Community Outreach Project (2024-25): Supporting student action for LGBTQ equity in K-12 schools

The goal of this project is to partner with youth-serving LGBTQ community organizations to design and deliver a series of workshops and supporting materials for two different groups: 1) middle and high school students engaging in activism for LGBTQ equity and 2) educators who are advisors for student groups that focus on LGBTQ equity.

The first phase of this project will involve collaborations with partner organizations in the fall of 2024. We will post updates here when materials and workshops that emerge from these collaborations are available to the public in spring 2025. In the meantime, please visit the Queer Justice and Resources pages. This project is supported by the CU Boulder PACES Grant Committee. 

9news (2022)

Charter California Edition (2014)

Selected Media Appearances

• Quoted in Self magazine article (2023, August 24) Let them play  
• Quoted in Education Week article (2023, August 16) What’s With All the Education News Out of Florida? A Recap of Education Policy Decisions.
• Invited guest for the Munk Debates, “Teaching about Gender Identity” (posted May 10, 2023)
• Quoted in NBC News story (2023, January 10) “Teen endured taunts after reporting a sex assault, but her school didn’t help, complaint says”
• Quoted in Chalkbeat article (2022, July 8) “‘I’m terrified’: As new laws take effect, LGBTQ students and allies fear the consequences”
• Ethical Schools podcast, "Gender and sexually diverse students: Creating comfortable schools" (2022, March 10)
• Quoted in The74 article (2019, September18), “Chicago Public Schools Routinely Mishandled Sexual Assault Cases and Violated Title IX. Experts Say Its No Outlier.”
• Quoted in EdWeek article, “When students say #metoo, schools may be unprepared to help” (September 27, 2018)  
• ​Radio interview on Public Schools Ill Equipped to Protect Against Sex Discrimination on Public News Service (aired June 11, 2018)
• Radio interview on #MeToo and sexual harassment on Viewpoints with Todd Van Der Heyden CJAD 800 Montreal (aired November 18, 2017)
• TV interview on Sexual Harassment in Hollywood on CTV National News with Todd Van Der Heyden. (aired November 10, 2017)
• Radio interview on the Pope and LGBT issues on The Chris Baker Show on News Radio 1110 KFAB and iHeart Radio (aired September 22, 2015)
• TV interview on gender neutral parenting (video link), "Grow up!: Parenting wars" with John Stossel on Fox News (aired November 22, 2014)
• TV interview on mistakes schools make when addressing bullying on KCAL9 (aired August 22, 2014)
• Video podcast interview with advice for parents on sexual harassment in schools and Title IX on Family Confidential with Annie Fox (episode FCV022 posted August 7, 2014).
• TV interview on bullying, LGBT issues, and Seth's Law with Brad Pomerance on Charter California Edition. (segment begins at 19:45; Recorded June 6, 2014)​
• Radio interview on Teachers' online lives on Talk of the Nation, National Public Radio. (April 2012)
• Radio interview on hazing with Oregon Public Broadcasting (February 2012).

Selected Presentations & Keynotes

Sacramento City Unified School District, April 2012 

1. Workshop presenter. Making GLSEN work for you: Exploring free LGBTQ-inclusive lessons and resources for your classroom; Leveraging Title IX to support LGBTQ youth in your district: Action planning. Educator Institute for Equity and Justice. Longmont, CO. July 2021.
2. Panelist & co-planner. Supporting LGBTQ youth of color in schools. Online workshop organized by Shaun Harper & Daniel Soodjinda. University of Southern California for Los Angeles Unified School District. November 9, 2020.
3. I nvited presenter. Free Speech on campus: Where’s the line? LEAP Faculty Development Program. University of Colorado Boulder. (2019 & 2020)
4. Workshop presenter. Creating a Supportive and Inclusive Environment for Gender and Sexual Diversity. Jefferson County Schools Student Voice: Leadership and Equity Conference. University of Colorado Boulder. February 27, 2018.
5. Invited panelist. Hate crimes, bullying, and social media. Community event co-sponsored by the Boulder Jewish Community Center, Boulder District Attorney’s Office, Out Boulder, Safe Shelter of St. Vrain Valley, and Safehouse Progressive Alliance for Nonviolence. October 29, 2018.
6. Invited Panelist. Understanding sexual harassment in our community. Boulder Rotary Club. January 26, 2018.
7. Live Webinar panelist. Real Boy: Screening and Panel Discussion. Presented by Psychology Today, PBS, and HiTOPS. May 13, 2017.
8. Supporting Trans and Gender-Creative Kids: Lessons from their Teachers. Presentation at the Transforming Gender conference. University of Colorado Boulder.  March 2017
9. 2016, October 27. Invited panelist to speak at the “Innovation in Education film series” film “Most Likely to Succeed”. Boulder Valley School District: Boulder, CO.
10. 2016, May 20. Who am I, anyway? Critical ontology, queer pedagogy, and radical love. Invited keynote speaker at the LGBTQ issues in Music Education Conferences (QMue3) at the University of Illinois. Champaign, IL.
11. 2015, April 16. Gender, bullying, and body size: Barriers and solutions to supporting youth of all shapes and sizes. Invited plenary speaking at the National Eating Disorder Information Centre Body Image and Self Esteem conference. Toronto, Ontario, Canada
12. November 7, 2014. Seth's Law, the FAIR Education Act and the School Success and Opportunity Act. Professional Development session for the San Luis Obispo County Office of Education Teacher Induction Program. San Luis Obispo, CA.
13. November 14, 2013. Supporting transgender and gender creative youth: Schools, families, and communities in action. Invited lecture for the Institute for Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Social Justice at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, CANADA.
14. November 14, 2013. From ‘No Promo Homo’ to Social Justice 12: Constructing official ignorance/knowledge about gender and sexuality in North American Schools. Invited lecture for the Departments of Sociology and Anthropology and the Faculty of Education at Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, British Columbia, CANADA. 
15. July 2013 Legal and educational issues impacting gender creative and transgender youth; Gender, bullying, and harassment: Supporting gender creative and transgender youth in schools. Invited speaker at the annual Gender Spectrum Professionals’ Workshop. Berkeley, CA.   
16. May 31, 2013 Understanding gender, heteronormativity, & homophobia in schools. Invited Keynote speaker at the Flanders Ministry of Education, Brussels, Belgium. 
17. May 13, 2013 Introducing Seth’s Law and the FAIR Education Act. Speaker at the film screening of Bullied at Clark Center. Presented by the Lucia Mar Unified School District, Arroyo Grande, CA. 
18. February 1, 2013 Introducing Seth’s Law and the FAIR Education Act. Speaker at the film screening of Bullied at Cuesta College, San Luis Obispo, CA. Plenary session during the Asset Development Network’s It All Starts With Me anti-bullying conference. 
19. February 23, 2012 L’identité sexuelle et du genre chez les enfants d'âge scolaire:  créer des espaces securitaires et favorables à l’intégration ». Community workshop offered to Francophone elementary educators in Montreal, QC.
20. February 24, 2012 Supporting gender equity & diversity in early childhood settings. Invited workshop presentation to the Quebec Association of Early Childhood Educators. Montreal, QC.
21. March 22-23, 2012 Gender, bullying, and harassment: Strategies to end sexism and homophobia in schools. Invited workshop presented to secondary educators in Scranton & Wilkes-Barre, PA hosted by the North East Pennsylvania Diversity Consortium.
22. April 27, 2012 Gender, bullying, and harassment: Strategies to end sexism and homophobia in schools. Invited keynote speaker at the Sacramento Unified School District conference on bullying. Sacramento, CA. [videos above]
23. May 7, 2012 Invited expert to testify on cyberbullying in Canada. Standing Senate Committee on Human Rights, Canadian Senate. [videoconference] Ottawa, ON, Canada.
24. July 10 & 11, 2012 Preventing bullying and harassment. Workshop presented at the California Physical Education Workshop. Cal Poly State University, San Luis Obispo, CA.
25. October 1, 2011 Creating cultures of peace and inclusion in schools. Invited Keynote speaker at the “Youth and Violence: The Role of Education” conference hosted by Dawson College. Montreal, QC. [video link]