Creating a Culture of Respect for LGBT Youth

We all have a responsibility.

LGBT youth are diverse, with complex needs.  To adequately support these diverse youth, we must first create a safe space for LGBT youth to access our services.

As professionals – and as human beings – we all have an ethical responsibility to ensure our services are accessible to all youth.


Recent research in the Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality found Service Provider recommendations for improved service delivery and programming for LGBT youth focused on two key areas:

• the need for training at all youth-relevant agencies, and
• the need for agency policy change.
  

You can Create a Culture of Respect for LGBT Youth. We can help.

We offer three levels of support to help your organization create a culture of respect:  professional training, customized in-service training, and policy development. 

Please see the banner to the right for more details.

For more information or to register:  

Contact Valerie Barr at 403.283.5580 ext. 317 or vbarr@calgarysexualhealth.ca

WiseGuyz: engaging young men in sexual health programming

In today's blog, our own Blake Spence reflects on the first year of the WiseGuyz Program.

The WiseGuyz Program began in February 2010 with a focus to engage young men in a sexual health program that would address their specific needs.  The research report we produced in 2008, Promoting Sexual Health for Young Men, confirmed that young men face significant barriers in accessing sexual health information.  We knew we had to learn the best method to present material and how to create a safe space for the group to discuss sexual health, relationships, and masculinity. Information was presented in styles ranging from a casual drop-in basis, to a facilitated group discussion, to a structured program.  We reached 52 young men in various settings during this phase of the project.

After piloting the program in various settings, we decided that focusing on the junior high population would have the most impact.  The transition to high school is significant. If young men are equipped with tools to help them deal with the pressures, decisions and multiple stresses teens face in high school, we are confident that they will have better outcomes overall.

Twenty-four grade 9 boys completed the program in 2010.  We are very proud of the program content, activities and skill building opportunities provided to the young men and the positive impact it is having.

The WiseGuyz program reached 76 young men and partnered with 3 Junior High Schools.

The first year of WiseGuyz has been amazing to be part of. We have created a program that I am extremely proud of as it is thoroughly enjoyed by participants and is fundamental to their development as responsible young men.

Blake Spence
WiseGuyz Program Coordinator

"I would like to thank you for brining WiseGuyz to Sherwood School. The boys have spoken very positively about it, and appreciate (and adore) you and your efforts.  I suppose one sad thing is that the more work you do with these boys, the greater need we see for programming such as this to help young men develop healthy skills, relationships and accurate knowledge about sexual health issues."
- Alex McKay, Principal of Sherwood Community School

AGM - Message from the Executive Director and President

Last night, we invited the community to join us as we took a look back over the 2010 year at our Annual General meeting. We are thrilled to report on an amazing year at the Calgary Sexual Health Centre.  We continued to focus on community impact and responding to emerging community needs.  We are offering new programs, finding new ways of interacting with people, and continuing to deliver the core services we have provided to the community for 39 years.


We are particularly proud of our partnerships and collaborations with community organizations. We have worked with determination to ensure that sexual and reproductive health is accepted as an integral part of human development across the lifespan.

Seniors A GOGO is a great example of how our collaborative model has created an environment for innovative and sustainable program development:

From the beginning of this work, we knew that sexuality and older adults was a topic few felt comfortable addressing. Seniors A GOGO tackled this challenge by developing and performing the "Viva Vintage Monologues", a series of stories that explore sexuality in a humorous, warm and thoughtful way. This led to very successful performances at public libraries, and other venues throughout Calgary.

We were less successful reaching seniors directly. Traditional taboos still leave many seniors feeling uncomfortable talking about sex and sexuality. We learned that the senior's community was not yet prepared to have open conversations about sexuality.

As with many of our programs, we took what we learned and created a professional development workshop. "Supporting Sexual Health with Seniors" is delivered to nursing and LPN students, as well as other professionals that regularly provide support to seniors as they transition in their lives.

We now have successful partnerships with the nursing schools at Bow Valley College, the UofC and MRU. Seniors facilities also began to recognize that, as the population was changing, staff would have to feel comfortable addressing sexuality issues. Training has taken place at some care facilities in Calgary and we look forward to more partnerships in 2011.

As this program moved into its second year, we set up "Seniors A GOGO Service Providers Collaborative". Professionals who work directly with older adults are helping to guide the next steps in our work with seniors, and advocate for the inclusion of sexual health within seniors care and support services.

Seniors A GOGO has been generously supported, but only with project funding. We knew this valuable work needed to be maintained and the demand for programs would increase. The Viva Vintage Monologues were made into digital stories to enable us to use them in future programs and training. In 2011, we will be selling a curriculum package for service providers that includes a DVD of the digital stories.

Members of the Seniors A GOGO theatre troupe have become agency volunteers and still perform for live audiences. We continue to offer ongoing training to students and professionals who work with older adults.

In 2011, we will begin advocacy work to ensure the sexual health rights of older adults are respected and that professionals understand their roles and responsibilities in this regard.

We have successfully adopted this model in many areas of our work. We know it is very important to first normalize sexuality for service providers and clients, and then develop appropriate programs that address their specific needs.

We are also dedicated to finding innovative ways to ensure our programs are sustainable. This has led us to develop social enterprise initiatives and to create an ambitious three year fund development plan. We are committed to seeking additional funding partners, and increasing our independent revenue, so that we continue our essential work long into the future.

Moving into our 40th year, we remain fiercely committed to building a society where sexuality is celebrated, diversity is embraced, reproductive choice is assured and sexual health is seen as an integral part of us from birth to old age. We remain unswervingly loyal to our vision and to continuing to find new ways of achieving our goals.

We want to take this opportunity to thank the staff, volunteers and community partners whose efforts led to the successes of 2010. To summarize this work, last year our 12 staff and 30 volunteers:

    - partnered with, and provided programs to the clients of, 65 organizations
    - presented at 11 conferences
    - attended 22 community events
    - participated in 18 community collaborations and committees
    - established 3 advisory committees

 
In total, we reached 42,343 Calgarians with programs, information and resources regarding healthy sexuality. As a result, all of these Calgarians are closer to achieving sexual well-being.

Thanks to our funders and donors for ensuring we have the resources necessary to complete our work. And, thank you to all of our community supporters who help the Calgary Sexual Health Centre thrive and remain a vibrant part of our community.