CHICAGO — ( September 29, 2014 ) — The Illinois Safe Schools Alliance ( the Alliance ) will hold its annual brunch on Oct. 5, 2014, at the Chicago Cultural Center's Sidney R. Yates Gallery located at 78 E Washington St. The event is designed to honor organizations and individuals who have given tirelessly to promote and champion safe learning environments and healthy development for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning, and allied ( LGBTQA ) youth throughout the state of Illinois.
This year's honorees include Activist of the Year Katya Mazon, graduate of Walter Payton College Prep, along with the UIC College of Education, which is being honored as Ally of the Year.
"The Alliance is looking forward to recognizing these outstanding leaders who have advanced the Alliance's vision of a world in which youth can develop to their fullest potential in safe and nurturing schools that accept and honor differences," said Anthony Papini, executive director, Illinois Safe Schools Alliance.
The awards will be presented at the annual Alliance Brunch: Remembering our Past. In the Present. For our Future. taking place at 11:30 a.m. Tickets to attend the brunch are available at www.IllinoisSafeSchools.org .
The Alliance Brunch is made possible through the ongoing support of event co-chairs, honorary committee, and corporate sponsors. This year's event co-chairs include Mary F. Morten, Casey Horton, and Rick Ingram.
Corporate Sponsors: Chicago Parking Meters LLC, Exelon, EY, Skadden, BP, Kraft Foods, Morten Group, Sidley, Winston & Strawn LLP, and others.
Honorary Committee: Governor Pat Quinn ( D ), Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth ( D ), Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky ( D ), Attorney General Lisa Madigan ( D ), State Senator Daniel Biss ( D ), State Representative Dan Brady ( R ), State Representative Kelly M. Cassidy ( D ), State Representative Linda Chapa LaVia ( D ), State Representative John C. D'Amico ( D ), State Representative Scott Drury ( D ), State Senator Michael W. Frerichs ( D ), State Representative Robyn Gabel ( D ), State Representative Greg Harris ( D ), State Senator Mattie Hunter ( D ), State Senator Dan Kotowski ( D ), State Representative Dennis M. Reboletti ( R ), Alderman Deborah Mell, Commissioner Debra Shore.
About The Illinois Safe Schools Alliance
The Illinois Safe Schools Alliance promotes safety, support and healthy development for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning ( LGBTQ ) youth in Illinois schools and communities. The Alliance's strategy is a multifaceted approach that helps youth become catalysts for change by developing youth leadership skills; promotes public policy reform with local government and school systems; trains school personnel; supports gay-straight alliances; and provides technical assistance to youth, educators and parents. For more information about the Alliance's programs and resources, visit www.IllinoisSafeSchools.org .
Activist of the Year Award
Selected by the Board and Staff of the Alliance annually through Youth Committee nominations, the Activist of the Year is a person recognized for their leadership actions to advance the LGBTQ safe schools movement from the ground up. This award prioritizes the often challenging and always-inspiring work of K-12 students to organize in their own schools and communities, creating systemic change and impacting the lives of their peers.
2014 — Katya Mazon, Alliance Youth Committee
Katya Mazon was a member of the Alliance Youth Committee for over 2 years. Katya, a fierce straight ally in the LGBTQ rights movement, organized youth summits, led workshops on strengthening Gay Straight Alliances, developed leadership skills, addressed racism in schools, supported friends with mental illness, and understands the impact of misogyny. She too helped organize the Alliance's first ever Leadership Action Camp, and led workshops for adult educators on the intersections of racism, classism, heterosexism and cissexism in the classroom. In addition to education and organizing, Katya has recently lead Youth Committee efforts to advocate for policies supporting transgender and gender non-conforming students in Chicago Public Schools. These policies will ensure that transgender students are safe and supported to use bathrooms, locker rooms, names and pronouns that correspond with their gender identity.
Not only is Katya an instrumental leader with the Alliance, she is also on the board of the National Runaway Safe line and has organized events for the LGBTQA Youth Ministries program at the Wesley United Methodist Church in Cicero. Katya has accomplished more for her many communities than others have accomplished in a lifetime. She is strong and outspoken, dedicated to the rights of LGBTQ youth, youth of color, and youth living with mental illness. Above all, Katya works to educate others on how racism, classism, heterosexism, and misogyny impact all people, and is dedicated to changing the systems that perpetrate these oppressions.
Previous Activist's include:
2009 — Xavier Ramirez
2010 — Dillin Dee
2011 — Emma Milliken
2012 — Abe Akande & Grace Gonia
2013 — Emma Leff
Ally of the Year Award
Selected by the Board and Staff of the Alliance annually through Committee nominations, the Ally of the Year is a person, school or business recognized for their generous support — or exemplary demonstration — of the Alliance's programmatic work through donations, programmatic support, creating increased awareness of the Alliance's work, and/or identifying and building new partnerships or initiatives that promote the safety, support and healthy development of LGBTQ youth and their allies leveraging the safer schools movement.
2014 — UIC, College of Education
The longstanding partnership between the Alliance and UIC's College of Education has leveraged the safer schools movement both in Illinois and across the country. This cutting edge research collaboration has led to new approaches in discussing anti-LGBTQ language with youth, helped to change schools' perceptions of parental roles in LGBTQ safe schools issues, and has created a narrative depicting the ways young people are impacted by school discipline. With the support of the College's research team, the Alliance is poised to transform the way that schools, communities, and students address sexual orientation and gender identity issues within systems and in every day conversations.
Previous Ally's include:
2010 — Ernst & Young
2011 — Kraft Foods
2013 — Dr. Laura Taylor, Asst. Superintendent, Champaign Unit 4
2013 — Clinton Rosette Middle School GSA, DeKalb Dist. 428
