Educators, youth workers and students from communities in the region will gather for the 10th annual conference designed to teach safety and respect for all, regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity or expression. The conference will take place Tuesday, Nov. 18 at the Westchester County Center.

The full-day event is designed in particular for school staff, parents, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth who are questioning their sexual orientation and their straight allies. The conference will open with a message from Governor Paterson, delivered by Howie Katz, the governor’s representative. It will feature workshops, including selections from “For The Bible Tells Me So,” the award-winning documentary that reveals that religious anti-gay bias is based almost solely upon a misinterpretation of the Bible.

The conference will run from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Registration is $85 for adults and $30 for students. Scholarships are available. A continental breakfast and buffet lunch are included in the fees. For more information, you may download a brochure and registration form, the conference program, biographies of the speakers and online resources or visit  www.glsen.org/hudsonvalley. You may also call (914) 962-7888 or e-mail prideworks@glsenhv.org.

The conference is co-sponsored by the Office of the Westchester County Executive; GLSEN Hudson Valley, a chapter of the national Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network; PFLAG of Westchester, Parents, Family and Friends of Lesbians and Gays; Westchester Jewish Community Services’ Center Lane. It is endorsed by the Westchester-Putnam School Boards Association, Westchester-East Putnam Region PTA, National Association of Social Workers, Westchester Division, the Hudson River Teachers’ Center, Putnam-Northern Westchester Guidance Center, and the New York State School Social Workers Association.

Attendees and workshop leaders come from Westchester, Rockland, Putnam and Ulster counties and New York City. Twenty-five workshops are scheduled for the day. New this year are: “‘That’s So Gay’ is Not OK,” “Understanding and Addressing Cyberbullying,” and “GSAs—Advanced Placements.”  Other workshops: “Bisexuality 101,” “Latino Families and LGBT Issues,” and “The ‘T’ in LGBT: Transgender Panel.”

This year, a cyberbullying workshop will inform about this new, unique form of bullying and will provide strategies to respond effectively to it. Gender issues in early childhood – how kids try to “fit in” and the emotional price some pay – will be explored in “Pink and Blue Straight Jackets.”  A workshop for guidance counselors and parents – “How to Counsel Questioning Youth,” deals with initiating a conversation with a teenager about sexual orientation and gender identity.

“Difficult Questions” will provide information and “tools” to help LGBT youth and their straight allies make decisions on what to say when being told something surprising or when facing a difficult question. Find out about the history of the fight for gay and lesbian equality in “Out Gay History: Once upon a time . . . .” Participants can attend a special track on receiving practical advice about “Gay Straight Alliances 101,” starting a “GSA in Middle School,” and, for after the GSA is started: “Gay Straight Alliances: Advanced Placement.”

There will also be a powerful workshop on Daniel Karslake’s multi-award-winning documentary “For The Bible Tells Me So.” Through the experiences of five very normal, very Christian, very American families – including those of former House Majority Leader Richard Gephardt and Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson – we discover how insightful people of faith handle the realization of having a gay child. “For The Bible Tells Me So” attempts to offer healing, clarity and understanding to anyone caught in the crosshairs of scripture and sexual identity. After viewing portions of the film, a panel of religious leaders will discuss their understanding of what the Bible has to say about homosexuality.

Financial support for the conference came from the county departments of Social Services, Youth Bureau and Community Mental Health, Norman E. Friedman, Julia Peloso, Mental Health Association of Westchester, Planned Parenthood Hudson Peconic, The LOFT: the LGBT Community Center, and the Wespac Foundation.