2023 LGBTQ Research Symposium

Symposium Dates: June 1 – 2, 2023

Location: Virtual (see format below)

Theme: “Queering Community & Kinship”

Invited Keynote Speaker: Dr. Autumn Asher BlackDeer (she/her/hers), Assistant Professor, Graduate School of Social Work, University of Denver

Tentative Keynote Title: “Decolonizing Queering: Addressing Compound Colonialism in Queer Studies”

Invited Methods Speaker: Dr. Aditya Khanna (he/him/his), Assistant Professor, Population Studies and Training Center, Brown University

Tentative Topic: Social Networks and LGBTQ Health

Program: This year’s program builds on the important traditions established over the past ten years, providing researchers and advocates opportunities to present their work, discuss challenges and opportunities, and network with others conducting LGBTQ+ research across disciplines. Our theme “Queering Community & Kinship” emphasizes constructing and maintaining queer connections through the continuation of LGBTQ+ narratives and research. The Center for LGBTQ+ Research & Advocacy at the University of Kansas acknowledges the importance of building queer connections by advancing LGBTQ+ research.

Format: The fully online, digital format of the 2023 symposium presents unique and creative opportunities to enhance accessibility of the symposium and integrate digital humanities ideas and concepts. The format of presentations will include live presentations, panel discussions, roundtables, workshops, and creative, innovative, and technological presentations. Pre-recorded presentations, posters, and creative submissions will also be included.

All primary presenters will be expected to register for the symposium. Registration rates are:

• Students, Community members, Non-profit organizations: $30
• Faculty, staff, and other university affiliates: $60

Continuing education units (CEUs) will be available at an additional cost.

All sessions will include accessibility features including captions. Keynote and invited methods presentations will include ASL interpretation. Please let the organizers know at the time of registration if you have additional accessibility needs.

Please email LGBTQResearch@ku.edu for more information or with questions.

10:00-11:00 am: Concurrent Sessions

      A. Parenting & Queering Kinship (1 CEU available)

      Moderator: Sarah Gzesh (they/them)

• Experiences of transgender and gender diverse people to become parents, parenting and co-parenting: A critical review of the literature - Somayeh Naderi (she/her), Jenifer McGuire (she/her)
• Who’s Your Daddy? The Need for Queer Elders. - Sarah Gzesh (they/them)

      B. Transgender/Gender Diverse Student Advocacy Group Roundtable

• M Greenwood (they/them), Samantha Walter (they/them), Eli Shafaf (they/he), Heather Whitcomb (she/her), Wren Flores (they/them), Dani Novo (ey/em/eirs)

11:15-12:15 Concurrent Sessions

      C. Gender Euphoria, Embodiment, & Empowerment (1 CEU available)

      Moderator: N. Eugene Walls (he/him)

• The embodiment of gender euphoria among transgender and nonbinary (TNB) communities – N. Eugene Walls (he/him), Brendon Holloway (he/him), Brittanie Atteberry-Ash (she/her)
• Dancing in trans community: A case study of care in Cassils’ human measure – Eva Marie Ruskiewicz (they/them)
• A man? Duh, Jackson: A real man's journey to becoming himself – John Mark Parker (he/him)

      D. Queer on the Academic Job Market: Discussion and Support Space

12:15-1:00 Break

1:00-2:30 Keynote

      E. Awards Ceremony & Keynote Presentation (1 CEU available)

• Brief welcome, announcements, and awards
• Keynote Title: “Decolonizing queering: Addressing compound colonialism in queer studies” - Dr. Autumn Asher BlackDeer (she/her)

2:45-3:45 Concurrent Sessions

      F. Student Experiences in Educational Settings (1 CEU available)

      Moderator: Anthony Verdino (he/him)

• Queering the classroom: From talking about queer things to doing queer things – Anthony Verdino (he/him)
• I'm not part of your cis-tem: Administrative violence & university record systems – Steven Feldman (he/they), Olivia Copeland (she/they)
• “I have had several providers who recognize my humanity”: Exploring the overall health and positive healthcare interactions of transgender and gender diverse college students – Shanna Kattari (they/them), EB Gross (she/they)

      G. Intersectionality in Clinical Settings (1 CEU available)

      Moderator: Meki Singleton (she/her)

• "Caring for each other and being each other's support": Older Black lesbians's need and expectations around potential long-term care – Meki Singleton (she/her)
• Minority stress and mental health in three generations of gender and sexually diverse people of color – Claire Harper (she/they)

4:00-5:00 Concurrent Sessions

      H. Mental Health, Theories, Mechanisms, & Interventions (1 CEU available)

      Moderator: Andie Riffer (they/them)

• The importance of negative expectations of the future and social well-being for transgender individuals’ mental health – Andie Riffer (they/them)
• Exploring grit and its mental health impact among LGB+ and heterosexual Southern college students – Jacob Goffnett (he/they), Angela Matijczak (she/they), Samantha Robinson (she/her)
• Are current evidence-based trauma treatments effective for LGB+ individuals?: A systematic review of the literature – Nicole Cohen (she/her)

      I. Context Matters: Queering Family (1 CEU available)

      Moderator: Connor Callahan (he/him)

• Testing the construct validity of the family gender environment measure with three groups of queer adults – Connor Callahan (he/him), Yueyao Wang (she/her), Catherine Schaefer (she/her), Somayeh Naderi (she/her), Jenifer McGuire (she/her)
• Queering marriage and family in China: Transnational migration, homonormativity, and reproductive rights – Yidong Wang (he/him), Oscar Tianyang Zhou (he/him)

10:00-11:00 am: Concurrent Sessions

      J. Education & Supervision among Providers of Social Services (1 CEU available)

      Moderator: Tee Tyler (he/him)

• Measuring counseling students’ ability to support LGBTQ children and their parents – Tee Tyler (he/him), Ashley Franklin (she/her)
• Learning from positive examples: Creating supportive community in practicum education – SJ Dodd (she/they), Jama Shelton (they/them)
• Queering supervision in the delivery of programs and services for LGBTQ+ youth: A collaborative ethnography – M. Alex Wagaman (she/her), Van Vox (she/they)

     K.  Considering Community, Kinship, and Intersecting Identities: Strengths, Challenges, and Needs within Educational and Familial Contexts: Panel Discussion (1 CEU available)

• Sarah N. Mitchell (she/her), Abigal Villa (she/her), Jaidyn MacDonald (she/her)

11:15-12:15 Concurrent Sessions

      L. LGBTQIA+ Youth and Young and Emerging Adults (1 CEU available)

      Moderator: Wilson Lazo-Salmeron (he/his/el)

• Afterschool needs of LGBTQIA+ youth as seen through the lens of unconditional positive regard – Wilson Lazo-Salmeron (he/his/él), Maggie Brooks, Ayushi Sarkar (she/her), Halle Shen (she/her), M Pease (they/she), Sharon Colvin (she/her)
• “A ray of light in the chaos”: Relationships between companion animals and LGBTQ+ emerging adults during the COVID-19 pandemic – Angela Matijczak (she/they), Nicole Corley (she/her), Isabella Vergara (she/her), Shelby McDonald (she/they)
• Dropping breadcrumbs for family: A phenomenological study of GNBT young adults. – Loran Grishow-Schade (they/them), Sarah Gzesh (they/them)

      M. Student Networking & Support

12:15-1:00 Break/Pre-Recorded Sessions

1:00-2:00 Methods Workshop

     N. Methods Workshop: Social network methods to promote LGBTQ Health

• Dr. Aditya Khanna (he/him)

2:10-2:35 Speed Networking Session

2:45-3:45 Concurrent Sessions

      O. Healthcare Access & Prevention (1 CEU available)

      Moderator: Ashley Lacombe-Duncan (she/her)

• Parents seeking healthcare for their transgender and gender diverse children – Tee Tyler (he/him), Boglarka Huddleston (she/her), Henry Kronner (he/him), René Aguilar (she/her), Kendall Abbott (she/her), Mackenzie Preston (she/her)
• Access to non-HIV STI testing among trans and nonbinary people: Bridging gaps in research to promote health equity – Ashley Lacombe-Duncan (she/her), Becca Emrick (she/her), Flyn Alexander (they/he), Hadas Kluger (she/her), Shanna Kattari (they/them)
• Sexual violence prevention in the LGBTQ+ community: Research and policy – Roxanna Ast (she/her), Danielle Scott (she/her), Arianna Cohen (she/her)

      P. Transgender and Gender Expansive Affinity Space

• Hosted by the KU SSW Trans Justice Group

4:00-5:00 Concurrent Sessions

      Q. Inclusive Community Health Needs Among Distinctive Populations (1 CEU available)

      Moderator: Jaz Routon (they/them)

• Rural queer experiences of housing instability and perceptions of climate – Jaz Routon (they/them)
• “How do i exist in this body…that’s outside of the norm?” Gender expansive experiences in atypical anorexia treatment  – Hillary Hecht (they/them), Erin Harrop (they/them), Vern Harner (they/them), Jarrod Call (they/he), Brendon Holloway (he/him)
• Mutual aid as a form of civic engagement: Exploring the associations between transgender and gender diverse justice advocacy and community support – Leo Kattari (they/them), Sterling Bently (he/him)

      R. Workshop: Embracing Our Scars - Self-harm 101(1 CEU available)

• Bree Van Dyke (she/her)

Reactions to inclusive restrooms one year after implementation – Jacob Randall (he/him), Hannah Grey (she/her), Anna Pope (she/her)

Pilot student-led gender affirming care elective for first- and second-year medical students – Eliza Burr (she/her), Keerat Bains (she/her)

Intragroup marginalization, well-being and willingness to seek mental health resources at the intersection of bicultural and LGBTQ+ identities – Kate Minson (she/her)

Outing the Paradox: Explaining Variation in Policy Implementation for Gender Minority (GM) Rights in Latin American Democracies – Vee Vyas (they/them)

You can’t just slap a rainbow on something and call it queer friendly”: Transgender individuals’ perspectives on virtue signaling and inclusivity in fashion and retail - Su Yun Bae (she/her), Elizabeth G. Olson (she/her)

Using Art therapy to Explore and Express LGBTQ+ Identity Through Wearable Art - Ash Verburg (they/them)

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual women’s identity integration: The impact of peer acceptance of sexual and religious/spiritual identities. - Janice Snow (she/her), Brian Droubay (he/him)

Sexual minority youth's perceptions of their relationships and conversations with fathers – Pond Ezra (they/them), Leah Young (she/her), Kevin Roy (he/him), Meg Paceley (they/them), Jessica Fish (she/her)

The Outstanding Community Organization Award is a monetary award for exceptional work by a Community Organization. At least one monetary award will be presented during the keynote session on June 1, 2023. The award amount will be decided once funding and number of awards is determined.

Purpose

The purpose of the Outstanding Community Organization Award is to recognize and promote the excellent work being conducted by a community organization in service of the LGBTQ community.

Criteria

Eligible organizations must be working to address a need among members of the LGBTQ community. Submissions will be judged based on the initiative’s innovativeness, impact on members of the LGBTQ community, and intentionality around serving highly marginalized members of the LGBTQ community.

Application process

Nominations must be submitted by May 12, 2023 for consideration for the Outstanding Community Organization Award. The steering committee will review all submissions and recipient(s) will be notified by email prior to the symposium, with a formal awards ceremony occurring during the keynote session. Nominations should include a nomination letter describing the organization’s mission, initiatives focused on serving the LGBTQ community,

strategies for supporting highly marginalized members of the LGBTQ community, and the impact of the initiative. Nominations may also include recent media coverage of the organization. Nominations may come from members of the organization or external parties. Nominations should be submitted via email to LGBTQResearch@ku.edu. Please indicate “Outstanding Community Organization Award” in the email subject.

Contact Information

If you have questions about the 11th Annual LGBTQ Research Symposium or the Outstanding Community Organization Award, please email us at LGBTQResearch@ku.edu.