What I Wish My Cis Therapist Knew

Recorded Webinar
Cohosts: Mary Curtin, M.S.W. '00, LICSW, and Tobias K. Davis, M.Ed.
Panelists: TAYLOR ALXNDR, Lorelei Erisis, Miles Collins-Sibley
CEs: CEs are not offered for this online course 
Level: Intermediate
Target Audience: Social workers and other social service providers.
Course Delivery Method and Format: Recorded webinar, self study. All courses are hosted on SmithOnline. Login information will be emailed immediately after registration to the email address entered during registration.
System Requirements: Attendees will need access to a computer with internet and the capability to play recorded videos.

Date of original webinar: August 12, 2020, noon - 1:30 p.m. ET

Are you looking to improve your trans inclusivity skills for your clinical practice? Join SSW Professional Education to hear trans-identified panelists share their experience working with cis identified therapists. The panelists will discuss common reasons trans folx seek treatment, common missteps cis therapists make and the skills, characteristics and best practices that are most helpful in working with trans-identified individuals. Panelists will share important recommendations for therapists wanting to improve their trans competency and clinical skills working with trans individuals. This panel is co-hosted by Mary Curtin, M.S.W. '00, LICSW, and Toby Davis, M.Ed. with panelists, TAYLOR ALXNDR, Lorelei Erisis and Miles Collins-Sibley.

Registration Fee and Deadline:

$30 (one time registration fee of $5) | Ongoing 

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify two to three factors that facilitate or impede the use of professional mental health services for Trans folx
2. Articulate three characteristics of a trans inclusive therapist
3. List three common missteps or errors therapists make when working with Trans folx
4. ​Describe two best practices that increase trans inclusivity in clinical practice

Outline:

• Identify two to three factors that facilitate or impede the use of professional mental health services for Trans folx
• Articulate three characteristics of a trans inclusive therapist
• List three common missteps or errors therapists make when working with Trans folx
• Describe two best practices that increase Trans inclusivity in clinical practice

Meet the Panelists:

TAYLOR ALXNDR (they/she) is a DIY musician, drag performer, and community organizer based in Atlanta, GA. ALXNDR is the co-founder and current executive director of Southern Fried Queer Pride (SFQP), an Atlanta-based non-profit organization empowering Black queer and QTPOC centered communities in the South through the arts. They are also the mother of the House of ALXNDR, an Atlanta-based drag family and events hub, creating drag-centered, inclusive events.

Lorelei Erisis is a writer, performer, activist, adventurer, improviser and a genuine pageant queen! She is also a proud Queer Trans Woman, who regularly writes, speaks and teaches about transgender issues, sexuality and improv. She was a founding board member of the first fully 501c3 certified iteration of Noho Pride; one of the few trans women to serve at such a level. She was the very first and still most famous, Miss Trans New England. Lorelei is known not only for her regular column, “Ask A Trans Woman” in The Rainbow Times and her writing elsewhere. But also for her dedication to working for trans rights, acceptance and visibility; as well as her devotion to more general LGBTQIKAP&GQ causes. Her voice is loud and true and she is as likely to make you think as make you smile. She is currently the Assistant Director fo Graduate Enrollment at the Smith College School for Social Work.

Miles A.M. Collins-Sibley (he/him, they/them) is Black, queer, trans, and sick. He writes poetry to talk to ghosts and to fall in love. Miles received their MFA in Poetry from UMass-Amherst’s program for Poets & Writers and is currently a PhD student in UMass-Amherst’s W.E.B. DuBois Department of African American Studies. He is a 2019 Pushcart Prize nominee whose poems can be found in McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, Black Warrior Review, Split Lip Press’ 2019 Anthology, Crab Fat Magazine, The Felt, Peach Magazine, Cosmonauts Avenue, TRACK//FOUR, and are forthcoming in Nightboat Books’ 2020 Anthology of Radical Trans Poetics. You can follow Miles on Twitter and Instagram @miles_n__miles.

Meet the Hosts:

Mary Curtin, M.S.W. '00, LICSW, is the director of Professional Education at Smith College School for Social Work. She is a graduate of Smith College School for Social Work and Brown University. Curtin has been a practicing clinician for over 20 years and has worked in inpatient, outpatient and residential settings. For over 10 years, Curtin ran supported employment and supporting living programs for people with disabilities. She has a passion for social justice and much of her early career has been working with and LGBTQ youth. She is the author of the article “Lesbian and Bisexual Girls in the Juvenile Justice System” published in the Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal and worked with the Center for Lesbian Rights as a member of the advisory board of the Model Standards project to develop standards of care for LGBTQ youth in the foster care and juvenile justice system.
 

Tobias K. Davis (Toby) is a transgender educator, activist and playwright who uses theatre, writing and teaching to advocate for a gender-inclusive society. Davis has supported colleges, congregations and communities in developing trans-inclusive policies and practices for almost 20 years. He holds a M.Ed. in social justice education and is the inclusion education trainer/facilitator and advisor for low income/first generation and transgender/nonbinary students at Smith College's Office for Equity and Inclusion.