Click here for the Proposal Form
The True Colors SOGIEcon 2025 will be held on Friday, March 21 & Saturday, March 22, 2025 at UCONN in Storrs, CT. It is a re-launch of the True Colors conference which was held in person from 1994 - 2019. The True Colors conference was (and expects to be again) the largest conference in the country focused on LGBTQ+ youth and all who care about them.
We are soliciting workshops in many different topics and areas. Special attention will be given to presenters with intersectional lived experience.
There will be workshop tracks for LGBTQ+ youth + young adults (middle, high school and college) and their peer allies, parents and caregivers, educators, behavioral and physical health care providers, child welfare professionals, as well as a spiritual track focused on LGBTQ+ affirming faiths and spirituality.
Chosen presenters are able to attend both days of the conference, recieve lunch and participate in all conference activities at no charge as our way of saying "thank you!' for sharing your expertise and experience. There is a limited budget for presenters who require a stipend in order to participate. Space is provided on the application for you to indicate that.
What We Are Looking For
Topics of Special interest include:
Submission Guidelines
To be considered as a speaker, please be prepared to submit the following via our online portal: (and note you need to complete the form in one session in order for the information to be saved)
March 21st and 22nd at the University of Connecticut in Storrs, CT
1) Volunteer Committee: Responsible for recruiting, training and managing volunteers to complete conference related tasks before, during and after the event
2) Intersectionality Committee: Responsible ensuring that all participants see themselves reflected in the workshop, entertainment, opening and closing sessions. Ensure that the conference is inclusive and accessible to people from various backgrounds. Implement measures to make the event safe and welcoming for all attendees Review conference materials for inclusivity on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, age, ability, neurodiversity, etc.
3) Media Committee: Responsible for spreading the word about the conference across various media outlets (press releases, social media, outreach to reporters, etc.)
4) Workshop Selection Committee: Responsible for soliciting potential workshops and presenters in all of the tracks and focusing on all of the various audience; choosing the final workshops, slotting them into Friday/Saturday workshop slots.
5) Fundraising committee: Research and solicit potential sources of conference income: grants, donors, sponsors, etc.
6) Technology and Audio-Visual Committee: Assisting with conference technology needs before and during the conference
7) Safety and Wellness Committee: Ensure a welcoming & supportive environment for all.
8) Presenter Liaisons: Volunteers assigned to each professional workshop and all youth led workshops to support the presenter
9) CEU Committee: Work with accrediting agencies to obtain Continuing Education Credits for professional participants
10) TLC Committee: (Tender Loving Care) Recruit licensed clinicians to provide supervision and support to graduate students who serve as tender loving care counselors at the conference. TLCs work in shifts to seek out and support youth who may feel overwhelmed or lonely or need someone to talk to during the event.
11) Registration Committee: Develop and implement the conference registration process. Develop and implement the conference registration process
12) Feedback and Evaluation Committee: Develop evaluation tools for each constituent: participant, volunteer, presenter, vendors. Collect feedback from attendees, presenters, volunteers and other stakeholders. Evaluate the success of the conference and identify areas for improvement. Prepare a post-conference report.
Volunteers are the lifeblood of the conference! We can't make it happen without YOU. So many ways to volunteer - join a committee and be part of the planning; come in the week before and help put packages together and/or play a role at the conference itself - everything from presenter liaisons to building managers to gofers and everything in-between.
WE NEED YOU!
HISTORIC MERGER: The True Colors Conference Becomes a Program of the
Health Collective!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – (Hartford, CT)
In a unanimous vote, the True Colors Conference Relaunch Committee (TCCRC) has
decided to officially integrate the conference into the Health Collective, establishing it as a core
program of the organization. This strategic merger signifies a landmark development in
LGBTQIA+ advocacy, youth support services, and education within the region.
Founded in 1983, the Health Collective stands as one of Connecticut’s oldest LGBTQIA+
healthcare organizations. It has played a pivotal role since its inception, being the first
organization to provide dental care for individuals living with HIV/AIDS and among the first in
the state to offer HIV testing during the peak of the AIDS crisis in the 1980s.
David Grant, Executive Director of the Health Collective, expressed gratitude to Robin
McHaelen and the planning committee for entrusting them with this significant event. He
emphasized the commitment of his team to delivering innovative and life-saving programming,
ensuring that next year's conference embodies queer joy and excellence in Connecticut, while
also nurturing the next generation of LGBTQ leaders and their allies. Grant stated, “I am deeply
grateful to Robin McHaelen, and the planning committee, for trusting us with this incredibly
important event. My team and I are committed to meeting people where they are to deliver
innovative and lifesaving programming. Next year’s conference will be the epitome of queer joy
and excellence in Connecticut helping to prepare the next generation of LGBT leaders and their
allies.”
Robin McHaelen, retired Executive Director of True Colors, Inc., and current conference
consultant, emphasized the significance of the decision. She recalled the conference's origins as
'Children from the Shadows' in 1994 and its evolution into the True Colors Conference.
McHaelen highlighted the importance of continuing the conference amidst the challenges
posed by anti-LGBTQ+ bills proposed or passed in the last year. She stated, “Before COVID
pulled the plug on in-person events, we hosted a total of 26 annual conferences and were the
largest LGBTQ+ youth conference in the country with over 3,000 participants each year. When I
retired, COVID ended and True Colors closed, the conference as it had been envisioned ended
too. But with over 500 anti-LGBTQ+ bills proposed or passed in the last year, it has become
clear that we need the conference now more than ever!”
"Health Care Advocates International is honored to be the "Empowered by" sponsor for
the return of the country's largest LGBTQ youth conference. The choice to sponsor an event like
this is an easy one when goals and mission align; both HCAI and the Health Collective are
determined in ending HIV stigma and discrimination and we are dedicated to providing gender-
affirming care for all," said Pattie McKnight, HCAI Executive Director.
"We applaud Robin and the team for their commitment to bringing back this prominent
event to the state of Connecticut". McKnight added, "The True Colors Conference has provided
such a transformative experience for many over the years, we see it as our responsibility to
continue this necessary work. This event truly makes an impact in the lives of so many, we can
only hope to continue to provide a safe space for adolescents to connect, grow and learn for
many years to come."
The True Colors Conference has been a beacon of hope and empowerment for
LGBTQIA+ youth since its launch in 1994. As it transitions to become a program of the Health
Collective, the conference is poised to expand its reach and impact leveraging the infrastructure
and network of the nearly 41-year-old health and wellness institution.
The official relaunch of True Color’s SOGIEcon will take place the weekend of Friday,
March 21st, 2025, at the University of Connecticut, Storrs campus. SOGIE is an acronym that
stands for Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression.
For more information, volunteer and vendor opportunities, or to sponsor the
conference, please visit www.HealthCollective.org.
Media Contact:
Anthony DiLizia, Chief Deputy Director
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (860) 823 - 8160
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Robin McHaelen, MSW
True Colors Conference Relaunch Committee
Phone: (860) 416-0068
Email: [email protected]
World’s Largest LGBTQ+ Youth Conference
to Relaunch in Connecticut
Manchester, CT (February 16, 2024) A group of committed volunteers has announced the re-establishment of the True Colors Conference, a national event focusing on LGBTQ+ youth issues. The perennial favorite of LGBTQ+/Ally youth as well as youth-serving professionals has been on hiatus since COVID struck, but will return in March 2025 to the University of Connecticut (UCONN) in Storrs, CT.
In 1994, True Colors, Inc. first presented their landmark conference. By 2020, the transformative two-day event became the world’s largest LGBTQIA+ youth conference, drawing more than 3,000 high school and college students, educators, clinicians, and family members from Connecticut and 18 other states. Due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the conference took a hiatus and the organization subsequently dissolved.
“Today, many Connecticut organizations have stepped up to meet the needs of LGBTQ+ youth and they’re doing a great job”, McHaelen says the retired True Colors Inc, executive director. “But people continued to tell me how important the conference was and how its absence is affecting kids, because nothing comparable has emerged (since the closing of True Colors). Everyone kept asking ‘how can we fill that gap?’. That question was literally taking over my dreams! After a recent social media poll, it was clear that there was an appetite to bring the conference back.” Zoe Donnellycolt, a recent MSW graduate from the UCONN School of Social Work, said, “ I grew up going to True Colors with my parents. I remember thinking that the conference was a truly unique opportunity for teenagers in Connecticut… (and) how lucky I was to be able to attend it. With all the fear I felt growing up, celebrating and dancing were unique moments of relief. My memory of the joy, pride, and empowerment I witnessed and experienced at True Colors was an anchor of hope for my future…”
Longtime conference volunteer Matthew Wallace agrees. “The TC Conference is needed now more than ever. With hundreds of anti-LGBTQ+ initiatives across the country - including Connecticut - LGBTQ+ youth are under attack. The steady stream of vitriol toward transgender and non-binary youth in particular is taking a terrible toll on them and their families. They need a safe space where they can connect, create community, learn from local and national experts – particularly experts with lived experience.
McHaelen added, “We’re honored that The Health Collective has agreed to serve as our fiduciary, allowing us to raise the funds we need to run the conference in 2025 - and rebuild the infrastructure to ensure that it will keep going.” David Grant, Executive Director of the Health Collective, mirrored this sentiment. “Throughout the Health Collective’s history, we have witnessed the profound impact that the True Colors Conference has had on the LGBTQIA+ community,” Grant said. “It is an honor to recommit the Health Collective to this cause, particularly at a time when loneliness is becoming an epidemic in America. I want to extend our deepest gratitude to Robin McHaelen and the conference relaunch committee for allowing us to be a part of this journey.”
Veteran volunteer Barbara Curry, noted, “It takes an army of volunteers to make this conference a success. We’re forming teams now to handle all aspects of organizing - operational, marketing, fundraising, inclusivity and workshop selections.” Interested volunteers can get more information and/or sign onto the email list at www.RobinMcHaelen.com
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Call: (860) 416-0068
Email: [email protected] or [email protected]
Give us a call
(860) 416-0068Send us an email
[email protected]