Board of Directors or Committee Member

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THE LIVING ROOM YOUTH

Recruiting Board and Committee Members

Over the last few years, acceptance of LGBTQ+ people, especially queer people of color, has palpably decreased. Here in Clackamas County, The Living Room (TLR) and the youth we serve have felt this climate change personally. As an organization, it has proven more difficult to enter schools in Clackamas County to help maintain and establish GSAs, and our youth report a noticeably decreased intervention on their behalf from adults in their schools and communities when faced with a lack of support, bullying, or harassment. Beyond that, during these times when social distancing is key to minimizing pandemic impact, youth are finding themselves feeling more isolated and lonely, especially those that are not or cannot be out at home. Accessing support, resources, and community prove to be a continuous struggle.

LGBTQ+ youth are powerful, resilient, and inspiring. They are also vulnerable . Four in ten LGBTQ+ youth say the community they live in is not accepting of LGBTQ people, and 26% of LGBTQ+ youth say their biggest problems are not being accepted by their family, trouble at school/bullying, and fear of being out/open (HRC). Youth in our suburban and rural communities are especially impacted and in need of our support.

Established in 2010, TLR works to improve life for LGBTQ+ youth from middle school to age 20 in Clackamas County. Through this work we have seen youth leaders flourish and the local community strengthen. As a small yet dynamic organization, our Board of Directors remains a key component of our success and driving force in our future growth. It is rewarding to watch our efforts make such a significant impact both in individual youth and in larger organizations like schools and cities. It is exciting to encourage youth voice by having a visible and directly involved board. We also strive for continued engagement of all our leaders by working to align roles with individual passions, interests, and skill sets. With multiple opportunities to be there for our youth through the daily struggles and amplified stressors from the pandemic, there’s so much great work to be done.

We focus on serving youth in suburban and rural communities using a two-pronged approach:

1. Utilizing a blend of peer-delivered services and youth-adult partnerships, TLR

supports LGBTQ+ youth through direct programming and annual events.

• Drop-in: TLR provides regularly-scheduled peer-mediated safe spaces for queer youth and their allies in cities such as Oregon City, Estacada, and Canby and soon to expand to Lake Oswego. We’re following CDC guidelines, so currently this involves running the peer-mediated safe spaces via online platforms like Discord and special limited in-person outdoor programming.
• GSA Summit: Annual January conference with workshops and break out sessions for Clackamas County GSA’s and their advisors
• Alt Prom: A free and safe alternative for our queer youth and allies to celebrate prom
• Pride: This years Pride will be looking a little different

1. TLR seeks to increase acceptance of LGBTQ+ youth in the county through a combination of community education and partnerships with school administrations, including support of and advocacy for local GSAs in county middle and high schools.

To continue this work, The Living Room is looking to expand our Board of Directors and expand Committee Membership in 2021!

TLR’s Board of Directors is an all-volunteer, hard-working and hands-on board and therefore entails some specific requirements for its members:

• A time commitment of 3-5 hours per week on average
• Virtual attendance at Board of Directors meetings the fourth Thursday evening of every month
• Attendance at one youth drop-in per quarter and interaction with youth at events, virtual and in-person opportunities available
• Attendance at fundraising events and TLR-sponsored activities (GSA Summit, Alt Prom, Pride activities)
• A meaningful-to-you annual financial contribution
• Adherence to legal mandatory reporter requirements
• Ability to pass a criminal background check
• Adaptability during the pandemic and willingness to learn online platforms [Discord, etc]

As TLR continues to grow there are specific needs for members with expertise in the following areas:

• Fundraising, grant writing
• Committee leadership
• Youth programing and services
• Volunteer program development
• Equity, diversity, and inclusion lens
• Networking, public relations, social media
• Human resources, operations knowledge
• Personnel/board member recruitment and retention

Interested in becoming part of The Living Room’s Board of Directors?

Here is a glance at our Board of Directors applicant process:

• May 1-23: Intro to TLR: learn more about why we are so passionate about the work we do and how we do it. Meet one-on-one with the Board Chair to discuss TLR’s vision for the future and collaborate together about your role in that.
• May 24: Application Deadline and Background Check. If you are interested in becoming a member, applications will be emailed to you for completion. They must be received by this date to be considered. The application process includes a state background check.
• May 27, 6:00 to 8:00pm: Board Meeting. Virtually attend a board meeting and see the Board of Directors in action. This is the time to see if the Board fits with you and if you fit with the Board. Come ready to ask and answer questions regarding what it means to be part of TLR’s Board of Directors!
• May 1-June 15: Interview. Each candidate will be interviewed by two current members of the TLR team.
• Quarterly, TBD: Volunteer Training. Each prospective board member must go through volunteer training. This allows an intimate knowledge of TLR programming, what is expected of our volunteers, and prepares you as a board member for attending drop-ins and other youth involved events. Afterwards, each prospective board member must attend at least one drop-in. This will give you a glimpse into our programming and experience with our youth. We believe it is vitally important that our Board of Directors has active knowledge regarding the youth we serve.
• June 24: Vote. The Board of Directors will take an official vote and let you know via email within a week regarding your Board of Director membership.

If you are interested in being a part of The Living Room community as a board member, please email Crystal: crystal@thelivingroomyouth.org .

Not sure you’re ready to commit to being part of the Board of Directors?

That’s okay! There are plenty of other ways you can be part of The Living Room.

• Be a Committee Member! This gives you an opportunity to help with fundraising, event planning, networking, public relationships, etc.

○ Committee members time commitment is about 5 hours a month.

○ Committee members are able to, but are not required to go through volunteer training, attend Drop-in, or interact with youth.

• Be a Volunteer! TLR always needs a good volunteer to help at drop-ins and other events held annually. Interaction with youth is a big part of this position. Volunteers:

○ Are required to sign up for two drop-in time slots a month

○ Will go through volunteer training and complete a background check

○ Are considered mandatory reporters

○ Participate in our annual events-GSA Summit, Prom, Pride, etc.

○ Help with tabling at events such as Pride and other opportunities

If you are interested in being a part of the TLR community as a volunteer or committee member, please complete our TLR Interest Form

Thank you for your interest in The Living Room and support of LGBTQ+ youth!