TransActive Update: June 2023
Open gallery
Happy Pride Month! The work at TransActive Gender Project is expanding rapidly, and I couldn’t be more excited to share what’s been happening, and what is coming in the near future!
This month, we will issue certificates of completion to the first cohort of our Gender Diversity Certificate Program! This nine month intensive on creating inclusive and affirming environments for children, youth and adolescents has been a joy to develop, and deliver to our twenty-one amazing graduating students. And now, after a short summer pause, we will launch year two of this one-of-a-kind program in September, 2023. The application process is now open, so please share this news with anyone you think might be interested in joining us in the 2023-24 cohort!
After three-plus years of delivering a hybrid-model of youth and family support, TransActive is excited to announce the resumption of in-person support groups at the long-time facility provided to us by our amazing collaborative partners here in Portland. It provides more space for youth to play indoors and outdoors, have access to a gym, and for larger groups of parents and caregivers to share their experience of raising a gender expansive child.
We, of course, continue to provide and expand our professional development workshops and training to new communities, organizations and businesses, with modules focused on implementing new PK-12 Guidelines issued by school districts and departments of education, creating gender inclusive and affirming workplaces, and how to discern evidence-based information from disinformation about the necessity of protecting the rights of gender expansive, transgender, nonbinary, Two-Spirit, and Queer youth from extremist disinformation campaigns. The TransActive team is is committed to working with our colleagues, allies and you in continuing to provide healthier futures for our youth, so they can, in return, provide a brighter future for us all.
Jenn Burleton
Program Director
Catch us at an upcoming Pride event in the Portland-Metro Area
- Sunday, June 23: Pride Beaverton, City Park, Beaverton, OR
- Friday, July 7: Pride at the Museum, OMSI, Portland, OR
- Saturday, July 15-16: Portland Pride, SW Waterfront, Portland, OR
Visit our booth at one of these events to meet TGP staff and volunteers, and learn more about our education and services. We will be selling our Protect Trans Kids t-shirts again this year, with all proceeds benefitting our ongoing work. Stop by and say “hello”!
Gender Diversity Certificate Program
Congratulations to the first cohort of graduates!
This June, 21 continuing education students will become part of the first cohort to earn the Gender Diversity in Children and Youth certificate from Lewis & Clark Graduate School.
Over the course of nine months and 4 courses, the cohort gained an increased understanding of human gender diversity, gender development, and the myths and disinformation that continue to skew public perception and awareness of trans-spectrum children, youth, and adults. Further, participants engaged in coursework around moving ‘from policy to practice’, providing a roadmap toward achieving inclusivity and compliance goals within schools, school districts, and other youth-serving organizations.
In addition to the certificate coursework, students also found value in the community created amongst their cohort members. “The connections I made in this cohort are ones I hope to continue supporting and be a part of for many years.” said Christin Knight, a middle school teacher in the Lake Oswego school district. Fellow cohort member Kelly Blixhavn, a Care Coordinator for Clackamas County, echoed the importance of the connections established throughout the cohort. “Community is an essential part of advocating for trans lives, so it has been hugely impactful to know others who are willing to engage in this important work.”
Interested in the Certificate Program? A new cohort begins this September, and applications are open now. Watch an on-demand info session
Supporting Gender Expansive Students: Guidance for Schools
At the beginning of 2023, the Oregon Department of Education (ODE) released a comprehensive guide to supporting our gender expansive students in schools—an update from their 2016 guidance. For the past few months, TransActive Gender Project has been working on developing professional development training to help with the implementation of these guidelines. A workshop is being developed to be offered this fall for all educators in Oregon and beyond. TransActive’s Gender Diversity Certificate Program has also implemented the new ODE guidelines in it’s curriculum. Stay tuned for more updates on this training.
