Chris Rehs-Dupin, (he/him/his)

Founder of Transplaining for Camps, Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director of TQAMP

Biography:

Chris Rehs-Dupin graduated from the University of Louisville in 2007 with a bachelor’s degree in Theatre Arts and immediately pursued a master’s degree in English Composition, with a focus on Women and Gender Studies. However, life had other plans. After 1.5 years of graduate studies, he left academia to become a full-time camp director.

Chris spent three years as the resident camp director of his childhood camp, Girl Scout Camp Pennyroyal, and then moved to Ohio, where he ran the Girl Scouts of Ohio’s Heartland Elam Environmental Center for seven years, developing sustainable garden programming and a full educational maple syrup operation. At camp, Chris focused on creating equitable spaces for campers of all backgrounds and developed comprehensive staff training materials that made training an impactful and supportive experience.

After a short foray into public service working at the Columbus City Impound Lot, Chris co-founded Transplaining in 2020, which evolved into Transplaining for Camps in 2023. He now stewards the next iteration of this work forward as Founder and President of TQAMP, launched in 2025.

Chris began speaking at professional camp conferences in 2009 and has presented sessions on queer and trans inclusion, staff morale, intersectionality, motivating millennials for success, de-escalation techniques for angry caregivers, fostering belonging, and more. He has also served on numerous panels, including inclusive care of LGBTQ individuals, intersectional equity, and LGBTQ inclusion in churches. From keynotes to breakout sessions, Chris loves working with people to understand how belonging can be transformative in our spaces and in our world.

Chris is the author of the forthcoming book Impounded, winner of the 2026 American Camp Association National Hedley S. Dimmock Award. He is also the recipient of the ACA Illinois Marcy and Bob Brower Award in 2022 and the ACA Ohio Friends of Camping Award in 2023. With a background in theatre, Chris weaves entertainment, humor, and storytelling into his workshops and trainings, creating an impactful environment for learning and growth.

In his non-working hours, Chris is an avid hobbyist who finds joy in making maple syrup, hiking, roller skating, and his most recent obsession: laser engraving. He is an average husband to Amy Rehs-Dupin and the proud father of two children, who are his biggest inspiration to make the world a kinder place.