Name
Community Engagement in LGBTQ+ Communities: Opportunities and Challenges
Date & Time
Wednesday, April 1, 2020, 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM
Description
Examine how heterosexism, cisgenderism, homophobia, and transphobia shape service learning and community engagement. Explore opportunities to work with LGBTQ+ communities for anti-oppressive community engagement. The session will “queer” service learning to trouble binary concepts like serving and learning, serving and being served, privileged and underprivileged, fortunate and unfortunate. Question what is considered “natural” in service learning practice and contexts. Trouble what is meant by “community” and think about the possibilities of service learning for liberation rather than assimilation. Learn about exemplars of anti-oppressive engagement, teaching, and scholarship that focus on structural causes of inequity rather than only personal prejudice. Discuss the challenges and opportunities of working in various institutional contexts and creating queer community space within the community engagement field.
 
Learning outcomes:
  • How service learning/community engagement can be an opportunity for exploring multiple and intersecting identities including sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression
  • How service learning/community engagement can contribute to more queer inclusivity and equity
  • How to address challenges of heteronormative, gender-regulating institutions, policies, and procedures in higher education community engagement
Session Type
Small breakout