TALKS LIKE THESE – Aspen

Patron XL, Patron, and Black Diamond pass holders can attend this event for free. Please wear your wristband for scanning at door.

Join AspenOUT and AGSW as we welcome a lively panel of industry and LGBTQ+ professionals to our first ‘Talks Like These,’ moderated by Dr. William Kapfer

Panelists Kevin Jennings, Chief Executive Officer, Lambda Legal; Richard Villani, Creative Director, Tom of Finland Foundation; and Joe Nucci, Psychotherapist and Influencer, @joenuccitherapy will guide us through LGBTQ+ History, the importance of Intersectionality, and honestly diving into mental health hurdles within the LGBTQ+ community.

Panelist Bios

Formerly president of the Tenement Museum, Kevin’s contributions to the LGBT movement began in 1988 when he helped students create the first school-based Gay-Straight Alliance club, leading him to found and lead the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) for 18 years. He then served as an Assistant Secretary of Education for President Obama, after which he led the Arcus Foundation, the world’s largest foundation for LGBT rights organizations, for five years.

He has received several awards, both national and international recognition, including the “Friend of Children” Award from the National Association of School Psychologists, the Human and Civil Rights Award of the National Education Association, the Distinguished Service Award of the National Association of Secondary School Principals, the Diversity Leadership Award of the National Association of Independent Schools, the Bob Angelo Medal from COC Netherlands, and the “Appalachian Hero” Award from the Appalachian Community Fund, where he established the Alice Jennings Fund, which provides support to organizations serving low-income and battered women in the South.

Kevin is a Lambda Literary Award-winning author of seven books; his memoir Mama’s Boy, Preacher’s Son: A Memoir, was named a Book of Honor by the American Library Association in 2006. He also helped write and produce the documentary Out of the Past, which won the 1998 Sundance Film Festival Audience Award for Best Documentary. He is an Executive Producer of the documentary The Lavender Scare.

Kevin is actively engaged in nonprofit and community causes. Currently, he chairs the Boards of the Ubunye Challenge and Muslims for Progressive Values. He is a past Board Member of the Harvard Alumni Association, Union Theological Seminary, Marjorie’s Fund, the You Can Play Project, and was the founding Board Chair for the Tectonic Theater Project, which created The Laramie Project. He is the Founder of the Pride Fund of the Connecticut Community Foundation.

Kevin is a graduate of Harvard College. He also received a Masters of Education from Columbia University’s Teachers College, from which he received the Distinguished Alumni Award in 2012, and an MBA from NYU’s Stern School of Business.

Joe Nucci is an expert in breaking down how people talk about mental health. He’s a psychotherapist who corrects widely misused terms, adds valuable nuance, and explains complex ideas in ways anyone can understand. He can take a mental health lens to any hot-button issue. Anyone listening to him will walk away knowing themselves and others better.

Joe reached over 10 million people in his first six months of posting content. His upcoming book “Psychobabble” explores why mental health information is so confusing to navigate and how to understand different perspectives about mental health more quickly. He also has an upcoming podcast, being produced by Luminary Podcasts, where he will take deeper dives into the different mental health topics that he explores on Instagram, Facebook, and Tiktok @joenuccitherapy