One of the most pivotal moments of my 30 year teaching career came about five or six years ago after school at a Gay Straight Alliance meeting. I’ve been one of the CO advisors since 2005. One of the things we like to do is have guest speakers, and that particular day, we had a guest speaker who was an alumnus of the school who graduated about five or six years before and was trans. We didn’t introduce him that way, and when he disclosed, the kids were shocked. They had no idea. But one student in the front row had a different reaction. I saw his face turn red, his eyes welled up with tears, and he eventually ran out of the auditorium. I looked at my CO advisor, he looked at me, and I ran out after him. I didn’t know if the student was trans or gay. I don’t ask. It’s none of my business. But I knew at that point that he was. So I got into the hallway, and I found him at a water fountain, choking back tears, trying to take a drink of water, trying to compose himself. And I knew that whatever I said at that point would be pivotal. So I just looked at him and I said, when did you know? And he looked at me and said, sixth grade. At that point, we both took a deep breath. I knew I had to speak to him privately. So, ironically, I brought him into a closet because there was a supply closet right near us, and we had a long conversation for about 40 minutes. After that, my CO advisor, who is a school counselor, got the permission of the student to contact the parents. They came up with a plan to support this student mentally, emotionally, physically, in any way that he needed in his transition. And he had a successful high school career. He wound up getting elected homecoming king and is now in a master’s program for school counseling.