A schools remain closed, online options are expanding for students stuck at home. OUT Maine, a nonprofit that serves LGBTQ+ youth throughout Maine, has been collaborating with other organizations to create even more free weekly workshops for youth and young adults. Workshop content ranges from life-skills building topics to creative expression, according to a news release from Rachel Albury with OUT Maine.

Maine Family Planning, New Hope for Women, Camp Kieve-Wavus, Maine Youth Action Network, Healthy Communities of the Capital Area and Maine Educational Opportunity Center, as well as individual community members, are among those collaborating with OUT Maine to help keep Maine’s LGBTQ+ Maine youth and their allies connected and supported.

Upcoming workshops include Poetry as a Prism for Self-Expression with Danielle Layton of MYAN on Tuesday, May 5, and What is Effective Communication with Jess Anderson from Kieve- Wavus Education on Tuesday, May 12. These workshops will be held from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m.

Photographer and retired Mount Desert Island high school teacher Lin Gould will offer creative online workshops Photovoice and Writing Six Word Stories from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. every Monday and Thursday, respectively.

In addition to these workshops, OUT Maine will offer weekly programming: Wednesday Youth Group for youth ages 11-18 from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m., a Friday Young Adult Group for ages 18-22 from 1 to 2 p.m., and a Thursday Dungeons n Dragons game for ages 11-22 from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. These programs will utilize online platforms, including Zoom, Google and Discord.

To register, visit outmaine.org. Registrations are confidential — they simply provide access to group programming “rooms.” These workshops are not exclusive to youth who identify as LGBTQ+; youth allies are welcome and encouraged to attend.

OUT Maine is seeking more workshop presenters for online programs as it expands these offerings.

Those interested in providing a free workshop for youth can contact
[email protected].