Virginia Uribe

Uribe was born in Los Angeles, and lived her entire life in Pasadena, California. She grew up in an Italian family, living with parents and her grandparents in the same household. She went to Catholic school throughout elementary school, high school, and college.{{Cite news|url=http://www.thelavendereffect.org/projects/ohp/virginia-uribe/|title=Dr. Virginia Uribe|date=2015-05-12|work=The Lavender Effect|access-date=2017-05-21|language=en-US}}

Her grandparents were immigrants and "intensely" patriotic and believed the United States to be a land of opportunity. Their sense of fairness, working class sensibilities, and liberal ideals shaped her world view. Uribe felt that her family was supportive of her throughout her childhood, which gave her the mindset and strength needed to advocate for youth.

Uribe felt her deepest attractions towards women. During her time as a student, she found herself sexually attracted to nuns at the Catholic schools she attended. While these desires remained mostly hidden, Uribe believed that some of the other female Catholic students had similar desires towards nuns, based on their behavior while in their presence. She eventually married a man, as that was the expectation in those days, but the marriage ultimately ended in divorce.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t9QkDQAAQBAJ&q=Virginia+Uribe+divorce&pg=PA35|title=School's Out: Gay and Lesbian Teachers in the Classroom|last=Connell|first=Catherine|date=2014-11-14|publisher=Univ of California Press|isbn=9780520278226|language=en}} She was the mother to two children and a grandmother to two children. Later in life, she met Gail Rolf in 1988, and they were later married in October 2008, and remained together until her death.

Occupational choices for women were limited in her youth. Uribe felt she needed to choose among social work, nursing, and teaching. She chose education. During her career as a science teacher and counselor at Fairfax High School, Uribe became interested in youth LGBT outreach. She decided to form the program after hearing student concerns about a gay African-American male who had been kicked out of his family's home and dropped out of four high schools due to being sexually harassed. She founded Project 10 in 1984, as a drop-out prevention program for students who were LGBT.{{Cite web|url=http://lgbthistorymonth.com/virginia-uribe?tab=biography|title=Virginia Uribe {{!}} LGBTHistoryMonth.com|website=lgbthistorymonth.com|language=en|access-date=2017-05-21}} The program gained notoriety in the media following attacks on the program by Rev. Lou Sheldon and the Traditional Values Coalition, and people from around the country began sending money to Project 10. With that, she formed the nonprofit arm in 1986, Friends of Project 10 Inc.

Uribe founded Project 10 in 1984 to help schools curtail harassment of homosexual students, therefore reducing the LGBT dropout rate.{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-03-28-we-1425-story.html|title=Project 10 Gives Gay Students Help When They Need It Most|last=Yarber|first=Mary|date=1991-03-28|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=2017-05-21|language=en-US|issn=0458-3035}} Project 10, Los Angeles Unified School District program, provides support services and education for gay, lesbian, transgender, bisexual, and questioning students. Project 10's main goal is to establish voluntary, confidential, peer support groups led by trained facilitators. The support groups provide a safe environment for discussing the coming out process, family relationships, harassment, and health.{{Cite web|url=http://www.lausd.k12.ca.us/lausd/offices/hep/programs/01.html|title=Project 10 and Friends of Project 10, Inc.|website=Los Angeles Unified School District|access-date=May 21, 2017}}

The organization also works to educate young people, educators, and parents on important issues such as HIV/AIDS, STDs, teenage pregnancy prevention, school dropout, depression, and substance abuse. Services are provided to elementary and secondary advisers and district staff for at-risk youth. According to the organization's mission statement, "[Project 10] works to assure that public schools are in compliance with state and federal laws regarding sexual orientation and gender identity, and that academic achievement should not be limited by being part of a marginalized social group."{{Cite web|url=http://friendsofproject10.org/vision.html|title=Welcome to Friends of Project 10 Inc.!|website=friendsofproject10.org|access-date=2017-05-21}}

Project 10 received backlash from conservative politician Marian La Follette in March 1988, who led the GOP caucus in voting to withhold new funds from the Los Angeles Unified School District until it stopped supporting the program. Despite this, then District Supt. Leonard Britton and school board members voiced strong support for Uribe, the program, and homosexual students.{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-03-22-me-1677-story.html|title=Local News in Brief : Counselor of Gays Backed|date=1988-03-22|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=2017-05-21|language=en-US|issn=0458-3035}} On September 24, 1990, a session to teach some San Diego Unified School District staffers how to help students with the "curiosity, depression and fear that can surround homosexuality" drew a crowd outside of about 25 people, many of whom protested the program.{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-09-25-me-978-story.html|title=Workshop on Gay Pupils Draws Protest|last=Bellandi|first=Deanna|date=1990-09-25|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=2017-05-21|language=en-US|issn=0458-3035}}

Friends of Project 10 Inc., became a resource for educators, students, parents, and community groups throughout the country. The organization contributed to the ultimate passage of AB 537, the California Student Safety and Violence Prevention Act 2000, which prohibits discrimination and harassment on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity in California public schools. Friends of Project 10 Inc., produced Youth Lobby Days, the Make It Real Conference, the LGBTQ Youth Prom, the Models of Excellence Scholarship competition, and the annual Models of Pride Conference.

Uribe has received recognition for her work from the California State Assembly and State Senate, the Mayor's office of the City of Los Angeles, National Education Association,{{Cite news|url=http://www.nea.org/home/51350.htm|title=Virginia Uribe Award for Creative Leadership in Human Rights|work=NEA|access-date=2017-05-21|language=en}} the LA Gay & Lesbian Center, GLADD, the Stonewall Scholarship Committee of United Teachers Los Angeles,{{Cite web|url=http://www.utla.net/sites/default/files/stonewall%2017%20application%20packet.pdf|title=Stonewall Scholarship|website=UTLA Stonewall Scholarship Program|access-date=May 20, 2017}} 1999 Liberty Award from Lambda Legal Defense,{{Cite news|url=http://www.lambdalegal.org/wcla|title=West Coast Liberty Awards|work=Lambda Legal|access-date=2017-05-21}} Southern California Women for Understanding,{{Cite web|url=http://csw.pre.ss.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2015/10/MakingInvisibleHistoriesVisiblePartII.pdf|title=The Collections of The June L. Mazer Lesbian Archives - Southern California Women for Understanding Collection|website=UCLA.edu|access-date=May 20, 2017}} the LA Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, the City of West Hollywood,{{Cite web|url=http://www.wehochamber.com/women-in-leadership.html|title=Women In Leadership|website=West Hollywood Chamber of Commerce|access-date=2017-05-21}} Long Beach Pride, the LA County Human Relations Commission, the Los Angeles Unified School District, Vox Femina LA.{{Cite news|url=http://www.broadwayworld.com/los-angeles/article/Photo-Flash-Creative-Planet-School-of-Arts-VOX-Feminas-Stage-ShowConcert-20090617|title=Photo Flash: Creative Planet School of Arts & VOX Femina's Stage Show/Concert|author=BWW News Desk|work=BroadwayWorld.com|access-date=2017-05-21|language=en}} Uribe was awarded the NOGLSTP GLBT Educator of the Year Award in 2009.{{cite web |url=https://www.noglstp.org/publications-documents/announcements/2009-02-01-nowick-gingiss-and-uribe-to-receive-2009-noglstp-glbt-awards-recognizing-their-contributions-to-the-fields-of-science-and-technology/ |accessdate=2019-02-20 |title=Nowick, Gingiss, and Uribe to Receive 2009 NOGLSTP GLBT Awards Recognizing Their Contributions to the Fields of Science and Technology |publisher=NOGLSTP}} One of her proudest moments was when she was informed by the White House, during President Obama's tenure, that she was a finalist for the Presidential Citizens Medal.

In June 2019, Uribe was one of the inaugural fifty American “pioneers, trailblazers, and heroes” inducted on the National LGBTQ Wall of Honor within the Stonewall National Monument (SNM) in New York City’s Stonewall Inn.{{Cite web|url=https://www.metro.us/news/local-news/new-york/stonewall-inn-lgbtq-wall-honor|title=National LGBTQ Wall of Honor unveiled at Stonewall Inn|last=Glasses-Baker|first=Becca|date=June 27, 2019|website=www.metro.us|access-date=2019-06-28}}{{Cite web|url=https://sdgln.com/news/2019/06/19/national-lgbtq-wall-honor-be-unveiled-historic-stonewall-inn|title=National LGBTQ Wall of Honor to be unveiled at historic Stonewall Inn|last=Rawles|first=Timothy|date=2019-06-19|website=San Diego Gay and Lesbian News|language=en|access-date=2019-06-21}} The SNM is the first U.S. national monument dedicated to LGBTQ rights and history,{{Cite web|url=https://www.ebar.com/news/news//272833|title=Groups seek names for Stonewall 50 honor wall|website=The Bay Area Reporter / B.A.R. Inc.|language=en|access-date=2019-05-24}} and the wall's unveiling was timed to take place during the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots.{{Cite web|url=http://sfbaytimes.com/stonewall-50/|title=Stonewall 50|date=2019-04-03|website=San Francisco Bay Times|access-date=2019-05-25}}

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Category:1933 births

Category:2019 deaths

Category:20th-century American educators

Category:People from Pasadena, California

Category:LGBTQ people from California

Category:American LGBTQ rights activists

Category:Science teachers

Category:LGBTQ educators