Time to THRIVE was founded with the goal of building a strong network of supportive adults to ensure LGBTQ+ youth don’t simply survive, but THRIVE. Our summit is a convening to build awareness and cultural competency, learn current and emerging best practices, gather resources from leading experts and organizations in the field, and connect adult allies on the ground with regional approach.
Register — Agenda — About T2T — Past Summits — Sponsors
Registration & Information
Registration for Time to THRIVE in the Upper Midwest, set for Saturday May 18, 2024,
is now open.
If you are an NEA Member, please reach out to Anthony Brisson at the NEA at abrisson@nea.org for your registration.
Attention LGBTQ+ Youth - Time to THRIVE in the Upper Midwest is designed for educators, counselors, librarians, social workers, and youth-serving professionals. Parents and caregivers are welcome to join us for the event and LGBTQ+ youth are also welcome to attend. Any youth under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Parents, caregivers, and guardians, please be aware that this summit does discuss the hardships LGBTQ+ youth face including suicide, violence, and hatred.
Thank you to Queer Youth Assemble and HRC’s Youth Ambassadors for designing our Youth Track of breakouts for those youth who attend.
Time To THRIVE Agenda
The full detailed agenda is coming soon, however, here is the overview of the summit and some key highlights of the event:
Time | Session |
---|---|
8:00 AM | Registration Opens |
9:00 AM | Breakfast Plenary Session |
9:50 AM | Regional Realities Panel Plenary Session |
11:00 AM | Breakout Block A |
12:30 PM | Lunch Plenary Session featuring Katie Barnes and Trans Youth Athletes |
2:00 PM | Breakout Block B |
3:45 PM | Breakout Block C |
5:15 PM | Dinner Plenary Session featuring panel of parents of transgender youth |
6:30 PM | Special Short Documentary Screening (TBA) |
7:00 PM | Closing Plenary & Call to Action |
8:00 PM | Event Ends |
Research indicates that over half of bullying incidents in schools are identity-based, which means they are rooted in bias. Educators often do not know how or feel uncomfortable facilitating learning about bias and/or intervening when a bias incident happens. In collaboration with the Anti Defamation League, Welcoming Schools developed a youth-centered video that prioritizes and amplifies the voices of a diverse group of students across the United States. During our time together, we will watch the short 9 minute video and provide actionable strategies based upon advice from youth to educators, creating an opportunity for educators to increase both their knowledge and confidence in addressing identity-based bullying.
Facilitated by Cheryl Greene (she/her), Senior Director of Welcoming Schools, HRC
Join School Board Integrity Project founder and executive director Kyrstin Schuette for a breakout workshop that delves into the critical role of school boards and the paramount importance of their integrity in shaping the future of education- particularly for our LGBTQIA+ students. In this workshop, participants will gain a profound understanding of the key responsibilities of school boards, exploring the decision-making processes that directly impact students, teachers, and communities. This workshop will also help participants unlock the power they have as advocates to push back against the growing hostility surrounding school boards and inclusive policies, build a more equitable future through policy reform and school board elections, and incite change.
Facilitated by Kyrstin Schuette (she/her), Founding Executive Director of the School Board Integrity Project
Time to THRIVE in the Upper Midwest
Keynote Speaker
Katie Barnes (they/them/their) is an award winning journalist covering the intersection of sports and gender. As a feature writer at ESPN, Katie has profiled women’s sports superstars like Maya Moore, A’ja Wilson, and Amanda Nunes. They are a leading journalist in the coverage of legislation and policy affecting transgender and intersex athletes.
Fair Play is their first book. It was named as a “Must-Read Book of 2023” by Time Magazine. Katie is a 3-time GLAAD award nominee and a 2022 finalist for the Dan Jenkins Medal, a prestigious award honoring outstanding sports journalism. They were named the 2017 Journalist of the Year by NLGJA — The Association of LGBTQ Journalists.
In Fair Play, Katie traces the evolution of women’s sports as a pastime and a political arena where equality and fairness have been fought over for generations. As attitudes toward gender have shifted to embrace more fluidity in recent decades, sex continues to be viewed as a static binary that is easily determined: male or female. It is on the very idea of static sex that we have built an entire sporting apparatus. Now that foundation is being hotly debated as a result of intense culture wars.
Many transgender and intersex athletes, including a South African runner, a wrestler in Texas, a Connecticut track star, and a swimmer at the University of Pennsylvania, have captured the attention of law and policymakers who want to decide how and when they compete.
Women’s sports, since their inception, have been seen as a separate class of competition that requires protection and rules for entry. But what are those rules and who gets to make them? Fair Play looks at all sides of the issue and presents a reasoned and much-needed solution that seeks to preserve opportunities for all going forward.
About Time To THRIVE
Time to THRIVE has evolved over recent years as we are currently in the midst of a truly tremendous and nearly unprecedented avalanche of pushback against the LGBTQ+ community. Across the country, record-numbers of anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced and sadly even passed in state legislatures, often targeting LGBTQ+ youth and specifically transgender youth. This prompted HRC to issue our first ever National State of Emergency in June 2023.
This has also prompted Time to THRIVE to adapt and shift to a regional model, allowing us to focus on the regional realities that vary wildly across the country due to this wave of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation. We hope you’ll join us at a regional Time to THRIVE summit!
Time to THRIVE in the Upper Midwest will take place on Saturday, May 18, 2024 in Minneapolis, MN and focus on Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Iowa.
Our Time to THRIVE’s summits will have open registration to anyone, anywhere, who want to learn more about supporting LGBTQ+ youth. We strongly encourage registration from our target region.
The summit will feature a full day of professional development opportunities including breakout workshops facilitated by experts from HRC, Project THRIVE partners, and more. Expect to see keynote speakers, dynamic panel discussions, and other activities to strengthen our tools in service to LGBTQ+ young people. A full detailed schedule will be released in early 2024.
If you have presented in the past or are interested in presenting, particularly if you live and work in our host regions, please contact us at timetothrive@hrc.org.
We are always looking for sponsors and supporters for Time to THRIVE, particularly in our new host regions. If you or your organization are interested in becoming a sponsor, community partner, or exhibitor, please contact us at timetothrive@hrc.org.
We understand that not everyone can join us for Time to THRIVE in person. Check out these great virtual webinars and resources to learn more about supporting LGBTQ+ youth:
Past Summits
Want to see more from previous summits?
Check out our YouTube playlist with previous panels and much more!
Our Sponsors and Partners
Interested in sponsoring HRC Foundation's Time to THRIVE Summits?
Connect with us at TimetoTHRIVE@hrc.org.
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