Past Conferences
ADOLESCENT SEXUALITY CONFERENCE 2008
Making It Real
April 15-16, 2008
Seaside Convention Center
Seaside, OR
Debra Chasnoff
Infusing Youth Programs with Youth Voices
Debra Chasnoff is an Academy Award-winning documentary filmmaker whose work has fueled progressive social-change movements in many fields. She is the executive director at GroundSpark and co-creator of The Respect For All Project, a program that produces media and training resources to help prevent prejudice among young people. Her films in The Respect For All Project include: Let's Get Real (2003; director/producer), a powerful documentary about young teens' experiences with name-calling and bullying; That's a Family! (2000; director/producer), which looks at family diversity from a kids' perspective; and It's Elementary -Talking About Gay Issues in School (1996; director/producer), which has served as a catalyst for schools all over the world to become more proactive in addressing anti-gay prejudice in the classroom.
Entertainment by Seaside High School Jazz Choir, directed by Phil White
Planned Parenthood of Western Washington Teen Council Theatre Troupe
(Theatre Troupe Members: Adam, Alyssa, Curran, Ellie, Hannah, Mara, Maxine, Micha, Ty, Vashayla)
Everyday
The Planned Parenthood Teen Council Theatre Troupe of Western Washington uses forum theatre and scripted plays to address the needs of youth. Bring your own perspective and jump into a real life dialogue about Harassment and Bullying at school! Following a powerful theatre performance about the complexities and challenges of confronting these issues amongst friends, we will ask for your ideas and solutions to the problems presented in the performance, then we will try them out on the spot! Together we will find workable solutions and take real action!
Michael Nerney
Helping Teens Manage Risk
Michael Nerney is a consultant in Substance Abuse Prevention and Education, with over twenty-seven years' experience in the field. As the former Director of the Training Institute of Narcotic and Drug Research, Inc. (NDRI), his responsibilities included the management of a statewide training system which delivered more than 450 training programs to substance abuse treatment and prevention professionals annually.
Mr. Nerney’s understanding of adolescent issues is drawn from twelve years’ experience as a teacher and coach at the junior high and high school levels, including three years with the Adirondack Mountain School, a residential school for boys. Mr. Nerney's areas of expertise include Psychopharmacology, Adolescent Chemical Dependency, Relapse Prevention, Gender Differences in Communication, and Managing Violent Incidents and he has written participant and trainer manuals for these programs and a number of others. Michael Nerney is an internationally known lecturer, and has served as consultant to a number of federal and state agencies.
L. Kris Gowen, Ph.D., EdM
Everything Kids Want to Know About Sex, and Never Got the Chance to Ask
L. Kris Gowen, Ph.D., EdM has been a sexuality educator for over 12 years. Currently, she teaches Human Sexuality at both Portland State and Pacific Universities. Other courses she teaches include: Sex Education in America, Women’s Reproductive Health, A Worldview of Sexual Health, and Counseling Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Clients. As a Research Associate and Faculty Member at Portland State, her research addresses a broad range of topics, all focusing on positive youth development. Current research projects related to sexuality include how the internet impacts sexual identity and development, and factors involved in young women’s contraceptive choices. Kris is also the author of Sexual Decisions: The Ultimate Teen Guide and the Virtual Mystery Tour blog, which focuses on the internet, sexuality, and youth.