ARHS’ Sara Barber-Just Celebrated with Inaugural Commonwealth Pride Award

Source: State Rep. Mindy Domb

This week, Representative Mindy Domb (D-Amherst) and Representative Aaron Saunders (D-Belchertown) celebrated Sara Barber-Just with an inaugural Commonwealth Pride Award, a newly-founded annual event sponsored by the Massachusetts legislature’s LGBTQ Caucus. The event celebrates the rich accomplishments and talents of Massachusetts’ LGBTQ+ community.

Sara Barber-Just is the English department chair at Amherst Regional High School, where she has been a teacher for 28 years, and developed the first LGBTQ literature course for a public school in the nation in 2002. She has taught approximately 2,000 students about LGBTQ literature and culture over the past 25 years. Additionally, Barber-Just has served as the Sexuality and Gender Alliance advisor and long-time adviser to the Amherst Regional High School newspaper, The Graphic. She has been recognized for her excellence in teaching numerous times: Barber-Just received The Robert Frost Teaching Award from Amherst Regional High School in 2004 and again in 2023, the Yale Educator Award in 2011, The Williams College George Olmsted Jr. Award for excellence in teaching in 2014, and was a 2022 finalist for Massachusetts Teacher of the Year. 

“I was thrilled to nominate, along with Rep. Aaron Saunders (D-Belchertown), Sara Barber-Just for an inaugural Commonwealth Pride Award,” said Domb. “Her extraordinary work in Amherst Regional High School has had a significant impact on the community and lives of thousands of students from the 3rd Hampshire District. Through her efforts as an educator, a curriculum developer, student advisor, and an all-around force for good, she has provided students with an exciting education, an introduction to the power of literature and solidarity, and a path to inquiry and meaningful investigation. Her guidance has offered students a safe space to explore who they are and what is important to them, and has led to increased community awareness and real change. Sara Barber-Just is a community hero.” 

Saunders, who represents students at Amherst Regional High School from Shutesbury and Pelham, shared, “I am grateful to Sara and her continual support of LBGTQ+ youth in our community. Her impact on her students is immeasurable, and it was an honor to co-nominate her for this prestigious award with Rep. Domb.” 

“It’s such an honor as a queer teacher of LGBTQ Literature to be nominated for this award. I consider myself deeply lucky to be a teacher, because every day of my work life involves supporting and hopefully inspiring my students so they can be the best versions of themselves. I love creating safe and creative spaces where students can take risks, grow, and flourish—and also learn from people who might seem different from them about things they have never thought about before. Having LGBTQ teachers and learning about LGBTQ subjects is affirming and even life-saving for queer students but it is equally important for students who are not LGBTQ—to grow their understanding of the lives, history, and culture of queer people. We have survived and resisted in the darkest and most difficult times and also shown incredible love for our community and stood in solidarity with other marginalized people. After 29 years as a high school English teacher, I am still so excited to wake up every day. If I could pick a second career to start all over with, I’d pick this one again. It’s the best job there is!”

For the first time ever, the caucus was proud to host the Commonwealth Pride Awards: Celebrating LGBTQ+ Excellence on the Hill. The event is slated to occur annually during Pride Month. The event honored 110+ community leaders, each nominated by their state legislators. The group spanned an enormous breadth of achievement and included public servants, advocates, doctors, authors, filmmakers, educators, historians, entrepreneurs, and religious leaders, highlighting the collective impact of the LGBTQ+ community.

“We are proud to recognize all of the incredible LGBTQ+ leaders who make Massachusetts stronger every day. Here in Massachusetts, we’ve been leading the nation in the fight for freedom over generations. It began 251 years ago when we started a revolution that spearheaded our nation’s democracy, and has continued as the state that led on abolition, women’s rights, Civil Rights, and LGBTQ+ rights,” said Governor Maura Healey. “Today, we’re proud to be the state at the forefront of our nation’s freedoms and we will continue to ensure that Massachusetts remains a safe and welcoming place for all. We’re grateful to the LGBTQ+ Caucus for recognizing the impact of our state’s LGBTQ+ trailblazers, and offer a deep congratulations to the inaugural group of Commonwealth Pride awardees!”

Massachusetts has long served as a nationwide leader for LGBTQ+ rights and social justice. In 2004, it became the first state to grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Massachusetts became the first state in the country to support transgender protections through popular vote in 2018. It consistently ranks highly among U.S. states and territories in LGBTQ+ rights and social acceptance.