Multnomah County Honors TransActive Gender Center Executive Director

PORTLAND, Ore. - June 6, 2014 - PRLog -- TransActive Gender Center founder and executive director Jenn Burleton has been selected as the seventh annual recipient of the Sy Award.

The Multnomah County Citizen Involvement Committee (CIC) created the Sy Award in honor of Sy Kornbrodt and the passion he brought to the CIC. The award is presented to one citizen every year for a lifetime commitment to justice, equality and facilitating access to transparency at all levels of government.

Ms. Burleton is being honored for her work on behalf of transgender and gender nonconforming children and youth in Multnomah County and beyond. In 2013, Multnomah County became the first county to require gender-neutral restrooms in all new construction projects. In October of this year, the Oregon Health Plan will begin covering pubertal suppression treatment for transgender adolescents. Jenn Burleton played a primary role in securing these and other achievements that positively impact the lives of children and youth in Multnomah County and beyond.

TransActive Gender Center was founded in 2007 by Ms. Burleton and two other Multnomah County residents to provide services specific to the needs of transgender children, youth and their families. Under her leadership and with the help of an almost all-volunteer staff, the organization has grown to become the leading provider of services to families of transgender children and youth in the United States. At the present time, TransActive Gender Center provides clinical counseling and support groups to more than 300 Portland-area families, training to hundreds of teachers, administrators, students, care providers and professionals and advocacy services and resources to over 1,000 families across the nation.

The Sy Award will be presented to Jenn Burleton at the CIC Annual Dinner on  Wednesday, June 11, 2014 at 6:30pm.