Graduating students who identify as members of the LGBTQIA+ community will receive commencement cords in UTRGV’s first annual Lavender Graduation ceremony, which is scheduled at 7 p.m. Thursday in the Visitors Center on the Edinburg campus.
“Our goal with the Lavender Graduation is to create a more inclusive climate here at the university,” said Raul Leal, Leadership and Mentoring program coordinator for the Office of Student Involvement. “We really want our students who identify under the LGBTQIA+ umbrella to really feel as if their voices or impact to the university community is acknowledged.”
Graduating students attending the ceremony were required to submit a three-page essay.
During the ceremony, students will read excerpts from their three-page essays about how being part of the LGBTQIA+ community has impacted their college experience.
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“After they read some of their excerpts, we’re going to have our keynote speaker, who is [UTRGV Interim Dean of Students] Rebecca Gadson, do her keynote speech,” Leal said. “Following that, we will have the students awarded their graduation cords. We purchased rainbow cords for them so they can use at [the] actual commencement.”
About 15 students applied to be part of the ceremony. Of those 15, about nine students will be able to attend Thursday’s ceremony, he said.
The event is something the university has been wanting to do for a long time, according to Leal.
“It’s something that a lot of universities have been hosting for years,” he said. “Compared to other universities that have been hosting ceremonies such as this, we’re a little behind. That was one of the initiatives that myself and my counterpart in Brownsville, Yaribel Caraveo, really wanted to implement once we got our positions.”
Leal said UTRGV plans to host a similar ceremony for the Fall 2017 commencement in Brownsville.
“This is one of the initiatives that we’re looking at alternating campuses,” he said. “So, this year, it will be held [on the Edinburg campus] and when we are planning the fall ceremony, we are looking into the Brownsville campus to provide that.”
Refreshments will be provided after the ceremony. The event is open to the public.
“We really hope this is a step forward for our university to make sure we create that level of inclusivity for our students so all of our student population feel that they have a representation within our office and within the university and feel more comfortable with the administration in order to bring up issues that they may have.”
For more information about the Lavender Graduation ceremony, call 665-2260.
