Abstract
The purpose of this work was to interview six men who identified as LGBTQ+ and are either Latino, Chicano, or Mexican about their K-12 experiences. This study focused on the following questions: When did participants decide to come out and how was the process of coming out? Who did the participants come out to? What was the initial response from the individual(s) participants disclosed to? How did their responses make participants feel? Did participants receive initial support after coming out? Did participants find that the support was negative or positive relating to them coming out? Did participants have an ideal type of support they wished they could have had? What kind of support, if any, did the participants receive from their school, teachers, and parents regarding K-12 academics? Were there any resources relating to the participants’ culture and sexuality in their schools? Did participants see themselves in the curriculum? Did participants have any role models? Did any role models impact their identity development? How did the participants’ culture and religion affect their identity development? How has their K-12 experiences impact their higher education goals?