Lavender Graduation Celebrates LGBTQIA Graduates, Community

As Commencement draws near to honor all Georgia Tech students who are graduating this semester, another event will specifically honor Tech’s LGBTQIA graduates and those who have worked to make Tech a better place for them.

Georgia Tech’s third annual Lavender Graduation, hosted by the LGBTQIA Resource Center, takes place Thursday, April 16, and will present its inaugural Lavender Awards, which honor faculty, students, staff, and alumni who have made significant contributions to LGBTQIA safety, equity, and inclusion on campus.

“There are so many amazing individuals who work tirelessly to make campus a safer place for LGBTQIA students and employees, and thus far, there has been no formal way to recognize them for their efforts,” said Aby Parsons, director of the LGBTQIA Resource Center. “Lavender Graduation this year will be both an opportunity to celebrate our graduates and to express our gratitude to the unsung heroes of Tech’s LGBTQIA and ally communities.”

The ceremony is meant to honor the accomplishments of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, and ally graduates and serve as a complement to other celebrations during Commencement season. This year, 19 graduating students will participate in the ceremony, the largest number yet, and more than 100 guests are expected to attend.

Those being honored as award winners at the ceremony have been notified, save for one special honoree. This person will be surprised with an award — named for them — at the celebration.

“We’re expecting some pretty emotional scenes on Thursday,” Parsons said.

The first Lavender Graduation in the U.S. was held at the University of Michigan in 1995. Since then, more than 100 institutions have adopted the tradition on their campuses. Georgia Tech’s first two celebrations were a collaborative effort involving the Office of Student Diversity Programs, the Office of Institute Diversity, GT Pride Alumni, and student organizations Pride Alliance and oSTEM.

Learn more about Georgia Tech’s LGBTQIA Resource Center at www.lgbtqia.gatech.edu. To attend Lavender Graduation, RSVP online.