Gel Henry (they/them)
Black and white photo of Gel Henry.
Gel can be reached at Angelique.henry765@gmail.com
Since 2018, Gel has worked at the Community Health Access Initiative at the University of Michigan School of Public Health. Gel has collaborated with medical and mental health clinicians, community organizations, and LGBTQIA+ young adults to develop training content related to LGBTQIA+ adolescent mental health. Gel has also facilitated virtual trainings for hundreds of health care workers.
Gel Henry is a current student at Washtenaw Community College, where they are pursuing a B.A. in Public Health focusing on substance use education and harm reduction.
Gel is looking for future opportunities related to:
Speaking on panels related to LGBTQIA+ mental health
Co-facilitating trainings and events
Serving on LGBTQIA+-centered action committees or advisory boards
Participating in focus groups related to LGBTQIA+ research
Part-time jobs related to harm reduction and/or LGBTQIA+ health
Essential Contributions
As a member of the Community Health Access Initiative, Gel has contributed to the creation of the following health information resources:
Co-developed curriculum and co-facilitated monthly training, Understanding & Supporting LGBTQIA+ Youth’s Mental Health in Primary Care. Uniquely contributed to curriculum related to anti-racism and implicit bias.
This training was attended by >300 participants across two years.
Co-developed, co-designed, and co-facilitated Resilience in LGBTQIA+ Youth.
This 60-minute training was attended by >100 clinicians and educators, at the Adolescent Health Initiative’s 2021 Conference on Adolescent Health.
Photo credit: Disabled and Here
Co-developed, co-designed, and co-facilitated We Don’t Live Single-Issue Lives: Intersectional Approaches to LGBTQIA+ Health.
This 90-minute presentation took place at the Adolescent Health Initiative’s 2019 Conference on Adolescent Health.
Served as a panelist for Understanding the Mental Healthcare Needs of Transgender & Non-Binary Youth as part of a 13-week series of trainings for mental health clinicians, attended by >50 participants.
Co-authored and co-designed Combating Anti-Blackness in Medicine: A Resource for Providers. Click here to access.
Additional Contributions
Participated in collaborative web design process for www.lgbtqiamidest.org, including co-writing an academic paper describing community-centered web development processes for LGBTQIA+ youth.
Provided crucial feedback to content and design of all resources created by CHAI and its predecessor, MFierce. To see all of the resources, visit www.lgbtqiamidwest.org and filter by Made by CHAI.
Testimonials
“Gel is a passionate and essential member of CHAI’s team; they are always interested in how we can make projects better and more affirming of LGBTQIA+ young people, especially those who identify as BIPOC. Gel is incredibly supportive of their colleagues at CHAI, consistently celebrating their work and providing support where needed. I am grateful to have spent this time working with Gel, and believe they will be an asset to future teams, especially in harm reduction work, where Gel holds a lot of compassion and interest. ”
“Gel has a great mind for thinking through how we’ll get from point a to b. They always consider how all the pieces fit together and help us figure out what configuration makes the most sense. They have a strong commitment to social justice and equity and it’s clear that building strong relationships matters to them. It has been wonderful seeing Gel grow as a facilitator over the last three years and I know they will make an incredible addition to any team lucky enough to work with them in the future. ”
“It has been a wonderful experience to collaborate with Gel over the course of this project. They are an extremely talented facilitator who responds to attendee input and energy to make presentations interactive and engaging.”