1. Welcome
As you settle into the
space, please think about
the following question
What values and
beliefs guide your
practice with clients?
and write your ideas on
the newsprint provided.

2. Supporting Our
Transgender
Clients:
Re-Evaluating Best
Practices
Sponsored by:
RU12? Community Center
Vermonters Ending Transgender
Oppression (VETO)
Vermont Diversity Health Project
UVM Social Work Department

3. Introductions
When you introduce
yourself, please include
your:
–Name
–Pronouns
–Agency
–What you hope to
leave with today

4. Overview
Intentions
• Create space to question all aspects of
practice
• Develop a lens for critical analysis of
practice with transgender clients
• Provide an opportunity to network
with other providers
• Inspire interest in further learning and
community building
Use of the word transgender
• Intended as an umbrella term to refer
to non-binary gender identities. Not all
transgender clients will use this
language, seek transition, or wish to
discuss their gender identity in therapy

5. Overview
Agenda
• Guiding Principles
• Affinity Group Exercise
• Experiential Exercise
• Small Group Discussion
• Break
• Large Group Discussion
• Small Group Exercise
• Closing
Parking Lot
• Resources regarding
topics/questions placed in the
parking lot will be emailed to you

6. Guiding Principles
• Keep an open mind
• One person talks at a time
• Step up, Step back
• Critique ideas, not people
• Assume best intentions and educate each
other
• Protect the safety of the space
• Take care of yourself
• Manage your electronics
• Honor the clock
• Have fun
• Challenge by choice
• Safety to pass
• There are no stupid questions, ask
• Ask permission before providing feedback

7. Affinity Groups
1. Think about the functions
and responsibilities of the
prompted role in the
context of the therapeutic
relationship.
2. Discuss the prompt with
your group.
3. Then, as a group, reflect
your collective ideas and
discussion onto paper using
words and/or drawings.

8. Sticker Exercise
Without
speaking, organiz
e yourselves into
groups. Use the
stickers on your
foreheads as a
guide.

9. Sticker Exercise
• What was it like to have a one-
color dot?
• What was it like to have a two-
color dot?
• How did you find your own
group?
• How did you help others find
their group?
• How might this experience be a
metaphor for transgender people
who access mental health
services?

10. What values and
beliefs guide your
practice with
transgender
clients?
Explore this question in your
group, and write down some of the
ideas that guide how you engage in
practice with transgender clients
and clients with other non-binary
gender identities.

11. Discussion
• What do you notice is similar
between the two lists?
• What do you notice is different
between the two lists?
• What might account for the
differences?
• How are the differences useful
in supporting transgender
clients?
• How are the differences
problematic in supporting
transgender clients?

12. Critique of
Existing Guidelines
• Explore the guidelines provided
to your group
• Using the lists and discussion as a
guide, work with your group to
identify aspects of the guidelines
that are empowering to
transgender clients, as well as
aspects that may be problematic
• Highlight empowering language in
one color, and problematic
language in another