Causes: Children & Youth, Civil Rights, Lesbian & Gay Rights, LGBTQ, Youth Centers & Clubs, Youth Development Programs

Mission: OUT Maine works toward a welcoming and affirming Maine for all rural young people of diverse sexual orientations, gender expressions and gender identities.

Results: We reach thousands of youth every year through our programs and school and other partnerships. We serve school- and college-age youth, plus even younger trans children, in all of Maine’s counties and regions.
• Since 2015, we have trained over 15,000 providers across the state, building a safety net of health and behavioral health providers, educators, clergy and youth program staff.

Target demographics: At OUT Maine, we have an ambitious goal: to create more welcoming and affirming communities for Maine’s diverse queer youth in all of their intersectional identities.

Direct beneficiaries per year: thousands of LGBTQ+ youth (1,200 + annually), trained 15,000 professional (4,000 annually), hundreds of schools and organizations who support LGBTQ+ youth

Geographic areas served: statewide, Maine

Programs: To do that, we offer supportive programs for those youth and their families, but we know that’s not enough. To really make a difference in the lives of LGBTQ+ kids, we need to change the very systems that serve them in Maine.
• Those systems include schools, health care, foster care, community organizations, and more.
• We take a statewide, three-pronged approach: support LGBTQ+ youth and their families and allies; empower youth to be their most authentic, resilient selves; and educate health care providers, educators, clergy and other professionals who change young people’s lives through their support.