Presenters
Plenary Presenter
Rae McDaniel, MEd, LCPC, CST
(they/them)
Rae McDaniel is a non-binary Speaker, Author, Therapist, Certified Sex Therapist, Coach, and Transgender Diversity and Inclusion Educator. Rae helps audiences gain the sheer audacity to be themselves in the world through play, pleasure, and possibility. Their book Gender Magic is a first-of-its-kind practical guide to achieving gender freedom with joy, curiosity, and pleasure for transgender and non-binary individuals, gender explorers, and those who love them (May 2023.) They have been featured in high-profile media such as The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, Time, and Women’s Health. As a sought-after professional speaker, Rae has spoken at Rutgers University, University of Chicago, University of Illinois Chicago, Soho House, The Wing, and Rachel’s Rodgers’ ROI: The Millionaires Summit. Rae is also the founder and CEO of Practical Audacity, a Gender & Sex Therapy practice in Chicago, serving over 300 clients yearly. When Rae isn’t educating audiences and bettering the world, they can be found drinking too much coffee, snuggling with their dog Gizmo (who might actually be a gremlin), or riding motorcycles.
Session title: Gender Magic: Play, Pleasure & Possibility
Workshop Presenter
Alex Papale, PT, DPT
(they/them)
Alex Papale is a pelvic health physical therapist, consultant, sex educator, and international speaker based in Boston, MA. They specialize in queer and trans health, and treating patients of all genders at Flourish Physical Therapy. Alex especially loves to help patients with sexual issues, peripartum care, pelvic floor support with HRT, and healing from gender affirming surgeries. When they’re not in the treatment room, you can find them writing and teaching gender affirming, sex positive, kink-informed courses for current/future healthcare providers, or for anyone who wants to learn more about sexuality, their bodies, and pelvic health.
Session title: Know Yourself, Inside and Out: Inclusive, Sex-Positive Pelvic Health for All Bodies
Workshop Presenter
Tavi Hawn, LCSW-C
(they/them)
Tavi Hawn is a Two Spirit, trans speaker, author, healer, and inclusion & equity consultant. They serve as faculty on the Indian Country Trans ECHO project and are founder and Director of Training and Consulting at Reclaim and Rise Therapy based in Baltimore, MD. They are author of The Gender Identity Guide for Parents (2022) and Cultural Awareness in Therapy with Trans, Two Spirit, and Gender Non-Conforming Adults and Older People (2020). They’ve been quoted in many publications, spoken at universities, consulted at corporations and organizations, lobbied and advocated for trans rights, and been honored to offer healing care to grassroots organizers in various movements over the years. Whenever possible, Tavi is hanging out with their 3 year old, reading, dancing, walking in the woods, growing food and medicines, traveling, playing the drum kit and hand drum, hugging their elders, and eating good food.
Session title: What They Can’t Take: Trans Pleasure, Joy, and Rage
Panel Presenter & Program Committee Member
Coltan J. Schoenike, MS, LMFT (WI), LAMFT (MN)
(they/them)
Coltan Schoenike is a couples and sex therapist, sexuality educator, and PhD student based in unceded Očhéthi Šakówiŋ territory colonial known as Menomonie, Wisconsin. Coltan identifies as queer, transgender, nonbinary, polyamorous, and fat, all identities which heavily inform their social justice approach to their research and practice. Their current clinical and research interests include gender-affirming care and inclusive sex therapy.
Session title: Working Across Disciplines Through a Gender-liberated Lens
Panel Presenter
Holiday Simmons, MSW
(he/him)
Holiday Simmons is the founder and Lead Practitioner at Southern Soul Wellness, a holistic mental health and spiritual wellness practice. Through somatic coaching, organizational wellbeing support, and generative conflict mediation, Southern Soul Wellness supports individuals and social justice organizations in the healing and transformation of mind, body, community, and the planet. Holiday makes his home in the Muscogee Creek Territories of Atlanta, GA.
Session title: Working Across Disciplines Through a Gender-liberated Lens
Panel Presenter
Oumou Sylla
(they/she)
oumou is a Senegalese-Guinean, multi-hyphenate polycreative – therapist, coach, disruptor, zinester, writer, speaker, consultant and facilitator of spaces for radical learning. oumou is a two-time graduate of Syracuse University and former adjunct professor of the same school. she is the creator of RMHFA, a workshop that is slowly but surely changing the care and mental health landscape.
oumou’s lived and professional experiences are gifts that allow her to support people and businesses in intuitive and radical ways. their work aims to disrupt systems of disconnection, the laziness lie, the productivity death escalator and “the transactional ways in which relationships exist under capitalism” (word 2 niki franco). in her work, she incorporates different modes of learning, facilitation, processing and healing based on your needs, context, and background. they are mindful and aware that we are impacted by Anti-Blackness, Ableism, Gender Based Oppression, Capitalism, state sanctioned violence, and other forms of systemic injustice in every aspect of our lives including our businesses.
In oumou’s down time you might find her watching scooby doo, telling jokes, napping or birdwatching.
Session title: Working Across Disciplines Through a Gender-liberated Lens
Special Guest
Wang Newton
(they/she/he)
“Dr. Wang” Newton (they/them and he/him in drag) boasts a remarkable two-decade career as a prominent male impersonator, actor, and producer. As a drag king, Wang has delivered compelling talks at prestigious institutions such as Harvard University, UPenn, the National Association of Asian American Professionals. Featured in The New York Times, NPR, and Verizon In the Know, Wang’s notable appearances include Amazon Prime Pride, REVRY TV’s Queer X Awards, Bubly Water commercial, books DRAGS and Glitter and Concrete. As exemplified in their acclaimed sex positive digital show Sacred Wounds, Wang’s passion for transformational wellness and social justice continues to permeate their work.