National Workgroup to Address the Needs of Children and Youth Who Are LGBTQI2-S

National Workgroup to Address the Needs of Children and Youth Who Are LGBTQI2-S and Their Families ~Affirming LGBTQI2-S youth and families through full inclusion~

Biweekly Update, June 27, 2014 RESOURCE UPDATE OF LGBT TOPIC PAGE ON FINDYOUTHINFO.GOV Supported by the American Institutes for Research, FindYouthInfo.gov has just released a comprehensive update to the LGBT youth topic page. This U.S. government website helps to create, maintain, and strengthen effective youth programs. Included are youth facts, funding information, and tools to help you assess community assets, generate maps of local and federal resources, search for evidence-based youth programs, and keep up-to-date on the latest, youth-related news. NEWS Supreme Court Ruling on Reparative Therapy The U.S. Supreme Court of declined to review a 2013 decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upholding California’s Senate Bill 1172, a law that prohibits licensed counselors and therapists from engaging in dangerous practices to try to change the sexual orientation or gender expression of LGBT children. As this Equality California article notes, numerous medical and mental health organizations have condemned reparative therapy because it is known to lead to depression and suicide. YOUTH  STORY Web Article: Choosing Who I Let In: I found Family in My Group Home This article from Represent: The Voice of Youth in Care tells the story of an LGBT young person’s experience with the child welfare system and coming out in it.  Workgroup Chair, Captain Andrew Hunt, M.S.W., Public Health Advisor, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Center for Mental Health Services, Child, Adolescent and Family Branch, andrew.hunt@samhsa.hhs.gov  Workgroup Coordinator, Jeffrey Poirier, Ph.D., Principal Researcher, American Institutes for Research, jpoirier@air.org