COLLECTION OF STORIES FROM LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL AND TRANSGENDER (LGBT) TEACHERS AND YOUTH WORKERS

Context is looking for interested LGBT teachers and youth workers currently working in Victoria to provide written contributions for a collection of stories on the workplace experiences of LGBT teachers and youth workers.

If you are not a LGBT teacher or youth worker and know someone who is we would greatly appreciate you forwarding this email to them. LGBT teachers and youth workers encounter a range of constraints in the workplace, in particular around working effectively with LGBT young people.

An edited book of stories would serve to make the factors that constrain LGBT teachers and youth workers evident. Such a book would be a useful tool to argue for change. Involvement in the project is voluntary and confidentiality is assured. Contributors may use pseudonyms or real names. This is a decision for contributors. What we are looking for is a story on your experiences in the workplace highlighting issues and constraints you have encountered as a LGBT teacher or youth worker including structural, policy, legal, cultural, organisational, workplace, co-worker, day to day and service user related issues and contraints.

Reports on the strategies you may have used to work around these issues and constraints and strategies you may have used to support LGBT young people are welcome. Contributors should not feel that they have to cover all of these topics or submit something in the form as described above. Your ideas and techniques in telling your story are pivitol.

Please include a brief description of the nature of your workplace ie. School or youth service type, target of service users, age of service users (eg Year 9), location, government, non-government, community based, independent, Catholic.

Please keep contributions from 1000 to 1500 words. Please submit contributions in written form and on disk or via email. On receipt of contributions they shall be edited by 'Context' and returned with any edits to the author for approval.

For further information please reply to context_vic@hotmail.com

Thank you for considering to be involved in this project.