Our mission is to improve mental health equity for stigmatized youth, by answering two questions:
1
What experiences affect stigmatized youth’s mental health?
Examples: transphobic society, social isolation, identity-based bullying
2
How do we improve services and spaces for stigmatized youth?
Examples: gender-inclusive bathrooms, reducing providers’ bias
Our Current Studies
Gender-Affirming Psychotherapy Study (GAPS)
Transgender youth often struggle to find therapists who understand their specific needs and provide adequate support. To help close some of the "GAPS" in therapists' training, we have created a virtual training to teach therapists how to best serve transgender youth based on input from transgender youth, their caregivers, and mental health provider experts.
Improving Methods of Providing Affirming Care to Transgender Students (IMPACTS)
Transgender students face discrimination and other difficulties at school. Many school staff want to learn how to support transgender students but few have the necessary resources and knowledge to adequately support them. We have created an online training program for school staff, based on input from transgender students, their caregivers, and school staff.