Afternoon Workshop 1 Selections

Session 7 Moving from Service to Science: Initial Findings in the Evaluation of an LGBTQ Community level Intervention
Presented by: Jason Vail Cruz, TERROS, Inc. Veronica Harner, TERROS, Inc. Emerson Kuhn, ASU Lodestar Center Session Abstract
The Safe Out program has been awarded a subcontract of $30,000 from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Safe Out is using the award to strengthen the evaluation of its program for local Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer communities (LGBTQ). The subcontract, which was awarded through the Service to Science Initiatives FY2014 Subcontracts to Build Evaluation Capacity for Evidence-Based Interventions, is administered by SAMHSAs Center for the Application for Prevention Technologies (CAPT). Safe Out was one of 24 local organizations to receive this award in 2014. A program of TERROS Community Prevention Services, Saf e Out works in collaboration with the LGBTQ Consortium to reduce excessive drinking and its associated harmsproblems that affect the LGBTQ community on average 30% more than the dominant society. Safe Out works through social marketing, community education, partnering with bars for safer drinking practices, and alternative community events. This presentation will discuss the implementation of the rigorous research design and its initial findings from the evaluation team. These findings are expected to demonstrate that the program has heightened attention and selfregulation as well as any noted reductions in risky behavior and improvements in safe pouring through trained LGBTQ liquor serving establishments. It will also clarify effectiveness with different demographics within the LGBTQ community and if the scope of the work can be broadened to prevention of other substances. By the end of this training participants will be able to: 1. Identify the research design utilized to evaluate the community level intervention 2. Discuss initial findings from this study and what it demonstrates in terms of program effectiveness 3. Identify methods of evaluation that can be used at an agency or community coalition level to study the effectiveness of integrated on other treatment or prevention efforts specifically for the LGBTQ community.

Presenter Bios
Jason Vail Cruz is the Chair for both the Safe Out subcommittee for the LGBTQ Consortium of Arizona. In the coalition he works to better the community through utilizing internal strengths of individuals to prevent community wide harms. He has worked for TERROS, Inc. since 2005 in various capacities. These include in the intensive outpatient treatment for adults struggling with co-occurring diagnoses, prevention manager, and as a continuing care clinician. As manager of the ANEW (Assessing and Nurturing Effective Wisdom) program, he worked collaboratively with several different agencies and representatives from government to prevent the onset

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or relapse of Substance Abuse, HIV infection, and Hepatitis infection, in ethnic minority communities. His current focus is the reduction of excessive drinking in the LGBTQ community of Phoenix. Raised in Upstate New York, Jason has lived in the valley since 1992 working in corporate America prior to joining TERROS in 2005. Jason was the co-chair of the Phoenix World AIDS Day event for two years and currently is the Teams chair for the second year with Aunt Ritas Foundation for the AIDS Walk Phoenix and 5k Run. An active member of his faith community and Executive Director for the Muslim American Society-Arizona Chapter, Jason has a passion for social justice and addressing health disparities in the treatment of different communities. He actively works towards better interfaith relations and social justice for all. Veronica Harners substantive interests are at the intersection of LGBTQ community activism, Trans* and nonbinary identifying communities, cultural competency, and queer research. Veronica received a BFA from Arizona State University in 2010. Currently, they are pursuing a Masters in Social Work with emphasis on community organizing and mixed methods research, with plans to complete a PhD. Over the past 9 years, Veronica has been working for social justice in the LGBTQ community via prevention, education, and community needs assessment. With a background including the Nebraska AIDS Project, Veronica has experience providing safer sex education. Since March of 2012, Veronica, has served as a Prevention Lead at Terros, Inc, working with the Safe Out program, an effort to curb problematic alcohol use in the LGBTQ community through marketing, program coordination, data collection, and norms changing. Moreover, they have been the Public Relations Chair of the LGBTQ Consortium since July 2012. To expand substantive expertise, Veronica has been active in community research efforts. As a co-founder of the research collaborative, InQUEERy, Veronica has developed a research trajectory including efforts to examine the experience of sexual minority women and their alcohol use as well as the lived-experience of providers practicing in queer spaces. Veronica is also highly invested in the role of performance arts in community building, emotional health, and expression of LGBTQ* individuals. Ultimately, Veronica provides a high level of familiarity, knowledge, and awareness in the area of LGBTQ* issues, with a mission to raise consciousness, strengthen inclusivity within the community, and fight for social justice. Currently the lead on the Ally Experience for Public Allies Arizona, an AmeriCorps program of the ASU Lodestar Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Innovation, Emerson Kuhn spends his days planning and implementing trainings and professional development workshops for about 40 Public Allies every other week. He also coaches a third of the Public Allies cohort through the program. As an alumnus of the Public Allies Arizona program himself, Emerson was an Ally placed at Tumbleweed Center for Youth Development as an Education Tutor and Job Developer. He loves this work, this program, and feels that this work is crucial to making change in the community. Previously working as an Outreach Case Worker was one of the most rewarding and challenging jobs hes ever had. He was challenged every day to provide resources to street youth and various youth serving organizations. He developed a passion for it and hopes to continue this kind of work again someday. He got his start in outreach through his Public Allies placement at Tumbleweed, and after his term of service, he was offered a position to stay on with the organization in that capacity.

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A couple of years ago Emerson left the nonprofit sector to travel abroad and domestically for about six months. He worked as a manager in the for-profit sector saving up enough money to tour Italy for two consecutive months. Shortly after his travels abroad he found a position that would challenge his skills working with youth at a summer camp. Camp demanded a lot and pushed him to learn and try many new youth development techniques through outdoor education. Emerson taught on the high ropes course, rock climbing, archery and drama. He was trained to facilitate these activities and fell in love with all of them in the process. He now sees the importance of and the role that outdoor education can play in a child's (or anybody's) life. Emerson carries professional experience and education in the dramatic arts and theatre for social change, as well as 10+ years of professional and volunteer experience in community advocacy and activism work within both the community at large and the LGBTQ community.

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Session 8 InQUEERy: Examining Resources for Locating, Utilizing, and Conducting Queer Research
Presented by: Natasha Mendoza, PhD, Arizona State University Beverly Wohlert, University of Arizona Session Abstract
InQUEERy is a recently formed research collaborative housed in the College of Public Programs, School of Social Work at Arizona State University. Representing multiple disciplines and institutions, the working mission of the collaborative is to 1) build a scholarly community invested in lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) population research, 2) raise consciousness about the importance of this inquiry, 3) share resources and knowledge about LGBTQ research, and 4) conduct scholarly activities (collaborative research projects, refereed publication, presentation). The workshop will include the following components: 1) a broad introduction to the research specialization in social science, 2) a primer on building this research component into a) a career trajectory b) a behavioral/mental health setting, 3) examples of national research clearing houses for LGBTQ research, 4) an introduction to the collaborative and ongoing projects, and 5) an exercise in developing salient research questions.

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Session 9 Assessment, Advocacy, and Community-Based Care: Addressing the Needs of Gender-Variant and Gender-Questioning Youth
Presented by: Ian Ellasante, MA, University of Arizonas Southwest Institute for Research on Women (SIROW) Joe Nutini, LMSW, CODAC Session Abstract iTEAMs six-agency collaboration aims to increase housing stability, improve mental health status, expand linkages to community resources, decrease substance use, and reduce HIV risk behaviors among its participants, who are ages 15 to 23, 60% of whom identify as non-white and 74% as LGBTQ. iTEAM project staff conduct outreach at the Eon Youth Lounge (a drop-in center for LGBTQA youth and a one-stop shop for iTEAMs comprehensive services), streets and hangouts, and selected high school gay-straight alliances (GSAs) to identify and enroll unstably-housed LGBTQA youth into the project. This workshop session will briefly describe the strategic development of a community-based network of care, inclusive and supportive of LGBTQA youth. It will also outline iTEAMs participant demographics (self -identified ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, and age) and will use preliminary outcome data to examine the impact of iTEAMs interventions in the areas of housing stability, physical and mental health, and pro-social behaviors. Primarily, this workshop session will focus on changes in gender identity and sexual identity over time among iTEAM participants. Currently, 56% of iTEAM participants report some change in gender identity over the course of six months. Workshop attendees will engage in facilitated discussions and activities about assessment tools designed to capture this information as well as the unique mental health and emotional support needs that youth may experience when they are questioning their gender identity. The session will also explore approaches for addressing the needs of gender-variant or gender-questioning youth from iTEAMs evidence-based MET/CBTadapted curriculum, developed specifically for LGBTQA youth and implemented weekly in a therapeutic group. By participating in this session, attendees will be able to accomplish the following: 1. Suggest at least two existing or potential community-agency partnerships within which they or their agencies can increase outreach and support to LGBTQA youth. 2. Apply effective assessment methods for asking about gender identity. 3. Describe some of the unique emotional support needs of gender-variant or gender-questioning youth. 4. Identify and demonstrate constructive approaches for addressing the needs of gender-variant or genderquestioning youth.

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Presenter Bios Ian Ellasante, MA Ian Ellasante is an Assistant Research Social Scientist with the University of Arizona's Southwest Institute for Research on Women (SIROW) and the Program Coordinator of the comprehensive and collaborative network of care for LGBTQQIA youth provided by the federally funded iTEAM project. Ian has worked with youth from marginalized groups since 2004 and specifically with LGBTQA youth since 2008. Originally from Memphis, Ian studied Sociology and English at the University of Memphis before moving to Tucson, where he completed his M.A. at the University of Arizona. Joe Nutini, LMSW Joseph Nutini is a therapist with CODAC Behavioral Health Services. He currently works with LGBTQ youth on the iTEAM project in Tucson, AZ. Joe has an MSW from Arizona State University and a BA in Womens Studies from The University of Arizona. He has spent over 10 years working and volunteering with LGBTQ youth and with the broader transgender population. Joe is also an ordained interfaith minister, a reiki practitioner and is certified to practice hypnotherapy. His story was published in a book titled Trans People in Love. He strives to include as much fun as possible in both his work with youth and his personal life.

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Session 10 Protecting the Rights and Safety of Gender Non-Conforming and Transgender Students in School
Presented by: Michael Carr, GLSEN Phoenix Chelsea Elijah Palles, GLSEN Phoenix

GLSENs biennial National School Climate Survey (NSCS) documents the unique challenges LGBT students face; survey findings also point to effective interventions that improve school climate for all students, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression. This interactive workshop will focus on how to create a safe, respectful and healthy learning environment for gender non-conforming (GNC) and transgender (trans*) students, who face severe levels of harassment and violence in the school community. These high levels of victimization result in GNC and trans* students missing more school, receiving lower grades and feeling isolated and not part of the school community. By the end of the workshop, educators, behavioral health providers, and administrators will be able to 1) connect school climate data with educational outcomes and student well-being; 2) identify the needs of GNC and trans* youth in K-12 schools; 3) prioritize effective policy reforms and other interventions for their community; 3) learn about student resources such as GLSEN's Trans-Students Rights a grassroots student-created organization, dedicated to creating safe schools for all, regardless of gender identity and expression; and, 4) access educational resources for further professional development. In short, this workshop will help participants better understand the policies and actions required to create a school where every student -- GNC and trans* students, and their classmates can expect to be treated with dignity.

Presenter Bios
Elijah Palles has worked in the behavioral health field for five years primarily with children, youth and families. He began his work in DDD services and then moved to case management at Southwest Network and then at Arizona's Children Association. He has helped formulate LGBTQ sensitivity trainings in numerous jobs and has helped to start an LGBTQ group at AzCA before he left. Elijah is currently a graduate student at Arizona State University and is working on his MSW with a concentration in Planning, Administration and Community. Elijah is also a male illusionist in the LGBTQ community and has worked with several organizations across the state in raising awareness and funds. Elijah is currently working towards assisting in providing trans* inclusivity in GLSEN and other organizations around the valley. Elijah is the Adult Coordinator for the Jump Start team.

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Session 11 Rainbows and Cages: Immigration Detention, Prisons, and Health
(REPEATED in Afternoon Session 13)
Presented By:

Ral Alcaraz Ochoa, The Rainbow Defense Fund Marco Galdino, The Rainbow Defense Fund Frida Espinosa, Instituto Nacional de Salud Pblica (Mexico) & Alliance for Global Justice Stephanie Quintana, The Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project

Session Abstract Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender migrants in Arizona compose a highly vulnerable population in Arizona immigration detention centers and private and public correctional facilities. LGBTQ migrants in detention often face a higher level of harassment, discrimination and trauma at the hands of fellow detainees and detention personnel, compared to non-LGBTQ migrants. Limited legal resources, primary and mental health resources as well as advocacy, is available for this subpopulation, which leaves individuals to fend for themselves during their detention. The group of panelists will present testimonies from formerly incarcerated LGBTQ community members, and provide a forum for activists, organizers, legal advocates, and mental health professionals who are interested in improving conditions and services for this resilient LGBT population. Often, LGBT migrants arrive to Arizona after fleeing from violent persecution lived in their native countries due to their LGBT identity, but are tragically re-victimized when they arrive to an Arizona correctional facility and if not immediately deported, during their reintegration to an Arizona community. While in detention, LGBT migrants have reported trauma-inducing systemic practices and conditions that include: being housed with detainees of a gender with which they do nt identify, inadequate medical care, inadequate mental health resources, detention staff divulging confidential information, segregation placements, and physical and sexual violence. The Rainbow Defense Fund is a Tucson-based group that focuses support for LGBTQ detainees. Through visitations, pen pal letter-writing, and bond support, the Rainbow Defense Fund has led successful campaigns to have LGBTQ detainees released from detention. The Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project provides free legal services and related social services to indigent individuals detained in Arizona for immigration removal proceedings. The Project has assisted LGBT migrants in obtaining political asylum status to lawfully remain in the U.S. The lack of knowledge, resources, improved policy, and political will geared towards this population adds to the health consequences suffered by this group of LGBT individuals and their families. The Rainbow Defense Fund and its supporters recognize that when detention time is minimized, trauma is minimized, and so are negative health consequences.

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Panelist Bios
Ral Alcaraz Ochoa was born in Jalisco, Mxico to two loving parents. Ral grew up in Richmond, California where his struggles as a migrant child fueled his passion for social justice and community power. Ral has organized around educational justice, youth power, queer justice, and migrant rights issues. After graduating from the Ethnic Studies Department at San Francisco State University in 2006, Ral left life and work in the Bay Area to live in the desert/borderland of Tucson, Arizona where he organizes towards LGBTQ and migrant liberation with families and youth. Evident through his work with the Rainbow Defense Fund, the Southside Worker Center and Corazn de Tucson, Ral imagines a world free of oppression and continuously struggles towards creating a world where many worlds fit. Marco Galdino was born in So Paulo, Brazil. He fled his country due to intense persecution he was experiencing based on his sexual orientation. Marco filed for asylum and was detained in immigration detention for 8 years, until he was finally bonded out last year with the support of the Rainbow Defense Fund. Marco is now an active member of the community providing support for incarcerated people and recently released individuals. He resides in Tucson, AZ. Stephanie Quintana-Martinez was born and raised in Puerto Rico and holds a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Puerto Rico. After graduating in 2012, Stephanie moved to Arizona. Since then, she worked as a community organizer and volunteer for the Southside Worker Center and the Tucson Protection Network Coalition. She holds experience working with domestic violence and sexual aggression survivors and advocating for womens right at the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. Since August 2013, Stephanie has been working for the Florence Immigrant and Refugee Project. The Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project is nonprofit organization providing free legal services to men, women, and unaccompanied children detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Arizona where an estimated 86 percent of immigrant detainees go unrepresented. The Florence Project strives to address this inequity through direct service, partnerships with the community, and advocacy and outreach efforts. Stephanie is especially interested in LGBT community members in immigration detention. Frida Espinosa Crdenas is a Latin American woman from Tucson, Arizona. She holds a Masters in Public Health from the National Institute of Public Health (Mexico). She has collaborated with Alliance for Global Justice for the past three years doing work around health, prisons, and human rights, and began to independently study prisons and incarceration as a Social Determinant of Health when she came across the work of Liliany Obando and her collection of testimonies of women and mother political prisoners in Colombia. She has presented her collaborative work in the US, Mexico, Colombia, and Uruguay. She currently is the Cultural Competency and Customer Service Coordinator at CODAC Behavioral Health Services

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Session 12 LGBt: Keeping The little t In LGBT Issues
(REPEAT OF MORNING SESSION 5)
Presented by: Amy DArpino, Community Partnership of Southern Arizona Rae Strozzo Session Abstract
There is a gap in services and a lack of culturally competent providers for transgender and gender diverse children. Many children across Arizona would benefit from an awareness of their needs. An integrated approach to care for and to help these children is greatly needed. This training will create awareness about transgender and gender diverse children, and how to help them when needed. Participants will become familiar with definitions, clinical implications will be addressed, information on how to support the children and families will be provided, and local and national resources will be given. Several personal stories will be shared.