VIRTUAL-Wednesday, October 22, 2025, 9:00AM-12:00 PM-LGBTQ+101 with Oscar Oliveira Soens & Suzy Langevin, LICSW, LADC I

VIRTUAL-Wednesday, October 22, 2025, 9:00 AM-12:00 PM

LGBTQ+101

Oscar Oliveira Soens

Suzy Langevin, LICSW, LADC I

Amidst a rising tide of anti-LGBTQ+ bias, it is more important than ever that everyone is educated in how to best support and serve the LGBTQ+ members of our communities. Learn about factors that influence LGBTQ+ well-being, appropriate and intentional language use, and best practices for engaging LGBTQ+ individuals whether they are colleagues, family members, or individuals served. Get your questions answered and gain the skills and knowledge necessary to address the needs of the LGBTQ+ people in your life and learn about where to look for additional information and resources.  

Following this training the participants will understand:

• Terminology and etiquette

•  Factors that influence the physical and mental well-being of members of the LGBTQ+ community            

•  Best practices for serving LGBTQ+ individuals   

Your Trainers:

Oscar Oliveira Soens is the Program Director for Safe Homes, a program of Open Sky Community Services. Safe Homes is a drop-in center for LGBTQ+ youth ages 14 to 23, located primarily in Worcester, with a satellite drop-in in Fitchburg as well as a virtual drop-in hosted via Discord. In addition to working directly with LGBTQ+ youth, Mr. Oliveira Soens also develops and presents trainings designed to empower participants to make positive changes in their communities to support and uplift the LGBTQ+ people in their lives.

Suzy Langevin, LICSW, LADC I, Director of Training and Professional Development at Open Sky Community Services, is committed to making the best evidence-based tools and supports available to both Open Sky employees and the broader provider community through the Bridge Training Institute. Ms. Langevin has presented regionally and nationally on implementing evidence-based treatment modalities, including the Stephanie Moulton Symposium, NAADAC National Webinar Series, and the Massachusetts Psychiatric Rehabilitation Collaborative Annual Conference. She has extensive training and fidelity coding experience in Motivational Interviewing and is a member of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (MINT).

She had provided training and consultation in a variety of evidence-based treatment modalities to mental health providers, school systems, community groups and state agencies, where feedback has included, “Suzy is very knowledgeable and provides practical insight on how to apply the skill learned in real life situations. Her training approach is upbeat, engaging, and informative.”

In her more than decade long tenure at Open Sky, she served as Director of Dual Diagnosis Services, where she developed a model for services for co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders within the agency’s community mental health programming. She also previously worked to implement and supervise the provision of Illness Management and Recovery (IMR) services across adult and adolescent treatment settings and the development and opening of The Bridge Counseling Center, Open Sky’s outpatient division. In 2014, Ms. Langevin was awarded the ABH Excellence in Outcomes Award as a member of the CR for PTSD group. She was selected to the Worcester Area Chamber of Commerce Leadership Worcester Class of 2021.

In addition to her work at Open Sky, Ms. Langevin has experience in a diverse range of settings, including emergency mental health, juvenile justice, residential treatment, and hospital inpatient care.