Halton District School Board’s annual Inside and Out conference will take place on Thursday, April 17, 2014 at Robert Bateman High School (5151 New Street, Burlington). Registration will begin at 9 a.m., with the conference concluding at 2 p.m.
This year’s conference is titled, Inside and Out - Dare to Stand Out: Generation PRIDE, and is in partnership with Jer's Vision. Jer’s Vision is an organization that works to eliminate bullying, homophobia, transphobia, and other forms of discrimination in schools and youth communities.
The goal of the all-day conference is to provide a forum for students and staff, through various workshops, to discuss how they can make their schools more welcoming and inclusive for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and two spirit individuals, as well as to celebrate equity and diversity in the Halton District School Board. The conference is organized by the Safe and Inclusive Schools Team and staff at Robert Bateman High School, including its GSA group.
The conference will open with a guest speaker from Jer's Vision, Lukayo Estrella, who is an LGBTQ spoken word artist. The conference will close with guest speaker Greg Kentirs, a teacher with the Toronto District School Board and author of Defying Gay Gravity, a book about a gay teenager who is struggling to come out. He will speak about his book, his personal story, and the challenges of being an openly-gay teacher.
In addition to the opening and closing keynote speakers, there will be two workshop sessions and a dance performance. A number of community agencies will be attending the conference including HOPE, The Positive Space Network of Halton, The ROCK, SAVIS, Halton Women's Place, LGBTQ YouthLine, EGALE Canada, PFLAG Halton, TEACH Program Hamilton (Teens Educating and Confronting Homophobia), and Hamilton Community Legal Clinic.