While there are few signs that the stalemate between LGBT activists and the Anoka-Hennepin School District is close to breaking, the parents and teachers of the Gay Equity Team may be about to get a big shot in the arm. Tonight, the president of Anoka-Hennepin Education Minnesota, the local teachers’ union, is expected to speak before the school board to request “in-depth, yearly training, focusing on creating LBGT inclusive school environments, be required for all staff beginning this year, the 2010-2011 school year,” according to a resolution passed unanimously at a recent meeting of AHEM representatives.

Julie Blaha, the union president, has been very supportive of GET in the past, condemning the district’s infamous “neutrality policy” long before anyone outside of the school district knew what the problem was. However, this is the first time the union has weighed in on the issue of training for all staff since the controversy exploded earlier this year.

“Given what we’ve done so far, this is what we think should be next,” Blaha told TheColu.mn. “Kids are telling us that [the district’s approach to anti-LGBT bullying] isn’t working.”

In he school district sent about 60 staff members every year – mostly school psychologists and other similar support staff – for LGBT cultural competency training. There are between 420 and 1094 middle school students per guidance department staff member and between 240 and 501 high school students per guidance department staff member. However, engaging all teachers in an effort to create an inclusive school environment, anti-bullying advocates say, is key to success.

But even if the AHEM teachers are successful in their request for more training, they will likely find themselves bumping up against the district’s “neutrality policy” on sexual orientation as they try to create a more welcoming environment for LGBTA students. However, observers say Anoka-Hennepin policy-makers are afraid of a conservative backlash against the district – which could imperil any attempt to renew the extra property taxes the district depends on for funding – School Board Chair Tom Heidemann has publicly stated the district will not give up the “neutrality policy.”