Gay Conversion Therapy -- Prof. Sheldon W. Helms

Sheldon will be speaking on the topic of Gay Conversion Therapy, providing us with a brief history of the efforts to alter people’s sexual orientation both through religion and therapy, some evidence of the potential risks these processes pose to victims, as well as an overview of the problem in the social, legal, and political domains.

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Sheldon Helms is a Professor of Experimental Psychology at Ohlone College in Fremont, CA where he serves as senior faculty member in the psychology department. He holds a master’s degree in psychology, and is currently a doctoral candidate in the School of Education at Alliant International University.

In addition to his fulltime teaching role, Sheldon serves as faculty adviser to the Ohlone Psychology Club through which he runs their successful Speaker Series, hosting lectures and presentations by top-name scientists and skeptics.
Sheldon is the vice president of the Bay Area Skeptics, and serves on the planning committee for the annual SkeptiCal Conference. He is a frequent blogger for the James Randi Educational Foundation, and was recently appointed co-organizer of the Psychology Forum at the Commonwealth Club of San Francisco.

Sheldon is also the host of the popular ShelShocked podcast, whose wide variety of topics and guests have included magician James Randi, psychologist Elizabeth Loftus, ghost hunters Bryan & Baxter, and pop star Belinda Carlisle, to name a few.