For decades, I have searched for the often-overlooked historical traces of people in schools who lived outside the sexuality and gender norms of their time. Their stories reveal how those norms were constructed and resisted—and what they continue to mean to us now.
Here is some of my work.
My Latest Book Arrives April 21, ‘2026!
Straighten Up, Girls and Boys:
How Schools have Shaped Sexuality and Gender
From the cover:
… Jackie M. Blount exposes the hidden history of how American schools have carefully shaped and policed gender and sexuality—affecting every student and educator, past and present. With clarity and compassion, she invites readers not only to understand these forces, but to take action for positive change in their own school communities.
Available from Harvard Education Press.
Also from Amazon, Bookshop.org, and Barnes & Noble.
Reviews for Straighten Up, Girls and Boys—
“Straighten Up, Girls and Boys is the definitive historical account of gender and sexuality in American schooling. Blount’s clear and compelling analysis is based on comprehensive research, providing essential reading for students, educators, administrators, policy makers, scholars, and citizens in our time.” ~Karen Graves, author of And They Were Wonderful Teachers: Florida’s Purge of Gay and Lesbian Teachers
“In this powerful new book, Blount analyzes how schools have not only reflected but substantially shaped gender and sexuality historically with profound implications for school workers and students alike. This timely and compelling book highlights the value of historical insights into contemporary issues, the complex intersections between schools and social forces, and the agency of educational actors to envision and actualize schools as fully inclusive spaces.” ~Lucy E. Bailey, Professor of Social Foundations and Director of Gender, Women's and Sexuality Studies at Oklahoma State University
“This compelling book deftly synthesizes multiple historical episodes spanning centuries in demonstrating persuasively how and why American schools have long been sites of intense negotiation over gender and sexual identity. Blount’s engaging narrative invites us to recognize what has appeared to be at stake in these enduring educational conflicts—and for whom.” ~Sevan G. Terzian, professor, University of Florida
“In this powerful book, historian Jackie Blount examines why and how schools have engaged so deeply over time with issues of gender and sexuality. Although schools strive to be neutral, she argues, they in fact repeatedly become sites of contestation over how educators, curriculum, and even physical school spaces enact gender expectations, all connected to cycles of political and social change. Blount identifies how people’s actions in past contests can guide progressive educators and advocates seeking a more equitable future.” ~Linda Eisenmann, Professor Emerita of Education and former Provost, Wheaton College, Massachusetts