The Latin American Youth Center’s (LAYC‘s) Drop-In Center is a safe space for youth 24 years old and under, of any race, ethnicity, sexual orientation and gender identity to connect to safe housing resources.
Core services include:
Housing for One Year
Intensive Case Management for educational, vocational, health and other needs
In-House Mental Health Counseling
Assistance finding jobs
Support in accessing public benefits
Food, laundry, showers, computers, diapers, clothing, and more
For more information, drop by 3045 15th Street NW, Washington, DC, Monday through Friday between 10am and 6pm, or call (202) 713-0475.
The DC Center Youth Working Group will recognize Celina Gerbic and Timothy Elliott at the Youth Working Group Reception on May 18th.
2017 Youth Champion of the Year
Timothy Elliott is a licensed clinical social worker in DC who has a passion for supporting LGBTQ youth. He has been working in the District since 2009 and currently serves as the Coordinator of LGBT Youth Mental Health Programs at Whitman-Walker Health, a federally qualified health center. Timothy developed the LGBT youth mental health program – providing low-barrier, comprehensive outpatient mental health services for LGBTQ youth and young adults affected by crime. Additionally, he provides therapy and clinical trainings through his private practice located in Northern Virginia focusing on supporting gender expansive children, youth and their families. He has previously held the role of the Program Coordinator for Rainbow Youth Alliance, an adult-facilitated, peer-to-peer support group for LGBTQ youth and their allies in Rockville, MD and currently serves on the RYA Advisory Council. As a Social Worker, Timothy strives to encourage and develop safe, affirming spaces for all LGBTQ youth and their allies. Timothy is often seen as the “squeaky wheel” in agencies and organization he works with; he tirelessly advocates for needed changes in how we are supporting our LGBTQ youth. He obtained a BSW from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and his MSW from Andrews University in Michigan. In addition, he has completed advanced training and certification programs around trauma treatment, expressive therapies, and co-occuring disorders. He works with several local universities guest lecturing on issues around youth mental health, trauma, and the specifics needs of LGBTQ youth – committed to lifting youth voices and challenging providers to do better. His experience working within schools, outpatient mental health facilities, and government agencies has provided him with a vast knowledge and respect for how multiple systems work together. He has spoken at national conferences on various topics within youth mental health and meeting the unique needs of LGBTQ youth. In his free time, Timothy enjoys running and juggling. Most of all he enjoys getting to know people and hearing their stories.
2017 Youth Advocate of the Year
Celina Gerbic served a 2-year term as Co-Chair of the Trevor Project’s DC Ambassadors Committee from 2012-2014 and has been serving as Chair of the Education & Community Outreach Committee since 2010. She has been responsible for Trevor’s outreach with local area schools and community organizations, and has managed the Lifeguard Workshop trainings and volunteer coordination for local opportunities. She has also served on the DC Public Schools LGBTQ Steering Committee since 2011, working together with other community leaders to create the Plan for Inclusivity which was approved in August 2011 and has been implemented in over 30 pilot schools. This work is now focused on creating and implementing a transgender guidance policy. She currently serves on Point Foundation’s Regional Board of Trustees, serving as Co-Chair of the Board of Trustees in 2014, and has co-chaired Point’s Annual Cornerstone Reception since 2013. She was a founding member of the GSA “Leading With Pride” Conference, working with other community organizations as a representative of the Trevor Project to create the first ever GSA conference in DC. She has served on the DC Citywide Bullying Prevention Task Force since 2013, and helped plan “It Takes A District: Tools & Tips to Prevent Bullying”. As a representative of the Trevor Project, she served on the Panel Planning Committee with Ford’s Theater Lincoln Legacy Project, assembling a panel “To Achieve and Cherish a Just and Lasting Peace: Envisioning a World Beyond Hate” in 2013. Celina has also served as a member of the DC Concerned Providers Coalition since 2010 and received their Excellence Award for Leadership & Commitment to LGBT Youth in 2013. She formerly served on the Board of UNA (Urban Neighborhood Alliance) as Advisory Committee Chairman, is a founding member of the 17th Street Festival, and has served as Arts & Entertainment chair for the festival. Celina was formerly a trial attorney focusing on employment discrimination law and a partner in a Boston firm, Thornton & Naumes. She received Boston University’s Young Lawyer Chair Award in 2000 and was named one of Massachusetts Lawyer’s Weekly “Up and Coming Lawyers” in 1998. Currently, Celina is the Annual Fund Coordinator at School for Friends, a Quaker preschool devoted to diversity in Dupont Circle.
About the Youth Working Group Awards and Reception
The 2017 Youth Working Group Reception on Thursday, May 18 from 6 to 8pm at Agora Restaurant at 1527 17th Street NW. In addition to presenting our two awards, the event will have free appetizers, a champagne toast, and happy hour drink specials. There will also be a silent auction table and great several raffle prizes, too.
Tickets for $20, host committee tickets of $50, and sponsorship opportunities from $100 to $500 are at www.tinyurl.com/ywg2017.
Proceeds raised at this event will go to fully support mini-grants for gay-straight alliances and other LGBT affinity groups in middle and high schools; travel stipends for DC Center summer and fall interns; prizes and giveaways for year-round LGBT youth events; and staff support for our courageous advocacy efforts.
In previous years, our Youth Working Group Reception gave awards to Jim Graham of the DC Council; Maggie Riden of the DC Alliance of Youth Advocates; Jeff Poirier of American Institutes for Research; and Travis Wise of DENIM/Us Helping Us. Members of the group and the public submit nominations and current members of the group vote on winners.
About the Youth Working Group
In 2010, the Youth Working Group was founded at the DC Center. We are a group of 200 community members focused on creating a city where LGBTQ youth are safe, respected, and connected! Our priorities are safe shelter, freedom from bullying, affirming laws, policies, and practices, and avenues to make youth voices heard on issues affecting their lives. Since our inception, we were instrumental in supporting the passage of bills to ensure: More shelter beds for runaway youth; LGBTQ competency training for shelter workers; a ban on health providers trying to change a minor’s sexual orientation; mandatory LGBT training for all licensed healthcare providers; suicide prevention training requirements for school teachers; some of the nation’s most LGBT affirming and medically accurate health/sex education standards; and much more! We meet monthly at the DC Center.
About the DC Center for the LGBT Community
Founded in 2002, The DC Center’s mission is to educate, empower, celebrate, and connect the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities. To fulfill our mission, we focus on four core areas: health and wellness, arts & culture, social & support services, and advocacy and community building. Visit www.thedccenter.org.
Researchers at the George Washington University are conducting a study about how parents and sons talk about sex. To be to eligible to participate, you must be (a) between the ages of 14-22; (b) be assigned male at birth; (c) currently identify as male; (d) identify as gay or bi; (e) be out to at least one parent; and (f) live at least two days/week in your parent’s home. For your parents to be eligible to participate, they must be your parent or legal guardian.
Youth receive $50 for their time and effort and parents receive $100.
To participate, you and a parent must be able to participate in an interview for about 90-minutes at GW or a location convenient for you.
To learn more, text/call: 301-541-7405 Or E-mail: huebner.lab@gmail.com
Trans Youth Leadership Summit (TYLS) is a collaborative fellowship program providing young transgender people the opportunity to work toward liberation through collective organizing for solidarity, advocacy, and empowerment. TYLS fosters the skills of dozens of emerging trans leaders and puts them at the forefront of critical issues transgender people face. We are bringing together revolutionary young trans leaders to heal from transphobic violence, build communities, learn how to enact restorative justice, and create direct action. TYLS looks toward root causes rather than simply covering up the effects of anti-transgender violence.
Few people recognize that some of the most influential uprisings in our community were incited by young gender nonconforming and trans people of color. Sylvia Rivera was only 17 and Marsha P. Johnson was only 23 at the time of Stonewall.
Now, there are currently no other national programs centering the leadership of young transgender people. Recognizing this, we will provide participants with funding for future conferences and events after the summit and connect with them through check-ins to further foster activism in their communities. TYLS is NOT just a summit, it is an ongoing relationship between trans community members.
Eligibility requirements:
1. You are trans, two spirit, Hijra, genderqueer, or nonbinary (please contact us if you feel your identity should be included on this list)
2. You are located in the United States
3. You are available to go to our Summit in Los Angeles on July 13th-16th
4. You are a youth (under the age of 26)
We hope to be as transparent as possible in our signup process. We are able to cover all expenses incurred during the summit for our participants (travel, food, etc), so please consider applying even if you are not able to pay for them yourself. You can sign up and learn more about selection on our website Trans Youth Leadership Summit. To make TYLS as accessible as possible, we also have an essay-optional video application as well as a mailable/printable application. If you cannot apply but know someone who can, you can also nominate them!
Important Dates:
March 13th-April 10th 11:59 PM PST: Applications for TYLS open
April 10th-22nd: Applications for TYLS close, selection process begins, finalists are chosen and reached out to
April 23rd-May 1st: Trans Student Educational Resources members collectively choose participants
April 25th-May 5th: Transportation is booked for participants
May 15th: Social media groups for participants are created for collaboration and introductions
July 13th: Participants fly into Los Angeles and are introduced
July 14th: First full day of workshops, stories, and education
July 15th: Second full day of workshops and education
July 16th: Evaluations and additional workshops, participants depart
July 22nd: Participants are given final evaluations
July 22nd-ongoing: Participants collaborate with Trans Student Educational Resources on making TYLS sustainable and spreading what they learned at the summit at conferences and events
If you have questions, you can contact us at TSER [at] transstudent.org.
SMYAL is currently accepting applications for their 2017 LGBT Leadership Award. This award is a scholarship paid out to high school seniors who will be entering college Fall 2017 or Spring 2018. This year we have increased our scholarship funds to $10,000 and each recipient has the opportunity to be awarded up to $2,000.
Please find attached to this email the flyer containing detailed information regarding the Scholarship. We are requesting that you share this information will all of your networks and any persons whom you believe are eligible to apply.
If there are any questions please feel free to reach out to Brandan, who is cc’d on this email and assisting in coordinating these efforts. However, please direct all youth to email questions and information to scholarship@smyal.org.
