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The Consortium at ACPA

Since 2024*, the Consortium of Higher Education LGBT Resource Professionals have held our official in-person convening at the annual conference of ACPA - College Student Educators International, one of the two primary professional organizations for the field of higher education student affairs. This has been used as our opportunity to bring members together in-person, build relationships with partners, and offer education centered on what matters most to queer and trans resource professionals. Our presence typically involves a pre-convention session and conference workshops, open to any ACPA attendee, as well as socials geared towards Consortium members.

Pre-Conference 2026: Serving Queer & Trans Communities in this Political Moment

Join the Consortium for conversations on navigating queer and trans equity work in this political moment. With the erasure of LGBTQIA2S+ programs and services, the closure of gender and sexuality centers, and the backlash against QT resource practitioners, we must shift how we support queer and trans communities. In this session, we explore how higher education professionals can reimagine our roles, provide support for our campus communities and each other, re-craft and redistribute resources, and adapt our strategies for advocacy.

This Pre-Conference is open to any ACPA attendee interested in the topic, not just members! Attendance is an additional fee and also can be purchased without attending the full conference, please see the ACPA 2026 registration page for more information.

Conference Sessions

Any Consortium-sponsored sessions will be announced once workshop submissions have closed and determinations released by ACPA. Stay tuned for more details!

Socials & Gatherings

Socials and other gatherings for members will be announced closer to the date of the conference. Stay tuned for more details!

Presenting at ACPA?

If you are an active member and have been accepted as a presenter for ACPA 2026, we would love to highlight you on our ACPA communications! Reach out to [email protected] with details about your presentation, including title, description, presenters, and date / time as soon as you can so we can promote your presentation alongside official Consortium offerings.

 

Prior ACPA Presence

Descriptions are displayed as they were submitted for their respective conference.

Year Offerings
2025

Pre-Conference: Centering Racial Justice in Queer and Trans Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Work on Campus

Join the Consortium of Higher Education LGBT Resource Professionals for conversation on how we center racial justice in Queer and Trans equity, inclusion, and belonging work on our campuses. The Consortium is a members-based organization dedicated to working towards the liberation of 2SLGBTQIA+ people in higher education. In this session, we will explore how to prioritize racial justice amid a backdrop of attacks on diversity, equity, and inclusion work, decolonize policy and practice, and strategize how to promote an institutional commitment to doing this work in our current climate. This session is designed for participants who engage in the work 2SLGBTQIA+ equity, inclusion and belonging work, including those in formal QT resource practitioner roles and those engaging in this work in other locations on campus. 

Consortium Board Presentations:

  • LGBTQ+ Student Mental Health: Active Minds’ A.S.K. Peer Support Tool

    • The Consortium of Higher Education LGBT Resource Professionals and Active Minds will present a mental health tool: A.S.K: Acknowledge, Support, and Keep-In-Touch. As we navigate through the current sociopolitical context: closures of LGBTQIA+ centers, increased anti-DEI legislation, and brutality across campuses for students exercising their First Amendment right peacefully, A.S.K. provides vital tools to support students’ mental/emotional health. We will share skills and resources to intersectionally support students' and colleagues' mental well-being.
    • Presenters / Organizers: Sarah Simi-Cohen, Nicole Newsome, and Michelle Wallace (Consortium); Markie Pasternak (Active Minds).

  • Planning for and Responding to Campus Threats: Strategies for Support

    • An increase in anti-DEI and anti-LGBTQ+ legislation continues to impact the landscape of higher education. These coordinated attacks harm queer and trans students, faculty, and staff. How do student affairs practitioners work to serve and support marginalized communities in this hostile political climate? Together we will explore strategies for trauma-informed support, empowering students to engage in activism, and addressing policy to mitigate threats and protect ourselves as we support others.
    • Presenters / Organizers: Jesse Beal, Jeff Maliskey, Sarah Simi-Cohen, Nicole Newsome, and Lo Denmon.

  • Money, Please!: Strategies for Funding Gender and Sexuality Centers

    • Uncover ways to access institutional and community financial resources to support Gender and Sexuality Centers and other identity-based spaces. We will focus on community-based solutions and how to best use data and assessment. Participants will explore a variety of fundraising techniques and grant writing skills designed to support trans and queer justice and belonging work. Attendees will increase their comfort in asking for money to support their programs, especially in areas where DEI programs are being attacked and eliminated.
    • Presenters / Organizers: Jesse Beal, Lo Denmon, Lorant Peeler, and Andrew Herridge
2024

Pre-Conference: Imagining LGBTQIA2S+ Justice and Equity in Higher Education 

Join the Consortium of Higher Education LGBT Resource Professionals for a transformative conversation about the future of LGBTQIA2S+ communities in higher education. We will share better, best, and promising practices. We will focus on community building and innovative strategies to address increasingly hostile climates for LGBTQIA2S+ people on campus. Together, we will imagine new possibilities for creating more just campus communities. 

Consortium Board Presentations:

  • Promising Policies and Practices for Supporting Trans and Nonbinary Students

    • To better address the needs of trans and nonbinary college students, the Consortium of Higher Education LGBT Resource Professionals organized a team to update its Promising Policies and Practices for Supporting Trans and Nonbinary Students. Based on research findings and professional experiences, these guidelines are designed to assist colleges and universities in providing services to trans and nonbinary students. Members of the team will discuss the document and provide attendees with the means to use the guidelines on their campuses.
    • Presenters / Organizers: Jesse Beal, des velázquez, and Roman Christiaens.

  • The State of the Field for LGBTQIA2S+ Resource Center Practitioners

    • Over 50 years since the first gender and sexuality resource center (GSRC) was founded, GSRCs exist on over 300 campuses across the United States and Canada. In 2022, the Consortium of Higher Education launched a member needs assessment to identify trends for GSRC practitioners, deepen the understanding of member experiences, and to capture the state of the field. Join the Consortium as we share the findings from the survey and discuss the future of GSRC work/werq.
    • Presenters / Organizers: Jesse Beal, Andrew Herridge, Roman Christiaens, Nicole Newsome, and Kristopher Olivera.

 

*Prior to 2024, the Consortium's annual conference presence was held at the LGBTQ National Taskforce's Creating Change. The change was made, in part, due to rising restrictions on both funding availability and use-cases for many of our members, who could not afford to attend both Creating Change and one of the major higher education conferences, or could not spend institutional funds on an LGBTQ+ centered conference.