about the open opportunities and sign up to receive future information!
Thank you to Alissa Merage for envisioning these projects to take STAND into the future!
1. Community Engagement Project
Volunteer help to put on our public convenings - set up, break down, leading small group discussions, help create ideas for future convenings, and grow public engagement.
2. Community Outreach Project
Volunteer help to build our website page with resources, grow our social media presence, connect with different communities, help build our vision and mission statement, create a newsletter to share community events and resources.
3. Community Education Project
Volunteer help to train to become a STAND Educator to go into local businesses and groups or lead programs in schools, to share STAND education in the community about disrupting discrimination.
There 3 projects will help us expand STAND in our community and beyond and continue to grow the impact we are all having every time we show up, and STAND up.
A message from Nicole DeCrette with the
Steamboat Springs School District
Hello. My name is Nicole DeCrette. I’ve been an employee of Steamboat Springs School District since 2006 and I am a parent of two teenagers. I believe the LGBTQ+ community, especially our youth need allyship now more than ever.
2024 marks the 25th anniversary of Transgender Day of Remembrance. It is a significant milestone in honoring and remembering the lives of transgender individuals lost to violence while continuing to raise awareness about the ongoing challenges the community faces. It is observed this Wednesday, November 20, and all are invited to a rally and vigil at 5:15 pm on the Routt County building lawn.
In 2016, I worked with my first “out” transgender student at Steamboat Springs High School. At the time, I received no guidance. I assumed our school was safe and inclusive because the student felt comfortable being themselves. I was quietly proud of this assumption, but I later realized I was naive and uninformed.
A year later, I attended a professional development workshop, “Talking Transgender,” led by Meghan Hanson-Peters. It challenged my thinking and broadened my understanding of human identity. I became more conscious of the role schools play in creating safe spaces. This learning was deeply personal when, shortly after, my own child, then a 7th grader, came out as non-binary.
Moments like these are filled with joy that your child trusts you and fears for how the world will treat them. Sadly, that fear is justified.
The U.S. is poised to see leadership that could severely limit LGBTQ+ rights, particularly for children. In 2024, Republicans spent $215 million on anti-trans ads, and 665 anti-LGBTQ+ bills were introduced nationwide, with 199 directly about public education, school libraries, and teachers. Texas and Florida have been labeled “Do Not Travel” for transgender individuals. Odessa, Texas, passed a $10,000 bounty for reporting transgender people in bathrooms. Since 2023, over 20 states have restricted or banned gender-affirming care for minors, with Idaho criminalizing parents and physicians, and Florida threatening custody loss for supportive parents. Crisis calls to The Trevor Project rose by 700% after election day, and the CDC reports one in four trans youth attempted suicide last year.
In Steamboat Springs, with about 2,575 students enrolled, roughly 1%—around 25 students—may be transgender. This is about the same likelihood as being a red-head. Colorado has enacted protective measures, including anti-discrimination laws and expanded Title IX regulations, which make our state a safer place making it one of 17 “sanctuary” states. But policies alone aren’t enough—our daily actions as educators and allies matter more than ever.
So, what can we do?
Educate yourself. Learn the vocabulary and explore resources like the Human Rights Campaign and GLSEN. Watch Blair Imani’s “Smarter in Seconds” channel on Youtube or Instagram where in 90 seconds she provides education on a wide range of identity and social justice topics. Recognize your biases and unlearn them.
Normalize inclusivity. Use names, pronouns, and gender-neutral language. For example, “They went to the office” instead of “She went to the office.” Create inclusive spaces. Neutralize bathroom passes (Pass 1 Pass 2), make accessibility to the gender-neutral bathrooms easy and seamless, don’t group students by assumed gender, and welcome audiences with inclusive language (“Welcome everyone!”).
Call out hateful rhetoric. While local groups like STAND are mobilizing against hate speech, it’s a responsibility we all share daily. The United Nations warns that hate speech often precedes atrocity crimes and, paired with disinformation, fuels discrimination and violence. Shut it down and educate others on why it matters. Silence enables harm.
Work to break down systemic discrimination in school sports and censoring curriculum and library books. Help make schools a place where ALL youth can work and learn, flourishing together!
Allyship is a verb. We can ensure all students thrive through education, inclusive practices, and actively addressing hate. Our youth and school community deserve nothing less.
SAVE THE DATE!
STAND ‘Martin Luther King’ Convening
Wednesday, January 15th 2025
5:00PM-6:30PM
Library Hall, Steamboat Springs CO
Join us for a discussion on Martin Luther King to kick off a week of recognition and honoring Martin Luther King and giving BPOC a voice in our local Yampa Valley community.
More information coming soon!
STAND is honored by AG Phil Weiser’s remarks in the August issue of “The Post Dispatch”
Steamboat Springs High School Students Create Podcast to Combat Discrimination
The Students for Social Justice Club at Steamboat Springs High School collaborated with the community to create a podcast highlighting efforts to combat discrimination in the Yampa Valley. Pictured left to right: Sloane Speer, Miela Brinkman, Jenny Shea, Jenny’s son, Julian, Sofia Scherff-Zamora, and Bella Davidson. Two students who contributed that are not pictured are Will Hall and Amelie Wild. (Photo courtesy of Jenny Shea)
Press Release
July 16, 2024 - Steamboat Springs, Colo. - Sloane Speer, a recent graduate of Steamboat Springs High School, opens the podcast with an idyllic description of the small town of Steamboat Springs, Colorado, accompanied by a serene guitar melody in the background. Speer describes Steamboat as a slice of “paradise” but shares that Steamboat isn’t immune to more significant issues of discrimination commonly seen across the country.
Jenny Shea, an American Literature and AP Literature teacher at Steamboat Springs High School (SSHS), sponsors the Students for Social Justice Club (S4SJ) at SSHS. According to Shea, this year, she had an incredible group of student writers in the club and knew they were ready to take on a bigger challenge. She introduced the idea of creating a podcast to the group, and the students dove in head first.
Their vision was to create a journalistic piece that told the story of the formation and practices of the Steamboat Team to Disrupt Antisemitism and Discrimination (STAND). The group was formed to help combat discrimination in the Yampa Valley after antisemitic incidents occurred in the community. S4SJ believed that if they told the story of STAND, other communities in Colorado, and even across the nation, could hear about the progress happening in Steamboat and create something similar.
The club’s podcast had to be completely original to enter the contest, even the music used in the background as the story was told. Additionally, Speer, the former president of S4SJ, worked with her guitar teacher and Board of Education member, Kevin Callahan, to create and record the guitar music used in the podcast.
According to Speer, the group started brainstorming how to approach the podcast in January. The students worked on script writing, interviews, and editing the podcast throughout the spring semester. The club spent every Monday, along with other lunches and open hours, writing and rewriting the script and conducting interviews with several community members.
“Every person we interviewed was helpful and supportive,” said Bella Davidson, a rising junior at SSHS. “We couldn’t have done it without them.”
The students missed the deadline to submit their podcast episode to NPR but stuck with the project. The club decided it was best to finish the podcast, make it their own, and stay true to the story they were pursuing.
“It’s cool how this group of students rallied behind this idea,” said Speer. “Everyone pitched in, and it was a team effort. It’s cool to see what a group of passionate, motivated students can accomplish.”
Speer said the group would like to see the podcast shared at the community level and, if possible, nationally. The group wants to use the podcast to spread the message and model of STAND as far and wide as possible.
The podcast, “Breaking the Bubble: How an Idyllic Ski Town is Combatting Hate” is now finished and published for wider distribution.
“These students have perfectly exemplified our biggest hope for STAND: to let the work of disrupting hate and discrimination inspire and encourage others to use their voices and make real change within their own communities,” said Kolby Morris-Dahary, Rabbi of Har Mishpacha, the Jewish Congregation of Steamboat Springs and the Founder of STAND. “It is our hope that STAND can be a model for other communities around the world to work together across differences to make their worlds safer and kinder for all.”
Bella said working on the podcast and with STAND has inspired her to advocate more and use her voice to stand up for social justice issues.
“Standing up to hate is important,” she said. “This podcast shows the approach we have been trying to take. It’s important to continue to work on making our town a more accepting place.”
Media contact:
Laura Milius, Director of Communications
PREPARE TO BE INSPIRED
The Students for Social Justice Club at Steamboat Springs High School learned about NPR's annual student podcast contest and wanted to enter. Our vision was to create a journalistic piece that told the story of the formation and practices of STAND so that other communities in Colorado or nationally could hear about the progress happening in Steamboat and possibly create something similar. The club spent every Monday, along with other lunches and open hours, writing and rewriting the script and interviewing some of you. Additionally, Sloane Speer worked with her guitar teacher, Kevin Callahan, to create this in his recording studio.
Contact us
Rabbi Kolby Morris-Dahary (STAND Director)
STAND Advisory Council Members:
Chief Mark Beckett, Jennifer Bock, Samantha Coyne Donnel, Bella Davidson, Officer Lisa Eifling, Manuel Fajardo, Jay Hamric, Traci Hiatt, Mark Fitzgerald, Matt Karzen, Ron Krall, Brian Krill, Meghan Lukens, Patrick Madden, Alissa Merage, Sherriff Doug Scherar, Pastor Tim Selby, Jenny Shea, & Dr. Celine Wicks
Community Engagement Committee Chair: Ron Krall
Messaging and PR Committee Chairs: Jen Bock and Alissa Merage
Student Programming and Support Committee Chairs: Brian Krill, Jenny Shea, Jay Hamric
stand is a proud recipient of the YVCF Community Grant Cycle for 24-25 as well as grants from Natan Foundation and Out and Proud Yampa Valley Fund.
The Yampa Valley Community Foundation is the primary source for philanthropic resources and education for both donors and nonprofit organizations in Northwest Colorado. The mission of the Yampa Valley Community Foundation is “Leading transformational change throughout the Yampa Valley by engaging donors in purposeful philanthropy, empowering local nonprofit organizations, inspiring impactful grantmaking, and collaborating to build vibrant communities.”