I Presented at a Music Conference!

This past Friday, I had the opportunity to present at South Dakota’s Music Educators Conference!

I was so excited to share this work, because so many students are in desperate need of gender-sensitive instruction. A survey done by The Trevor Project found that 20% of trans youth attempted suicide in the past year. But they also found that when schools were LGBTQ+ affirming, that lowered that rates of suicide. That is why this is so important.

Without the support of trusted teachers, trans singers can feel unwelcome, uncomfortable, and disconnected from their authentic voices. The choir room can be particularly gendered, so it’s important for choir directors to learn how to create gender-inclusive classrooms.

My presentation was called Honoring Gender Diversity: Helping Trans and Gender Non-Conforming Singers Find Their Voices, and I shared ways that music educators can create a more gender inclusive classroom environment, including things like making sure to ask your students their pronouns and the name they go by. Asking kids their pronouns and sharing your own is a simple way to demonstrate that you acknowledge and accept gender non-conforming kids in your class. I also shared specific vocal modification techniques that teachers can use with their gender non-conforming singers.

I’m so excited to be presenting to music educators on this topic. I’m looking forward to my next conference in Iowa in November!