Transgender youth are among the least served, most at risk members of society. Social workers are uniquely positioned to offer direct mental health services, as well as advocacy, with regard to accessing necessary resources including legal (for name and gender marker changes), health care – transition-related as well as routine. In her training, she examines the multiple risk factors that impact transgender youth and their families, from a solution-focused lens. These risk factors include a 40 percent rate of attempted suicide, increased incidence of homelessness, family conflict, school bullying and harassment, increased vulnerability to hate crimes (including assault, sexual assault and murder). She provides an overview of family relationship dynamics, along with strategies to increase family support, will be explored with an emphasis on increasing parental capacity to support the transgender youth. Family acceptance is a protective factor that is associated with a decrease in transgender youth homeless and a decline in the frequency and severity of mental health issues and an increase in overall wellness. Strategies to support and build upon family and school connectedness will be examined in this mini course. She focuses on specific concerns that apply to transgender and gender nonconforming (TGNC) children younger than age 13, such as understanding gender identify at younger ages, gender affrimng care for children, evidence based strategies to support within elementary and preschool children, and long term guidance and planning recommendations to parents and children that are developmentally appropriate, including the role of hormone blockers, when medically approved.