The Heart of Longmont Church, 350 11th Ave., will host the annual Gay-Straight Alliance, or GSA, Summit on Saturday, Nov. 13.
The event will take place from 1-4 p.m. and LGBTQIA+ youth, adults and allies are invited to attend, according to a Boulder County news release.
The GSA Summit aims to cultivate opportunities for participants to connect, build community, represent positive mentorship and affirmation, and improve mental, behavioral and physical health for youth in schools, the news release states.
The summit is being held in partnership with the St. Vrain Valley Safe Schools Coalition and Health Futures Youth Coalition and will feature several presentations. They will include educating and empowering LGBTQIA+ youth and adults, workshops on LGBTQIA+ history, bullying prevention, youth substance use as well as Q&A sessions for parents of LGBTQIA+ youth.
Attendees will also have a chance to interact with GSA youth leaders and ask questions to a panel, the news release states.
“The summit is a youth-led space for LGBTQIA+ youth and their adult and peer allies to come together, learn from each other and connect with community resources,” Jax Gonzalez, OASOS Program Coordinator, said in the news release.
The Youth Advocating for Change, which planned the summit from conception with support from adult mentors, is part of the OASOS program, as Boulder County Public Health program for LGBTQIA+ youth ages 12-18, the news release stated.
Youth Advocating for Change developed the summit’s schedule and topics and will present most sessions at the summit in collaboration with other youth leaders from Boulder County Public Health programs, such as the Community Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) Program, the news release states.
“For me, the GSA Summit represents community and leadership,” Julia Wall, current member of Youth Advocating for Change, said in the news release. “It’s a chance for people to feel represented and understood, for community members to be educated and to make connections. That’s magical to me.”
To register for the 2021 GSA Summit, visit tinyurl.com/2021GSASUMMITRSVP.
Jax Gonzalez can be reached at [email protected] for more information.
