Recommended for all

Come listen to Mikah Meyer share his story about bringing advocacy and awareness for the LGBTQ+ community through his personal experience of traveling all 419 National Park sites throughout the United States and territories over one continuous 3-year trip. Learn about his motivation, and perhaps even find your own in this one hour conference session. You may choose between the 11:00am or the 1:30pm session time.

Recommended for LGBTQ+ Students, Student allies, Parents of LGBTQ+ youth, Community Members, all school staff/teachers (from any district/state)

I will explain how and why me or someone like me, can feel comfortable identifying as a woman in relation to blackness but not in relation to the gender binary. I will also talk about misogynoir (a different type of misogyny that affects black women) and how it’s perpetuated. 30 minute session followed by a 15 min Q&A.

Recommended for: LGBTQ+ Students, Student allies, Parents of LGBTQ+ youth, Community Members

This session will focus on the state of LGBTQ+ rights in Maryland—as well as in the broader United States—with a focus on recent policy changes (including developments from the 2021 session of the Maryland General Assembly), what work is left to be done (and how to get involved), and the potential impact of a more conservative Supreme Court.

Recommended for: Parents of LGBTQ+ youth, Parents, Community Members, HCPSS staff/teachers, HCPSS curricular office staff, all school staff/teachers (from any district/state), all curricular office staff (from any district/state)

Shortly after his transition at the age of four, Jacob Lemay and his family became national advocates for transgender youth. His mother, Mimi, discusses her family's journey from mere acceptance to advocacy, as well as her memoir, What We Will Become (2020 Massachusetts Book Award Finalist) which weaves the story of Jacob with that of her own early struggles, raised in an Ultra-Orthodox Jewish community.

LGBTQ+ Students, Student allies, Community Members, all school staff/teachers (from any district/state), all curricular office staff (from any district/state)

Since 2010, the It Gets Better Project has been working to uplift, empower, and connect LGBTQ+ youth around the globe. We do this primarily through storytelling. We highlight the stories of our community that have the potential to help young people see their power and worthiness as individuals. Join us for this session to watch and discuss some of the newest and boldest video stories we've collected in the past year.

LGBTQ+ Students, Student allies, Parents of LGBTQ+ youth, Parents, Community Members, all school staff/teachers/curricular staff (from any district/state)

Despite the disproportionately high rates of LGBTQ+ youth entering the juvenile justice system, our nation’s schools, law enforcement officers, district attorneys, judges, juvenile defenders, and other professionals are not equipped to manage the unique experiences and challenges that these young people face. As a consequence, the system often does more harm by unfairly criminalizing these youth — imposing harsh school sanctions, labeling them as sex offenders, or detaining them for minor offenses — in addition to subjecting them to discriminatory and harmful treatment that deprives them of their basic civil rights. In this session, attendees will learn how and why LGBTQ+ youth disproportionately end up in the juvenile justice system, current efforts on state and federal levels around decriminalization, and addressing common questions around everyday practice towards inclusion, especially ones focused on the school system.

Recommended for LGBTQ+ Students, Student allies, Parents of LGBTQ+ youth, Community Members

With the hostile Trump administration gone, hear from Washington Blade Editor Kevin Naff about the state of the LGBTQ movement and its legislative priorities in the new Biden-Harris era. The Blade is the nation's oldest LGBTQ newspaper and the only alternative media outlet in the White House. Naff is a 1988 graduate of Hammond High School.

Recommended for: LGBTQ+ Students, Parents of LGBTQ+ youth, Community Members, all school staff/teachers (from any district/state)

Unmatched Athlete is a new 501c3 non-profit whose mission is to encourage LGBTQ+ & ally youth ages 5 - 18 years old to participate in sports and fitness. When we launch, we plan on holding monthly pickup games in six sports and fitness activities.

We believe that creating a safe and supportive environment for LGBTQ+ youth in sports and fitness is imperative towards creating a more equitable and just society. We want all of our youth regardless of their experience level, to feel comfortable exploring their athletic creativity and all of the benefits that sports and fitness has to offer. We also want to support queer identifying student athletes towards a path to competing collegiately.

We’re humbled to be presenting at this year’s HoCo Rainbow Conference. We’ll be discussing more about our mission and plans for this year. We’ll also have an open discussion regarding LGBTQ+ peoples' experiences participating in sports and fitness. If you have any questions before the event, please feel free to reach out to us at info@unmatchedathlete.org.

LGBTQ+ Students, Student allies, Parents of LGBTQ+ youth, Parents, Community Members, HCPSS staff/teachers, HCPSS curricular office staff, all school staff/teachers (from any district/state), all curricular office staff (from any district/state)

Have you ever struggled with a feeling that your emotional and physical sense of self is at odds with the gender assigned to you at birth? Do you feel sometimes that the manner in which you express yourself does not fit your community's or family's expectations of femaleness, maleness, or other gendered experience? Do you often feel that you can't stop thinking about what you perceive to be defects or flaws in your body or the way that you look? This interactive workshop with mindful, healing words, images, and music offers support, care, compassion, and understanding for anyone—especially youth—who have experienced conditions that the medical community often calls gender dysphoria and body dysmorphia. We will also examine ways to uplift ourselves emotionally when we are faced with misunderstanding, stigma, and mistreatment concerning our heartfelt gender identity and expression. We will examine 8 strategies to manage these conditions while celebrating multiethnic people throughout American history that thrived through gender self-affirmation and the care of their communities. Participants are encouraged to come to the workshop appearing exactly as you wish to be. There will be a SHOW & TELL interlude where participants can voluntarily show off objects, clothes, or materials that indicate your innermost gendered experience. If you're in any way gender variant (trans or just differently expressive in terms of gender) then this workshop is a safe, welcoming, and loving space to think-through approaches for self-care and community-care in the wake of gender dysphoria and body dysmorphia.

Recommended for all.

Information about suicide prevention and intervention with the LGBTQ+ community, the importance of creating safe space and being an ally, and how to do it.

Recommended for Parents, Community Members, all school staff/teachers/curricular (from any district/state)

As schools become more inclusive and aware of LGBTQ+ identities, there is often a focus on the L, G, and T identities. Non-binary and gender diverse students and teachers, those who do not identify within the male-female binary, are often missing from the conversation or underrepresented. This session will provide background information on non-binary identities as well as neo-pronouns (they, xe, ze, etc.). We will then look at various strategies to disrupt the traditional gender binary and help support non-binary students and teachers in various educational settings.

Recommended for Parents, Community Members, all school staff/teachers/curricular (from any district/state)

When Louis retired from teaching high school English in 2015, he found a niche at the Matthew Shepard Foundation, providing support for school and community theater productions of The Laramie Project—first as a volunteer and soon as a part-time staff member. The Foundation's Legacy Project has expanded to include other supported works of art, as well as the ongoing digitizing of thousands of letters, news clippings, videos and other artifacts of Matt's life and the Foundation's history. In this session, learn more about Matt's Story and how to connect it to your curriculum.

Recommended for LGBTQ+ Students, Student allies, Parents of LGBTQ+ youth, Parents, Community Members, HCPSS staff/teachers, HCPSS curricular office staff

Just as people are trained in CPR and the Heimlich Maneuver to help save thousands of lives each year, people are trained in QPR to save a life from a death by suicide. QPR stands for Question Persuade Refer and teaches someone how to recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis, how to question, persuade, and refer someone to help. For more information about this evidence based practice go to https://qprinstitute.com/

KEY COMPONENTS COVERED IN TRAINING:

• How to Question, Persuade and Refer someone who may be suicidal

• How to get help for yourself or learn more about preventing suicide

• The common causes of suicidal behavior

• The warning signs of suicide

• How to get help for someone in crisis

Recommended for LGBTQ+ Students, Student allies, Parents of LGBTQ+ youth, Parents, Community Members, HCPSS staff/teachers, HCPSS curricular office staff

A history to the evolution of the Tyler Clementi Foundation, and the various programs that work to end bullying behavior. The session will cover an overview of TCF programs, tips to being an Upstander, and include ways to get involved!

About the Tyler Clementi Foundation:

The Tyler Clementi Foundation was founded by the Clementi family to prevent bullying through inclusion and the assertion of dignity and acceptance as a way to honor the memory of Tyler: a son, a brother, and a friend.

In 2010, Tyler’s death became a global news story, highlighting the impact and consequences of bullying, while sparking dialogue amongst parents, teachers, and students across the country. His story also linked broader issues impacting youth and families, such as LGBT inequality, safety in schools, youth in crisis, higher education support systems, and cyberbullying.

In 2011, The Tyler Clementi Foundation was born out of the urgent need to address these bullying challenges facing vulnerable populations, especially LGBT communities and other victims of hostile social environments.

Not only do we continue to carry the important message about the suicide risk facing many LGBT youth, who can be three to seven times more at risk for suicide than other youth, but also our message of standing up to bullying speaks universally across all cultures and identities.

LGBTQ+ Students, Student allies, Community Members, all school staff/teachers (from any district/state), all curricular office staff (from any district/state)

Maryland House Majority Leader Eric Luedtke will speak, as an ally, to the importance of learning the history behind the LGBTQ+ rights movement that has and continues to pave the way to equity.

Recommended for: LGBTQ+ Students, all school staff/teachers (from any district/state), all curricular office staff (from any district/state)

The Global Center, a non-governmental organization that uses education, advocacy, research, and support to create freedom for LGBTI+ youth globally, conducted an online survey to examine teachers’ current needs, challenges, and barriers to teaching LGBTI+ content. We also wanted to discover what current and desired supports, resources, or tools may help teachers in supporting LGBTI+ students in their classrooms.

The survey was made available in English, Mandarin, Spanish, and Thai. Data was collected in June 2020, and took approximately 15 minutes to complete. A comprehensive distribution schedule was developed to elicit a snowball sampling data collection technique. A total of 174 teachers from the United States, Thailand, China, Estonia, Ireland, and other countries completed the survey. Preliminary findings show that context matters.

This presentation will reference the particular barriers, needs, and opportunities mentioned by teachers globally for promoting diversity and respect in their schools, including answers on self-perceptions, welcoming environments, and existing tools and materials that have helped them. A majority of the session will be spent exploring the resources and engaging in activities to make more LGBTI+ inclusive classrooms.

This presentation is for educators looking to better understand teachers’ experiences and best practices as they attempt to create welcoming, inclusive environments for all students.

Recommended for: all

Join me in a safe space where we'll explore a beautiful rainbow of LQBTQIA+ picture books and the importance of representation in children's media.

Recommended for: all

Looking for some great books and comics featuring LGBTQIA+ main characters and/or written/illustrated by LGBTQIA+ creators? Join an awkward nerdy "BIbrarian" for a quick rundown of some of this year's favorites plus some oldie goldie classics, and feel free to share your own at the end!

Recommended for LGBTQ+ Students, Student allies

Come together to learn and play! Our workshop will include lots of fun games that help folks get to know each other, form bonds, develop trust and debrief their shared experiences. This workshop will be a shortened "crash course" version of the full training, and give attendees the ability to understand and implement basic concepts, as well as resources to gain more knowledge and information on the topic.

Recommended for: all

Drag is far more than makeup, wigs, and dancing! Meet Bella Naughty and her close friends. Together we will let you peer into the hearts and minds of drag artists. Self expression has no boundaries and drag is an all encompassing art form that’s great for LGBTQ+ people to use as a medium for their art, passions, and reach their life goals. In this session we hope to inspire you!